I*; V UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES ^ Vv t* .S^ ^ 1^ ? •». «\ '^ BO,:^TI*§FIE€E: Read deL oil Steel IPiOgers Sculp. "EVEKY SOir OT SOEBOW IS THE BEOTHEH OF AGATHA SINGLETOK. AND EVERY DAircHTEE OF MISFORTITNE SHALL. BE HER SISTEP/' ' TmwleS!BrisTcl. -is ^~ '■"■"' '—^ '•' — ^ «^ ici; ,^ ,^ ^KM)I;g ^ r^^-t;' i ■/.'3- ^secfaarem.ontrl'oens &:c.&:c. .^■ft^' JL 'O K' © o s" ; i^USHED BY G.VlRTDI,P.Alm3R ^^ILES-. P.AIER1J0SXE11 ROW". THE ^*-*^*^^^-**-f^f^**^*** " The devil a puritan that be is, or any thing constantly but a time-pleaser; an affectioiied ass, tiiat cons state without book : The best persuaded of himself, crammed, as he thinks, with excellencies, that it is his ground of faith ; and on that vice in him will my revenge find notable cause to work." Shakspeare. UonDon : Piinteil by C. Tlavnei, 13, Duke Street, Lincolu's-lnn-FioMs. PUBLISHED BY GEORGE VIRTUE, No. 26, IVY LANE, Paternoster Row, AND BATH STREET, BRISTOL. 1823. : 1 i ^ 9 J V ^ \ c V COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. ^ ^Bj tWB^^IO CHAPTER I. " Proteus I am sorry, I must never trust thee more, But count llie world a stranger for thy sake. The piivate wound is deepest: O time, most curst, 'Mongst all foes, that a friend should be the worst !" In a beautiful, sequestered, and delightfully romantic part of the sea-coast, which is bounded on the north and east by the German Ocean, within a mile and a half distant of the east side of Cromer, which has of late years become the resort of the most fashionable company at the bathing seasons, and situated on a cliff of considerable height, projected a ruinous old \ building, known by the name of the Cottage on the Cliff: for it was certainly ruinous about the period at which this history commences, though it has since un- dergone some necessary repairs, before it could be found habitable for its present possessor. Captain Sin- gleton, and in its altered state we will endeavour to convey both that and Gp.ptain Singleton to the atten tion of our readers ; whose extraordinary disposition, 4 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. and whose singular habitude of manners, befitted him alone to become the inmate of so solitary a place ; for no human being else could have lived in this rude and uncultivated part of the sea-coast, which, either in winter or summer, was subject to the approach of the most violent tempests, on whicli many a ship-wrecked mariner had been destined to breathe his last sigh, and many a portly vessel had been dashed to fragments on the rocks ; yet there was no place which afforded such picturesque scenery to the eye of the traveller, nor any situation on the Norfolk coast which held forth so many attractions to the invalid who was desirous of mingling pursuits of pleasure with the hope also of a speedy restoration to health. Yet such were not the hopes, such were not the mo- tives, which had guided Captain Singleton, and his daughter, a beautiful girl, apparently about seventeen years of age, to the Cliffs of Cromer, who was a man of such reserved, gloomy, austere, and retired habits, that no one ventured to enquire into his circumstances, or seemed solicitous or anxious to court an acquaint- ance which he himself appeared sedulously to avoid, and proudly to disdain : it is not to be wondered, there- fore, that Captain Singleton had but few associates, his family consisting only of himself, his daughter, and two domestics, a male and female, and these formed the whole of his establishment. Still another personage was occasionally applied to when his assistance was thought necessary, uvid this was a man of some consequence in the town of Cro- mer ; for he had acquired wealth by his hardy occupa- tion ; having formerly been a fisherman so successful in his voyages and trading on the coast, that it had THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 5 long since enabled him to retire, and live with ease and competency on his fruitful gains. He alone seemed to be on terms of familiar intimacy with Captain Singleton and his family ; it is not that a congeniality of soul or sentiment had driven these two personages together by sympathy or friendship, for Peter Blust, which was the name of the fisher, united to the character of a rough seaman, habits by no means similar to those of the highly finished gen- tleman and scholar, both of which Captain Singleton confessedly was; still it was certain that he very fre- quently visited at the house of Peter, and that their acquaintance began in a very few days after he had landed at the Cliffs of Cromer, in the following man- ner : he had in vain sought for a retired residence on that part of the coast least subject to the approach of the new comers, who daily visited Cromer at the usual period of sea-bathing, and, in one of his solitary walks by the sea-side, he espied the habitation of the fisher. It was a singularly beautiful, wild and romantic spot, and though it was a large, square and handsome built house, of modern architecture, yet it might be said, that it was rising from the white bosom of the ocean, in the midst of the most flowery fields and pastures ; still on every side, the wide expanse was bounded by the sea-coast, which it so efi'ectually commanded a prospect of, that all vessels were seen, going to and fro, that sailed in and out of the harbour of Cromer. Captain Singleton stopped and gazed with unspeak- able satisfaction at the lovely scenery which every where surrounded this enchanting spot ; so remote, so solitary, and yet so boundless and rich in nature's pleasing variety. Some of the finest milch cows he 6 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. had ever seen were feeding in the pasture, and being milking-tirae, two young maidens appeared with their milking-pails, followed by a peasant youth, who occa- sionally assisted them in their employment. " Haste ye, Anne," cried one of them, as she ti"ipt along with her pail, and gaily chaunting the fag end of a merry ditty, " haste ye, and get in the milking be- fore the supper, Anne ; for do you know that Miss Jessy has promised Walter and I that we shall go and see the wake to-night in the village ?" " Wake in the village ! is the wench mad ?" ex- claimed the youth, " why, that wont be till after mid- night, and 'tis a likely matter that old master will let any of us be out after dark ; no, no ! 'tis safe bind, safe find, at Herring Dale, I promise you. Wake, in- deed ! you had better say your prayers, like all good maids, and let such vagaries alone ; for what does it matter what Miss Jessy says ? pretty soul, she is main kind to be sure ! but old master is as stubborn as a rock ; you might as well talk to the winds, as per- suade him to any thing." " I don't care for old master one brass farthing," cried the spirited maiden, snapping her finger in the youth's face, '• and you are as cross-grained a soul as ever lived, Davy; but I shall go to the wake for all you, or old master either !" " You had better mind your milking, and say no- thing about it, Anne," retorted Davy, " for you are just as like to go to the wake as I am to a harvest supper." The approach of Captain Singleton very soon put an end to any further controversy between them, and he enquired of the youth if he knew of any habitation THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 7 , or cottage which was unoccupied round the sea-coast. To which Davy replied, — "No, your honour, none that would be fitting for such a gentleman as you to live in ; there is, indeed, an old tumble-down sort of an house on the top of the cliff, that has had no mortal soul in it for this many a long year ; and good reason why, because they say it was haunted by a spirit, which had no harm in it nei- ther, for it was only a young lady, who sung sweetly, and then vanished away again. So you see. Sir, last year my master, who is a bold man, and who neither fears ghosts nor spirits of any kind whatever, hearing that the Cottage on the Cliff was to be pulled down and sold, goes to the owner, who has since died at sea, and purchased it ; but he was bravely taken in, and swore outrageously, for it is all a ruin. Sir. It it as rotten as a pear ; there is not a whole plank about it, and whoever goes into it is sure to have it tumble about his ears, so master never goes near it. Lord bless you. Sir, it is not strong enough to bear the body of a sea-gull !" " So much the better," cried Captain Singleton, " then the sea-gull and I must shortly be acquainted ; or in other words, my honest friend, as this Cottage on the Cliff seems wholly useless to your master, I will make it useful to me ; and will either become a tenant or a purchaser of it, just as he pleases." " You, Sir, live in the Cottage on the Cliff!" cried David, staring with the utmost astonishment, " you are jesting. Sir !" " Why, truly, friend, I do not look like a man who is much given to jesting," answered Captain Singleton, *^ I therefore wish to make proposals about this cottage 8 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. to your master, which if he is inclined to accept, we will conclude the bargain immediately." David very easily discovered that Captain Single- ton was neither a jesting man, nor one to be jested with, and consequently set about obeying his orders with the utmost alacrity, by shewing him the shortest way he could think of to the habitation of the fisher. CHAPTER II. " Rather rejoicing to see another merry, Than merry at any thing which profess'd To make him rejoice. A gentleman of all Temperance ; but leave we him to his events, With a prayer that they may prove prosperous." Captain Singleton entered the apartment into which he was conducted by David, with the air of a man who, though he had been accustomed to cere- mony, was not fond of it, and when he beheld the old fisherman seated at a table, plentifully supplied with his favourite geneva, and regaling himself with pipes and tobacco, he hesitated to advance, fearful of being considered an intrusive visitor ; but never had he viewed a countenance more conciliating, or a set of features on which nature had stamped the seal of bra- very and humanity so forcibly as on those of the hardy THB COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 9 seaman, whom Captain Singleton immediately ad- dressed on the subject of his visit, and offering some slight apology for the abruptness of his appearance there ; to which Peter replied, — " Why, as to that. Sir, you are welcome once and welcome twice, as the saying is ; as in the first place you are coming to serve me, for it will be doing me a service to take a tumble-down crazy house off my hands ; and in the next place you are welcome be- cause you are a stranger, and entitled to the rights of hospitality. I am an old seaman. Sir, whom Provi- dence has protected from many a hard gale and rough sea, and though I don't like new faces, shiver my top- sails, if I don't see that in your's I like better than ever I beheld in my life ! Come, will you please to take some grog ? but mayhap you may choose to have a morsel of something to eat first, and if that is the case, why, sit down and make yourself free and welcome. Davy, go and tell my girls to get the supper ready, and send it in immediately." So rapid had been the speech of the fisher, that it was not till after David had departed that Captain Singleton could find means to edge in a word, and, al- though to professions, of almost every kind, he had an aversion, yet here was a cordial drop, so genuine and pure in its kind, that he had no power or inclination to refuse it, and without further ceremony drew a chair close to the table at which the fisher was sitting, and helped himself to a glass of water, which so ex- ceedingly astonished Peter, that he exclaimed, — " Shiver my top-sails ! that cock wont fight, Cap- tain. I never drink water myself when I can get brandy, and don^t like to see my friends do so, when c. c 10 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. there is plenty of something better in the house to offer them." On which Captain Singleton mildly replied, — " But if your friends should prefer water to any thing- else, would you not be kind enough to indulge them, Mr. Blust, as I am inclined to think you will me, when 1 assure you that I prefer water to any other drink." " Why, as to that you may please yourself, though you don't happen to please me," gruffly replied Peter, at the same moment that he took an additional whiff at his pipe, "if you don't drink, why, I expect you to eat, that is all, and so the one must make up for the other. Here, girls ! — Jess — Olive ! why don't you make haste with the supper ?" " I beg you will not hurry them," cried Captain Singleton, perceiving that impatience was now strongly blended in the countenance of his host, who had also raised his voice to a higher key, " I positively will leave your house this moment if you use any ceremony on my account." " Shiver my top-sails ! if I let you though, before you have made a hearty good supper," cried Peter, and David announcing that it was quite ready, the fisher arose and led the way to another apartment, where a table was set out with a profusion of the most delicate meat pasties, and every thing that could tempt the appetite to partake of. There were only two covers, however, placed, which intimated that no other guests would be present, at which the fisher glancing his eyes slyly at David, observed, that his girls were yet chickens, and were shy ones. " So, Captain, you will excuse them to-night," eried he, '' in time they will be used to see you, and then THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 11 they will talk to you ; but the little devils are now gone to their roost, I suppose. Husseys, how I love thei%! they are a couple of the finest chicks that were ever hatched, Captain. There's my Jessy, with her laughing blue eyes, sets my anchor afloat whenever I am a cup too low ; and there's my Olive, with her beautiful black ones, when I am apt to be a little boisterous and rough, tempers me to mildness by a tear, which, when I see it trickling down her fair face, makes me as quiet and as harmless as the dove ; so, shiver my top-sails ! they have me both ways ; one takes me by storm, and the other subdues me by her softness, and makes me submit without any violence at all." To all this eloquence, pronounced on the merits of his daughters. Captain Singleton advanced not a syl- lable ; nay, at the very mention of the name of a fe- male he seemed to start with involuntary horror, a cloud of sorrow passed over his brow, and a struggling sigh was checked in its progress by an expression of fixed and unchangeable hatred, which, though reason tempered somewhat of its asperity, had not yet faded on his recollection ; but this emotion was not per- ceived by the fisher, or if perceived, attributed to any other cause than the existing one which Captain Sin- gleton had exhibited ; in a few minutes, however, he recovered his self-possession, and suddenly changed the channel of the fisher's favourite topic, by adverting to the business which brought him there, namely, to become a tenant or purchaser of the Cottage on the Cliff. " Are you willing that 1 should become a purchaser of this cottage ?" added he, " or will you receive me Id THE COTTAGE ON THE CUFF. only as the tenant ; if so, name your terms, and I will freely give them to you." " Avast there, Captain !" cried the fisher, " a word or two to that bargain, if you please. Shiver my top- sails ! do you think I have a mind to be hanged for your sake ? Me, Peter Blust, who has weathered the tempest these thirty years without a rope-yarn being put about his neck, though he has handled many a one with his hands. Bethink you that I am going to do a dirty action at last in my old days, and die like a dog, Captain ?" " You must speak more plainly. Sir, or I cannot understand you," cried Captain Singleton, with a slight colouring mounting to his cheek, and a more than usual sparkling of his eye; " I came hither to offer you a fair proposal, like an honest man, and as an honest man I wish to depart." " Well, and who the devil hinders you ?" vocife- rated Peter, " if you are so self-willed, and must needs fire before you are fired at. I say, if I sell you the old crazy house that stands on the top of the cliff I shall be a scoundrel, that is all." " And why so ?" demanded Captain Singleton, ** is it not your own ? Has any one else a right to dispose of it?" To which Peter immediately answered, " You may go and ask that of the spirit that walks there every night when the wind is easterly, and the sea-gulls, that have roosted there for above this twelvemonth. To be plain with you. Captain, I have been nicely taken in by the fellow that sold me this confounded old wa- ter-butt : I thought it would have made my girls a nice bit of a summer-house, when the weather was fine, so THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 13 I gave him the shiners for it as freely as I would have blowed a seaman's whistle ; but, shiver my top-sails ! when I came to look at it, it was not worth a rotten rope's yarn ! the chimneys are all blown down, and it is nothing better than a sheer hulk ! so I have let it tumble to pieces, inch by inch, this many a long year, for the devil himself could not find a hole to put his nose in, when the weather is stormy ; saving all this, Captain, it is haunted : ghosts dance it there by moon- light, as merrily as maidens do at a gossip's wedding. Now, I say. Captain, if I were to take money of you for this crazy old Cottage on the CliiF, I should de- serve to be hanged ; for if you were to sleep there only one night I am apt to think it would be your last, that's all." The rough but genuine sincerity with which this oration was delivered, so perfectly convinced Captain Singleton of the integrity and well-meaning intentions of the honest fisher, that he exclaimed, — " Mr. Blust, I see clearly that you are an honest man, and would scorn to make a dupe of the inexperienced but con- fiding stranger, while I, believe me, would equally dis- dain to flatter one whom I thought unworthily of: thus far we understand each other ; I think well of you, and you have no reason to think ill of me ; but these are not times, my dear Sir, to trust men either by looks or words, actions alone must become vouchers for their credit. Suppose then I were to deposit a sum of mo- ney in your hands, sufficient to defray the expence of putting this cottage in repair for the reception of my family, or that I am willing to take it in the ruinous condition which you have represented it to be, would you still have any objection to part with it ?" 14 THE COTTAGE ON THE CUFF. " Shiver my top-sails ! no, Captain," cried Peter, " if you are so fond of crazy vessels, take it and wel- come, and repair it how you will, and when you will; I will have nothing to do with that part of the busi- ness : I will only receive a third part of what I gave the tapster for it at the first, and that I am almost ashamed of doing, only 1 know that you are too proud to accept of it on any other terms." " Too just I hope I am, Mr. Blust," cried Captain Singleton, " to wish to possess myself of any man's property, however small, without paying for the va- lue." On these words a sum was offered to the fisher, which he accepted, and Captain Singleton became the owner of the Cottage on the Cliff, which, after being duly inspected by several workmen, was pronounced only fit for the tenants of the air, by which it was so infested, that they could hardly find means of ap- proaching the interior, without disturbing thousands from their nests, which they had built there so long, in no danger or fear of being molested by their mortal enemy, rapacious man ! It was also overshadowed with moss and ivy, so that where the windows had once been, was now scarcely perceptible ; but this the Cap- tain insisted should not be removed, as he loved to see both moss and ivy creep along the walls. It had four chambers above, which had been sleeping rooms, and the same number below ; but so mutilated in their ap- pearance, that it was impossible to define what sort of colour or ornaments had once been bestowed on them. The garden appeared to be the only thing that re- tained a vestage of having possessed objects which once had the power of inviting the eye, and regulating the sense, for here and there a tuft of violets still THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 15 bloomed, amidst the nauseous weeds which had so long been permitted to dwell beside them. There was a cowslip-bed which sent forth its sweets in spite of the reptiles which crawled over them ; but the most striking object in view from this obsolete and solitary habitation, were the white cliffs which surrounded it, so stupendous, and beautifully wild and romantic in appearance, that Captain Singleton as he contem- plated the ocean that rolled beneath them, declared that he considered the prospect from the Cottage the most enviable in the world ; " For here," uttered he, turning towards Peter, who often accompanied him to this solitary spot while the repairs were going forward in the most active preparation, " here I have only the elements to contend with, which is far better than to be at enmity with man. He is more turbulent than the ocean, and I would sooner listen to the howling winds that pour through my casements, than be the sport of more furious passions in the breast of my fel- low-creatures. The waves are stilled, the winds are hushed, by the power of the Infinite Being who rules over them ; but when is the violence of the warring pas- sions controuled in the human bosom ? answer me that. You, Mr. Blust, have never been doomed to bleed under their raging influence — I have ; forgive me, if the re- collection of past injuries wrings from my heart a bit- terness of spirit, which twenty years have not been able to extinguish or quench from my feverish breast." The fisher wanted but little of human discernment, with which he was tolerably gifted, to perceive that the man before him groaned under a burthen of into- lerable anguish, and that he now sought retirement merely to conceal the sorrows of a wounded heart ; 16 THE COTTAGE OX THE CLIFF. bat froa wkat sovroe these sorrow* sprung:, or by wlmt kud iTii wiimwIwi' iaflicteil Peter could not de- it vas rerr anlLkely that be ever would as- Ae secret malady which seemed so deeply to kave takes root is ike mind of Captain Singleton : yet vas SBiiMalepK^paisity in the disposition o{ the to feel for the unhappy and the oppressed, and MK iKTpsnition to relieve them, whenever he con- tken to be the objects of want or penury. He OTerAewia^ pw'se, as well as an overnowin^ kart. in the cause of humamty, and that he never required it ; but in the case of ke ooidd do nothing but what was presented ia the vsaal fens of civility and urbanity of r, ol crcd to a straB^^- landing on the coast. w, k vas eTidoit, that he did not want ; and, fhn«~h Peter was a laan of all others the least jH^Mie to easpicaaa, or evea curiosity, y^ he was anxious to learm Ae hibtmy of tke recluse : aad there were cer- taia tnes, abo, whaa he saspected that all was not right in the aftdrs oi the Captain, and that some mo- tiv« of extraocdmary naport had iadaced hiia to poT" ^ase the Cottle oa the Cliff wado- circuastaaces of so ■ystenoas a aatare, aad to sake a recluse both of Us Waati^ daagh^H*, Ibr beautiful Miss nafeeaedfy was, of whom the fisher had aaly oaoe malialillj eao^t a a^t ; but the i»ce of Agadn, onee sees, coald aot be easily for«:ott^i : they w«re fe a tai e b wUck strwc^ <^c^ly o^ ^^ ^^^ glance of the braider, and l iro ito d their expression on the to plead for, rather thaa deaiaad. Agatha was mdeed iiufhiil belav the siiddle or THE COTTAGE 03 TE^ CLITF. I' ordinary f ize of woeii, but so beaxttifblJj i ber small and delicate shape;, tfcat die ng;fct kare bees a Bodel fi)r tiie Ktataarr ; lier UjbIk being^ jast of sadk sofficient fnlaesi, as to cooTej Ae idea of tibe perfect loreliaeas of wooms, vitkoat etd^r or Tolgarity bein^ attarbed to ft : she bad iiidrrd the looks of an aeriel beiog^ so light, gracefiil, aad nrift. irere ber ■Mvreai0it£« Bat the £ice rf Agatha was not correspondent with her Ibmi ; h«e there was a Hiy . nity withoot pride, ^r i a r ^ withoot weahBess, or eren timiditv : h r hazel ere* lihtmr with brilliaDCT. bnt tbey were tem p ered with a aild aad percing expression of ^oiorfhiw^ Mor6 thai sadhaeas; aid it migfat be said that,wheB she fiaBled,she looked than BortaL &r it was mat the eadle of ^lai- or of the expresEaoa o€ joathfrl sprightliiiesa. Her complexicm was of the hoe of the palest filr, which in any other co— tfaace bvt that^of Agatha's, woold Imve been the eSeet of laBgvn' or iedi^osi- tion ; bat a word, a »Bg^ word, pr(»oiii^»ed by her with enthosiasB, bronght a colour into her cheek, bright as the camatimi tints of morm ; aad Ik^ her eyes sparkled like glittering gems — so solL so hal- lowed, chaste and pore, that they Trri d the M caac* - gers of Hearen : fiw Bothmg eartMy a^^-^-^ -"^d to engage the beaatifbl and annwated spcikr a di- recting ber discoarse to ha* fitther, -i : utain StBg^oD apparently wa5. and who s - t^ to worship abore all cre£:Ti .^r j; : yec :: -^^ _ -:- able that be never addrr-r^ tT e5 hi? :_ r i paid her bat little atteatioB z ^: n^: - t - - r t i aay softness towards her, as :k . i ; - ^ 7 : r ; !;t to do to a frroorite child, bat when A^ - C D 18 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. he loved to dwell on her merits with a peculiar de- light and satisfaction. It is true that Miss Singleton seldom strayed be- yond the boundaries of the Cottage on the Cliff, in which the Captain had been a resident for nearly three months before he received any invitation to the house of the fisher ; for though Agatha had often conversed with the daughters of Peter, the pretty Jessy, and the beautiful Olive, yet Captain Singleton had never per- mitted her to form any closer intimacy with them, though the sweet girls themselves longed to court the society of the charming Agatha, which for a while gave great umbrage to the feelings and the pride of honest Peter ; and on his daughter Jessy, one day, informing him that she had just parted with Miss Singleton, with whom she had been taking a walk on the sea-shore, he quickly replied, — " Shiver my top-sails ! and what did you do that for ? when you know how shy and distant the Cap- tain has been toward us, only because you happened to invite his daughter to come over to Herring Dale to take a dish of tea with us, and now you must needs go, you silly wench, and pop yourself in the way of this Miss Singleton again ! I tell you, Jess, you are as good as she, though mayhap you may not be quite so learned, and I will have you to humble to no man's child, who seems to consider you so much beneath her. There's your sister Olive — you would not catch her running after this Captain's daughter, if the Cap- tain's daughter did not run after her, I warrant me ! no. no ; my Olive is too spirited a wench for that ! — but you, you little soft melting fool" The fisher paused, for Jessy was his favourite ; notwithstanding THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 19 the lecture he was now giving her ; and a tear which was just beginning to start in a pair of the loveliest blue eyes in the world, very rapidly changed his man- ner towards her. The tear was kissed off, while the lovely girl, thus encouraged by his returning smile of good humour, timidly addressed him. " Indeed, father, I did not run after Miss Single- ton, nor attempted to converse with her till, in a voice of the sweetest affability, she enquired after my health and my sister's ; and then I walked by her side for a considerable way on the sea-beach, and found her such a delightful companion ! I do not mean that she is a merry one, father, for Miss Singleton often sighs when no one is observing her ; and when I asked her if she did not feel very solitary since she had come to live at the Cottage on the Cliff, she replied,— " * I ought not to feel solitary in any place, or m any country, that my father inhabits, but perhaps I should feel dull if he were not with me ; it is my father who makes me love every thing, whether I like it or not.' ' So,' says I." Jessy paused and laughed, and the fisher exclaimed, looking at her arch and pretty turn of features with unspeakable delight and satisfaction, " Well, hussy, what did you say ? didst tell her you had a foolish fond old father, who never forced you to like or love any thing contrary to your na- ture or inclination ; — didst tell her that, you gipsy ? and that I take more pleasure in seeing my girls happy than in any one thing beside." To which Jessy, with a sweet smile, replied, — " I did, indeed, tell Miss Singleton something like that, father, and she seemed delighted at the account I gave her of the merry lives we live at Herring Dale ' 2() THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. SO I have been thinking that, as to-morrow is my birth-day " ** You have a mind to invite Miss Singleton to be one of the party, to partake of the sports and merri- ments on the happy day ; is that it, my Jessy ?" cried the fisher. — " Heaven bless thee, thou art a kind- hearted wench, after all ! and, shiver my top-sails ! if I don't go and ask the Captain to grant me this fa- vour, though I don't like to ask favours from any man. Yet I will stretch a point once, girl, for thy sake, because I know it glads thy warm little heart to see folks merry." " And will you indeed, dear father, go up to the Cottage on the Cliff, and ask permission of the Cap- tain to let Miss Singleton join our party to-morrow ?" cried the pretty Jessy, whose eyes sparkled with plea- sure as she anticipated the happiness she should again experience in the company of the beautiful Agatha, — " I will run and tell my sister Olive that she may ex- pect to see Miss Singleton at the birth-day feast, to- morrow." Jessy was now on the wing, had not the fisher ex- claimed, — " Avast there, if you please, my merry mer- maid ! how do you know, though I am going to ask the favour of the Captain, whether I may succeed or no ? and if I meet with a refusal, shiver my top-sails, if I ever ask him another while my name is Peter Blust ! but mind me, Jess, not a word to Olive or to any body else about the matter — mum, if you please till I come back from the Captain." " What, must I not telZ my sister Olive, the plea- sure my dear father is preparing for us ?" cried Jessy in a coaxing accent. THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 21 " Shiver my top-sails ! if you do," cried the fisher. — But Jessy was flown ; her light foot had already as- cended the staircase which led to the chamber of her sister, who was at that moment consulting with Alice, their old housekeeper, on the manner in which the pasties were to be made, in honour of her sister's na- tal day ; and as Jessy advanced towards them, she heard her father desire Davy to saddle the white nag- gie, as he was going on some little business to Captain Singleton's. " What, on such a night as this, Sir," cried David, " when the wind blows easterly, and 'tis dark as pitch ! must you needs choose such a night to go to the Cot- tage on the Cliff?" " And what the devil is that to you, Sir, what night I choose to go and see my friends ?" cried the fisher, highly provoked that David never moved an inch the more for his commands ; " Shiver my top-sails, if the winds blow a hurricane, I will this instant be obeyed !" David now speedily got out of the sight of his en- raged master, and in a few minutes the white naggie was saddled and at the gateway. " Look to your left, I pray you, master !" cried David, with a most dismayed countenance, as he still held the bridle in his hand, " look, how the gale is coming on ! we shall have a stormy night of it, that is certain." " Look at your fool's head !" answered the fisher, and instantly vaulting himself on the saddle, trotted, or rather galloped, fearlessly in that perilous, steep and narrow path, which led to the so-much-dreaded Cottage on the Cliff. 22 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF CHAPTER III. " We were as twin'd lambs that did frisk i' the sun, And bleat the one at th' other : what we chang'd Was innocence for iiiuocence ; we knew not The doctrine of ill doing, no, nor dreara'd That any did." Scarce an hour had elapsed after the departure of the fisher from his own habitation before the predic- tion of honest David was completely verified ; for the winds howled tempestuously, and the pelting rain fell in torrents, while the darkness of the misty atmosphere had increased so greatly as almost to render objects in- distinguishable; in short, there was every distinct sign of an approaching hurricane ; and the lovely daughters of Peter, who had witnessed the departure of their fa- ther from their chamber window, now grew fearfully alarmed at the appearance of the coming storm, and trembled for his safety ; and, calling David, besought him instantly to saddle another horse, and go in quest of his master " He will never reach the Cottage in such a night as this," exclaimed Jessy, pale and trembling, as she watched the progress of the storm, " he will never be able to ascend the top of that fearful cliff, where the precipice gapes beneath, and the ocean rolls so furi- ously on every side ; he would be dashed to pieces on the rock, were he once to attempt it. Fly, David, iu- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 23 stantly fly ! and save our beloved father from imme- diate destruction." "Fly, Miss Jessy!" uttered David, "in God's name, then you must lend me a pair of wings first, for no horse could stand his legs on the surge just now ; if he had the strength of an elephant in his heels, it would be all up with him before he got over the cliff: as to master, he is safe enough, I warrant me ! he has not gone a step beyond the sign of the Trumpeter, I will wager, and is taking a hearty draught of Shelty's home-brewed ale ; for you know, Miss Jessy, master loves to take care of himself as well as most folks, and if I was to go, without being bidden, to fetch him back again, he would tell me to go to the devil, and mind my own business." " And how do you know that your master is safe, you ungracious varlet ?" cried old Alice, putting on her spectacles, and gazing at the encreased violence of the contending elements, " it is well enough for you that are well housed, with your nose in a warm chimney corner, to talk thus ; but if my dear master were to perish in this fearful storm, you mongrel, what would the folks think we were all doing at Herring Dale ? and, if I was Miss Jessy, i would make you stir your pegs, I warrant me, this moment, or know the reason why !" " But not at the risk of his life, Alice," uttered the gentle Jessy, " 1 would not have it said that it was owing to my persuasion that a fellow-creature had en- dangered his existence, therefore stay, David, and do not seek ray father, whom Heaven, I trust, will pre- serve in safety from the storm ; he may by this time be arrived at the Captain's, or taken refuge, as you S4 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, observe, in the house of Shelty, which is not a mile distant ; he has surely got thus far on his journey !" " Whether or no, my dear young lady, I will go after him," cried David. The reproach which the old housekeeper had thought proper to cast upon him, having roused his sensibility, as well as his anger. " It shall never be said that Davy Holdfast was guilty of the sin of ingratitude to a master he has served faith- fully since he was a foot high ! — no. Mistress Alice, I will let you see that I am not the mongrel you take me for, neither." To which the impatient Alice re- plied, — "You are like to be so, if you stand muttering there for no mortal use, Heaven keep me, but to delay time, for thou knowest I do not care what thou thinkest of me, whether good, bad, or indifferent." But these last words did not reach the ear of the highly offended David, for he had flown to the stable, and was mounted on a steed far more swift and formidable than his master's, and without staying to receive any further instructions from his young ladies, or entering into any fresh controversy with the old housekeeper, he rushed out of the gateway on his flying Pegasus, regardless of the lightning, which now flashed more vividly than before, or the peals of distant thunder, which seemed to threaten the very foundation of the strong-built habitation of Peter Blust ; and no sooner was he out of hearing than Alice exclaimed to the lovely girls, — " Well, Heaven be praised, we have done our duty, and should any accident happen now to our dear and worthy master, we cannot be blamed for our negli- gence towards him; therefore, my sweet children, THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFT. 25 weep not thus, for it cannot bring; your father a mo- ment sooner to your sight : if it should please Heaven to take him to a watery grave we cannot help it, for we did not send him there, you know, my loves ; it was his pleasure to go in such a night as this to that fatal Cliff which, report says, has already been the '* The pale complexion of Jessy, and the more death- like countenance of Olive, induced Alice, out of com- passion as well as affection for her young mistresses, to change the tenor of her discourse, as she was wan- dering to something more dreadful in idea than even the danger of the tempest, or perils of the present mo- ment could convey, while the sobbing Jessy instantly exclaimed, — " Oh, no ! Alice, 'twas I that sent my father there, unhappy girl that I am ! I am the cause of my dear father's destruction ! 'twas I who sent him to the Cot- tage on the Cliff!" " You, Miss Jessy !" exclaimed Alice, in the utmost astonishment. " You, Jessy ! repeated Olive, ah, me ! my d^ar unhappy sister, what could induce you to an act so rash ? my father is wont to do all that Jessy asks — that Jessy wishes ; but, in such a night as this, to urge him to go to the Cottage on the Cliff! was it not cruel, Jessy ?" The weeping Jessy, stung to the heart by the re- proach of her sister, in being accused of having driven her father out to meet the fury of the tempestuous wea- ther, wept yet more violently than before; at the same moment that she simply related for what purpose he had gone to the Cliff, and reminded Olive that there was no storm expected, or seemed to threaten them, C. E 26 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. when their father had set out for the residence of Cap- tain Singleton. " True, Jessy," cried Olive, throwing her arms round the neck of her weeping sister, ''• pray pardon me if affection for my father carried me a little beyond the bounds of temperance with my sister ; nor is it in- deed a very likely matter, that you would endanger the life of your father for the sake of one who is an entire stranger, and whom, though you so greatly admire, I do not like." " Not like Miss Singleton !" cried Jessy in the greatest surprise, as the complexion of Olive had heightened into the deepest blushes of carnation as she made the remark, " not like Miss Singleton !" repeated Jessy, " you astonish me, sister Olive !" " why, every body likes Miss Singleton who has seen her !" " Very probably, Jessy," replied Olive, with en- creased spirit, " all who have seen her may like Miss Singleton, but not all who know her, and I — / am one of that number." " You cannot know more of Agatha Singleton than I do, Olive ;'' returned Jessy, " and what have you seen in her to dislike more than I have ? unkind Olive ! why have you conceived prejudices so ungenerous and so illiberal, against one so lovely, so good, so very, very amiable ?" " What, because she is your favourite, does it im- mediately follow that she is to be mine also ?" de- manded Olive, with some asperity, " neither do you know that she is as good and as amiable as she appears to be, or that she is the daughter of this Captain Sin- gleton ; I, for my part, suspect that she is not." THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 27 Jessy, the warm-hearted, good-natured Jessy, not more astonished at her sister's petulance, than hurt at the unkind insinuations she had thrown out against the lovely Agatha, uttered, with involuntary warmth, " For shame, sister Olive ! who has taught you to be so vt'orldly minded ? and why is suspicion become the inmate of so pure and artless a bosom, that you must needs form conclusions so ungenerous, nay, so derogatory to the character of Agatha Singleton? if she was not the daughter of Captain Singleton, would she be living under his roof in the manner that she does ? or supposing that she is not his child, still Aga- tha may belong to some dear relative deceased, and in that case, perhaps, he is bound to protect her. 'Tis plain that some mystery hangs over the destiny of Cap- tain Singleton, for he is unhappy ! and poor Agatha is unhappy too ! I wonder much, Olive, that you can indulge in such ungenerous remarks, because I knov/ that your heart is tender, and that you have always felt for the unfortunate !" A silence of some minutes ensued, during which Olive had totally changed the expression of her coun- tenance, and employed herself in watching the rain, which still continued to descend in torrents from the heavily surcharged clouds, without deigning once to reply to the affectionate appeal which her sister had made to her feelings. Meanwhile Jessy, absorbed in her own reflections, and unable to guess at the remotest cause which Aga- tha Singleton could have given her sister for the unge- nerous sentiments she expressed towards her, or on what grounds her suspicions were founded, and, loving Olive better than any thing in the world beside her fa- 28 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. ther, began heartily to repent of having- invited her fa- vourite at so unfavourable a moment, when the slight- est prejudice could be entertained against her, and much fearing that, if the Captain really permitted his daughter to make one of the party at the birth-day feast, — that the manners of her sister would be so dis- tant, cold and constrained towards her, as not only to be a drawback on her own pleasurable sensations, but occasion some degree of uneasiness to the lovely Aga- tha, and that, instead of a day devoted to mirth and joy, it would be one of pain to all parties, and added to this, was the increased anxiety and fear which she endured for the safety of her father, and, though Alice occasionally endeavoured to dissipate from the mind of the suffering Jessy all apprehensions of her master having been exposed to the dangers of the tempest, which was now beginning to abate somewhat of its vio- lence ; still the lovely girl would not be comforted, by any argument which the old woman could make use of, to relieve the almost insupportable agony of her anxious mind. In which uncomfortable state we must at present leave her, to enquire after the fisher, and his trusty squire, honest David, who had braved the fury of the elements to go in quest of him ; but as Blood-hound, which was the name of David's courser, was not used to be intimidated, neither the flashes of the vivid light- ning, nor the loud peals of thunder, seemed to retard his progress, as he speeded his way forwards, and dashed through one of the most perilous paths that ever was attempted on such a night by mortal traveller ; in which, the horse, not less courageous than his master, seemed to put forth the strength of a giant in contending with THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFP. 29 the fury of the elementSj and, in less than half an hour, David to his great joy, espied a glimmering- light that issued from a window at the house of Shelty, (for he bethought him that it was far more likely to find his master there than at Captain Singleton's,) and once more spurring his fleet courser, he gallopped up to the sign of the Trumpeter, and blowing his whistle, was answered in a squeaking voice from within, which he knew to be that of the old dame, — " Who's there, in such a night as this ? and what want you ?" ^' What, in the devil's name, do you keep folks, drenched with the rain and starved with the cold, stay- ing at the outside of your door, while they are telling you their business ?" cried David, in no very pleasing or gentle accent ; " but where's honest Shelty ? — tell him, I am David, come to seek my master, who set out about two hours ago for the Cottage on the Cliff, and is drowned by this time, if he has not taken shelter any where." " The Lord preserve us !" answered the old woman, instantly unbarring the door, and bringing a light, " I believe a witch has crossed our threshold to night, that's for certain, for I am like to hear of nothing but foul mishaps! but come in, lad, and dry thy garments, and warm thee a bit with the faggot, which 1 have kept burning these two hours for Shelty, and still he does not come; but come, haste thee, lad, bring thy poor beast into the shed, the while you bide here, which I'm thinking wont be long, when I tell you the said mis- chance that has happened at the Cliff. Lord preserve us ! that devilish Cliff has been the grave of thou- sands !' 30 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. "'What, is master drowned ?" cried David, now jumping off his horse, and following the old woman into the house ; and, conceiving that on such a night as this nothing was more probable, he repeated, while he almost gasped for breath, — " What, is master drowned ? oh, poor Miss Jessy ! — poor Miss Olive ! — what will become of them ?" "Your master drowned !" cried old Judith, bawl- ing, as loud as she was able, in the ear of the terrified Da'vid, " no, not quite so bad as that neither, but bad enough ; not your master, you silly goose," perceiving that poor David was already dissolved in tears, " but Captain Singleton is, aye, and twenty more beside, for aught that I know ; for Shelty is gone to hear all about the poor souls. You must know, there is as fine a ship as ever sailed on the salt sea ocean dashed to pieces, right under the Cliff. — Oh ! it has been a ter- rible storm." *' Well, Judith, but how do you know that my mas- ter is not one of the sufferers, as well as the Captain ?'* cried David, " though I don't see how the Captain's life can be endangered by it, unless he went on board, which in such weather was quite impossible." To which Judith, impatient of contradiction, re- plied, — " I tell you again, boy, that Captain Singleton is dead, and your master is alive I wouldst persuade me out of my senses ; did I not hear the voice of Peter Blust, which I have known the sound of these good twenty years, come next Michaelmas ; did I not hear him talking with Shelty, — what was to be done with the poor souls that lay stretched on the sea-beach, without sense or motion. You unbelieving oaf, thinkst THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 31 thou, though I be old, that I am deaf and blind too ? Come, take a sup of brandy, it will warm your heart, as you journey to the Cliff, where belike you are going; to hear the sad tale." " This moment, mother," uttered David, " this mo ment I must depart," and again mounting his courser, he rode rapidly towards the residence of Captain Sin- gleton ; the tempest havii^ greatly subsided, and the sky growing perceptibly clearer, enabled him to pro- ceed with less danger up the steep ascent that led to the cottage, at which were already assembled a mul- titude of surrounding spectators, most of whom were fishermen and pilots, who had been called in to render assistance, but in vain, every soul had perished in the wreck, but five persons, three of whom had expired almost as soon as they were conveyed on the shore ; but it was remarkable that the survivors were two youths, both of whose ages did not appear to number thirty ; but whether they were brothers, could not be ascertained in the present weak and languid state in which they lay, when brought into the house of the Captain, as neither of them had spoken a syllable, or was likely to recover the use of their speech for some time. They were both fair complexioned, but there was no other similarity of feature between them. But the fate of Captain Singleton no one could positively tell ; though the dreadful certainty of what had be- fallen him was probably guessed at ; for before the approach of the tempest, at an early hour of noonday, he had gone out in an open boat, as was his usual custom, and no vestage had been seen or heard of him afterwards; notwithstanding every search and enquiry that could be made was instantly ventured, that the perilous state of the weather could admit of, by the 32 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. immediate orders of the fisher, who, on his arrival at the Cliff, beheld the wretched Agatha, laying in the arms of one of the domestics, pale and motionless, and apparently insensible of the passing scene which sur- rounded her. It was at this moment, that every fibre of the gene- rous fisher's heart bled, at the fatal catastrophe which had so suddenly deprived this young and lovely crea- ture of her only protector : and the recollection, that such might have been the situation of his Jessy, and his Olive, had he perished in the voyages he had so frequently been obliged to make on the rough seas, caused an involuntary flood of tears to gush from his eyes, as he viewed, with the tenderest pity and com- miseration, the pale features of the beautiful daughter of the unfortunate Captain : and at this moment, Da- vid, who would no longer be denied access to the pre- sence of his master, burst into the apartment in which he was, exclaiming, — " Well, Heaven be praised, my dear master, that you are not dead, after all ! You must know. Sir, that you was no sooner gone from Herring Dale, than Miss Jessy and Miss Olive cried ready to break their hearts after you, and though I told them that I knew you were safely housed somewhere, yet they would not be pacified a bit the more ; so I mounted Blood- hound, and came off immediately after you, little thinking what had happened at the Captain's ; poor soul, he has perished, sure enough ! he went out in a cock-boat, when a ship could not outride the storm ; and now, master, 1 wait your orders ; shall I go back to Miss Jessy and Miss Olive, and tell them that you are safe and sound ?" " Shiver my top-sails ! but I am not stout enough % MI«.* SlK'GlJET(DiH"vench, for all thou ' "'es a bit snapped or so ; come, hobble in, and y . . r . fupper, and heat a drop of brandy, for THE COTTAGE OX THE CLIFF. 41 1 am devilish queer ; shiver my topsails, if I don't find my eyes swimming, after all ! for the last time I be- held the Captain, he went across that meadow, when the beans were in blossom, I remember, with that angel of a daughter of his hanging on his arm ; — poor fellow ! he will smell the bean-flower blossom no more ! but (here the fisher caught a glance at Jessy; for Olive, for some reason or other, had at that moment averted her head, but Jessy's eyes over- flowed with tears) — what is the matter, my Jessy ?" cried the fisher, giving her a hearty smack of her ruby lips, at the same moment that he turned towards Olive and saluted her in the same aff*ectionate manner ; after which they all went into the house, where a more explicit explanation took place between them, relative to the situation of Agatha, and the fate of her unfor- tunate parent. The fisher concluding his account of the unhappy sufferers with hoping that they were pre- pared to receive Miss Singleton under his roof, with every mark of attention and kindness that her misfor- tunes entitled her to expect, and entreating them that they would show her the affection of a sister ; for remember, girls," continued the fisher, regarding his daughters with peculiar earnestness, '^ that such might have been your own condition, had it pleased Provi- dence to have made you orphans, like Agatha. I have often been in danger of perishing at sea, in which case you would both have been fatherless, and in want of some friendly hand to have protected your helpless youth ; reflect on this, and when you behold the or- phan daughter of Captain Singleton enter this roof, study to promote her happiness by every means in your power, and make it a comfortable home to her." C. G 42 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. CHAPTER IV. " There's rue for you, and here's some for me. 1 would give you some violets, but they withered all when my poor father died." The grief of Agatha Singleton, unlike that of some of our modern females, might have been taken for a want of sensibility, rather than an excess of it ; but it could only be by those who were unacquainted with the tenour of her harmless life, and the natural bent of her heroic disposition ; for the mind of Agatha, as well as her principles, and even her manners, were those of a heroine. Tempered by misfortune, although only in the earliest bloom of youth, she had acquired what few young persons possess — calm philosophy and patient mildness ; she could, therefore, endure much, without giving vent to her feelings, which, however, were quick, sensitive, and delicately acute ; yet no one knew so well to conceal the anguish of her throbbing heart, or was so prompt to forgive an injury offered to her feelings ; which, though she did not seem to resent, never failed to sink deep into the recesses of her wounded heart, and occasioned her to mourn in silence, though she never murmured at the unkindness of her fellow- creatures : for seldom did Agatha shed a tear, but in the presence of that being alone, who knew from whence it derived its source. Educated in a convent, THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 43 she had imbibed her first principles of religion, which, so far from having rendered her mind gloomy, austere, or melancholy, had taught her that cheerful and rational pleasure was the only basis on which a true sense of Christianity was formed, and that an All-wise and Merciful Being does not forbid us to partake of those many and manifold blessings which he has so kindly provided for our use ; he had made them in vain, if his creatures were not to enjoy them. No; Agatha had learned that it is only when we pervert his good and gracious gifts, that we render ourselves then unworthy of possessing them. And, What has innocence to do with fear ? was, perhaps, the first lesson which was impressed on the mind and the heart of the youthful noviciate, in the Convent of the Holy Sisters. She had neither taken the veil, nor was abjured to do so by the guardians who had placed her there ; and was, consequently, unbiassed in her moral principles and religious duties, by the austere and rigid laws of the convent, or the senti- ments of those who had already embraced a monastic life ; for, before this young and lovely female had so deeply drank of the cup of sorrow, she had been lively as the bounding doe, though harmless and as gentle as the innocent dove. But the elastic spirit which health, fresh glowing in the first dawn of roseate beauty, had given to her blooming cheek, had suddenly received a check, and that the rose was pulled, though time had not withered up its charms, was evident, from the languor which too often per- vaded almost every feature of a countenance which, whether it expressed mirth or melancholy, was always beautiful. 44 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF The unexpected shock which the feelings of Agatha now sustained, was, indeed, so agonizing as to render every nerve powerless, by the sudden whirlwind of calamity wliich had overtaken her. When she thought of being perfectly secure, and ultimately safe from every evil, the death of her only earthly protector, (for so Agatha had been taught to believe that Captain Singleton really was,) had torn every fibre of her gentle heart asunder ; and no sooner hud the worthy fisher departed from the cottage, than she wept abundantly, and beheld herself in the situation that she actually was — an orphan ; not, indeed, en- tirely destitute of protection, or without the means of supplying her present wants, but was it the protec- tion of a father? or were those the means to which she had been accustomed? No, surely not: yet still it was protection, and still those means were left; for she could not doubt of the honourable intentions of the benevolent fisher towards her ; and the valuable jewels which were still in her possession, and which she was at full liberty to part with when- ever she found such an expedient necessary, would always enable her to repay the obligation she snou.d incur under the roof of Peter Blust ; and this thought was so consoling to Agatha, even in the present state of her most anguished feelings, that she endeavoured to moderate the excess of her grief; and perceiving the anxiety which was depicted in the countenance of her faithful Claribelle, who was hanging o'er her in silent, but tender and. respectful sorrow, she ex- claimed, — " I will weep no more, Claribelle ; 'tis ungrateful to murmur at Providence, while it yet leaves the THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 45 means of consolation in our power. Alas ! could tears recal my poor father, I had shed enough in the ocean, where he has found a watery grave ; but well do 1 know that ocean will not give up its dead, nor will Heaven restore what it has taken away." To which Claribelle, rejoiced to perceive in the countenance of her young and lovely mistress an expression of composure and resignation, which, from the nature of her misfortune, she had not ex- pected would so soon have taken place, replied, — " And you think rightly, my dear young lady ; may Heaven, which has afflicted you so deeply, still give you fortitude to bear the loss you have sus- tained, which, it is very true, that all the tears you have shed will not bring back to you again. Myste- rious, indeed, are the ways of Providence, but when were they ever unjust or unwise ? Had your father still been permitted to have remained a sojourner in this world's earthly space, greater calamities might have befallen both him and you. Be comforted, therefore, dear Miss Agatha ; for while you are good and innocent, you will never have much cause to mourn." " It is true, Claribelle," answered Agatha, " that I have heard only the wicked can be really miserable ; but are they not, therefore, doubly to be commise- rated, whose state is such, that no consolation can be given to their sufferings ?" " Yet still there is consolation, madam," cried Claribelle, " even to the unworthy, if they are peni- tent. Repentance must surely be atonement, when it is breathed from a broken, humble spirit, and a contrite heart." 46 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. At these words Agatha, assisted by Claribelle, arose from the couch which she had washed with her tears, while she continued at intervals to address her atten- dant, in terms that proved how firmly she relied on the further protection of that Providence which had not yet wholly deserted her. " I have always been taught the necessity of exer- tion, Claribelle," uttered she, as she bound up the clustering locks of dark brown hair, which had fallen in negligence over her transparent neck, in the first moments of her violent and heart-felt grief, " I have always been obliged to exert the faculties of my senses, and I now learn how necessary it is to practise it, blessed be the convent of the Holy Sisters ! had I never entered that sanctuary, I had not known how to temper misfortune with patience and philosophy." *' Say, rather, with fortitude, my dear Miss Aga- tha," cried Claribelle, half smiling, " and leave philo- sophy out of the question ; it is too cold, too rigid a terra for one so young, so beautiful, as you are ; and Heaven grant that you may never have occasion to feel that it is such ! yet why do I fear ? you have more good sense and prudence than any young female I ever beheld, and may that be your talisman in the hour of temptation !" " Temptation !" uttered Agatha, not perfectly un- derstanding the meaning which was applied by Clari- belle, " what can so wretched a being as I am, Clari- belle, have to do with temptation ? if, indeed, you mean the temptation of vanity or ambition, I have none, but to do good, and to think myself unworthy still of the blessings that I share. I never did evil that I know of, nor ever will, if I can avoid it." THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 47 " Then you must avoid the temptation, my dear young lady," still gravely repeated Claribelle, " for the temptation which I mean too frequently assails us in the shape of good, and by that we are deceived." Some refreshment was now offered to Agatha by the hand of Claribelle, which she partook of much to the satisfaction of her companion, after which the most anxious enquiries were made respecting the health of the two young invalids, the poor shipwrecked boys ; and Shelty, who was left in charge of them by the ho- nest fisher, was instantly summonsed into the presence of Miss Singleton to give an account of them, and who replied to her enquiry of, — " Good Sir, how are the poor boys ?" in the following manner : — " By my faith, lady, there is one of them as stout and as strong as a Hercules, and the other has no more life in him than a mussel ; yet he is the prettiest fellow of the two for all that, and, I will be sworn, comes of noble parentage, for he has the air of a qua- lity gentleman ; but the other is as surly and unlicked a cub as ever you beheld I he has no more manners than a bear, with all the mischievous tricks of a monkey." " You do not believe then, Mr. Shelty, that these boys are brothers ?" cried Agatha : to which he an- swered, — " Brothers ! not they indeed, my lady ; I might as well suppose that a herring and a lobster inhabited one shell." "And do they give no account of themselves ?" re- joined Agatha, " do they not know the names of their parents, nor the country from whence they came ?'* " I have asked them that question full twenty 48 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. times," answered Shelty, " and I understand, from the little smooth-faced gentleman, that his name is Alfred ; that the name of the ship that is wrecked was Alfred ; that she came from the coast of Denmark ; and, what is still more extraordinary, that the name of his father was also Alfred, who was, he believes, the owner of the ship they sailed in, for they called him ' the captain ;' and that when the vessel struck on the cliff he beheld his father plunge in the sea, from which time he had seen him no more, so believes him to be one of the sufferers that perished. ' But pray. Sir,' cried I, ' who is your companion ? what is his name, and the name of his parents ?' now, my lady, I was much struck by the young gentleman's very sensible reply ; for he an- swered, — " ' You ask me what 1 do not know myself, and there- fore cannot tell you, for we were not together in my father's ship, he slept above, and I slept below in the cabin ; I don't believe that he had any body belonging to him in the ship, because he used to eat bits of meat that were given to him; nobody seemed to care about him, but indeed, indeed, I love him, for one thing.' " 'And what is that,' cried I, 'since you are not ac- quainted even with his name ?' " ' No matter for that,' answered the little fellow, ' 1 know he has a kind heart, and tried to save me when we fell in the sea together, and I must love him for that as long as I live.' " ' And it is very likely that he endeavoured to save you from being drowned,' uttered I, ' for you were clasped in each other's arms when you were thrown on the beach.' " ' Yes, he held me fast round the neck,' cried the THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 49 boy, ' with all the strength that he had, for I grew very faint, and very sick, and should have quite sunk down, if he had not held me. Where is he ? pray let him come to the bedside. Sir, if you please, that I may kiss him, because he was so good-natured.' " On this, Dreadnot, as I call him, approached, and had you seen the two boys embrace one another, my dear young lady, you would never have forgotten it ; for my part, the tears rolled down my cheeks like hail- stones on an April morning. I then began to examine the other, and when I asked him his name he gruffly replied, — " ' What do you want to know my name for ? I got whipped once for telling my name to a stranger, and belike you are going to do the same kind thing by me? " To which I answered, — '" But you must tell your name to him wno is go- ing to take care of you, he is your preserver, and you owe him gratitude, you would have perished else.' " The urchin now fixed his large full blue eyes upon me, my lady, and somewhat contemptuously replied, — " ' He my preserver ! God is my preserver^ I do not thank any one else.' And he has remained silent and sulky ever since, to all the questions 1 have put to him relative to his connections ; taking no notice of any one but his fellow-sufterer, and devouring his meals as if he had hungered for a twelvemonth ; but I warrant me, master Blustwill bring him to his bearings shortly, the surly little monkey will soon be taught on what side his bread is buttered, when he goes to live at the Dale. " But in the meantime 1 hope you will have patience with him, Mr. Shelty," cried Agatha, greatly astonished C, li 50 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. at the extraordinary recital which Shelty had given of the manners of the little stranger, whom she felt some anxiety to behold, and converse with, when her mind was more tranquil than at the present crisis of aflfairs ; and again she repeated with her accustomed sweet- ness and gentleness of manner, — " You will bear yet a little while with the temper of this wayward boy, Mr. Shelty, for who knows but he has had bad usage, rough treatment will go nigh to make rough manners, Mr. Shelty." Whether it was the voice of Agatha, or the peculiar cast of her beautiful features when she uttered these words, that attracted the attention of Shelty towards her, we know not : but certain it is, that he rivetted his eyes on her as on one who had suddenly excited some powerful and involuntary emotion of deep inter- -est, which it was possible was not unmixed with a compassionate concern for the untimely fate of her unfortunate father, and the orphan state of his young and lovely daughter, for in a voice much more softened than that in which he had first addressed her, he ex- claimed, — " And can you, my sweet young lady, regard the feelings of others so anxiously and kindly, when you yourself are so heavily afflicted with misfortune ?" To which Agatha replied, — " Yes, Shelty, and that is one reason why I should regard the feelings of others, because my own misfor- tunes remind me of their's ; and although I am thank- ful that I am not alone unhappy and unfortunate in this wide world, yet this thought does not make me feel the less sensibly for the sufferings of my fellow-crea- tures ; I do not rejoice but mourn at the catalogue THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 51 of calamities with wliicFi human nature is filled. The situation of these poor boys is certainly to be far more compassionated even than mine, because they are not arrived to an age of maturity, to consider or reflect on the nature of their misfortune, I have been taught the lesson of adversity, they have it yet to learn." " Why, faith, my lady," cried Shelty, smiling, " I do not think that little surly chops will mind rough weather or smooth, so long as he has plenty of victuals to eat ; he seems to have been used to pretty hard fare, and is not very nice or dainty about what you give him, I never beheld such a little wolf in my born days ; but do not fear, my lady, that I will cross or anger him, while he is under the care of Shelty he shall have plenty, I promise you ; but would you could see the difference that is between him and the other sweet young gentleman; poor little fellow, he will scarcely swallow a mouthful of food, or touch a chop of the nourishing things which Mr. Blust's house- keeper has sent up from the Dale for him, though I dare say that Miss Jessy has had a hand in the look- ing of them up so daintily ; bless her little heart, there is not her fellow in all the country round for trying to make folks happy and merry, like herself! she is as tender as a chicken, as fresh as a rose, and as beau- tiful as a May-day morning: she never frowns, no* she, blow high, blow low, rainingor shining, Miss Jessj Blust is always in good-humour, so that you must know. Miss Singleton, that she is the favorite of all the lads and lassies in our town." " Nor do I at all wonder at it," cried Agatha, by no means averse to listen to the praise of the sweet Jessy, for whom she herself felt the strongest predilection ; 32 fUE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " since nothing can be more agreeable or charm us so greatly as good temper, Mr. Shelty, it is one of the most beautiful features in the disposition of either man or woman, and there is nothing really beautiful with- out it." Agatha paused, she was just on the point of making an enquiry of honest Shelty, who seemed so perfectly acquainted with the fisher's family, and that enquiry was respecting the elder daughter of Mr. Blust, Olive, whom she had only once seen, but her natural prudence repressed her curiosity, for she felt that she had no right to do so, and that it was not delicate or proper, to ask questions of almost an entire stranger, about the dis- position of a family, under whose roof she was so shortly going to be received, on terms of confidence and sisterly friendship. Now whether Shelty guessed at the thoughts of Miss Singleton, from the expression of her countenance, we cannot pretend to define, but it is certain, from the expression of his, which >vas a tolerable blunt one, that he intended to say something more on the subject, for having twirled his finger and thumbs about for five minutes together, he exclaimed,— " So it is, miss, a good temper is a beautiful thing, it is better in a woman's face than the finest complexion in the world, though she had the colour of a lily or a rose. Now there is Miss Olive Blust, but perhaps you have seen our good fisher's eldest daughter, Miss Singleton ?" Agatha replied that she had, and another pause ensued. At length Shelty, determined to say all that he in- tended, yet doubtful in what light it might be received, began with, — ^7&?Tavc£ ':r/J.^V^'^' -J '9 ^.^ ^^^J^/J't^. / Pui'ltshM t-u eJ^rau.e.PuTUfOr, MJni.Ftrtrr?icrtir Row.ilizrchlSZS. THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 53 " Well, miss, and what do you think of her, she is not at all like Miss Jessy, is she ?" " She certainly bears but little resemblance to her sister in person or in feature, if you mean that," an- swered Agatha. To which Shelty bluntly replied, " why yes, miss, that is something like what I meant, but not quite my meaning after all." Agatha remained profoundly silent to this observa- tion ; not so honest Shelty, for he presently added in a sort of a whisper, as if not willing that it should reach the ear of any other person, — " No, miss, I was going to say, though I have taken some time to consider whether 1 should say it or not, that when you go to live at the Dale, you will find Miss Olive and Miss Jessy Blust two very different persons ; in one word. Miss Singleton, I wish to put such a sweet-tempered and beautiful young lady as you are on your guard." Here Shelty stopt to take a little breath, and to see what effect this speech had pro- duced on the feelings of Agatha, who in a calm and placid tone quietly replied, — " On my guard, Mr. Shelty, in the house of your friend and patron, and under the roof of the hospita- ble and benevolent fisher, who has offered an asylum to an unhappy orphan in the bosom of his respectable family ; you bid me to be on my guard — against what — against whom ?" " The eldest daughter of Fisher Blust," answered Shelty, in a firm and decided tone ; for though she is as beautiful as her sister, she is not so good nor so harmless, she is suspicious of everybody, be they ever so faultless, and if you were as innocent as an angel, she will suspect you." 54 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " Suspect me, Sir !" cried Agatha, indignant now for the first moment since her misfortune, and highly displeased with the tenour of the discourse that Shelty had been addressing to her, unauthorized, and unwar- ranted ; she added with warmth, though tempered with mildness, — " of what, Sir, is Agatha Singleton to be suspected ? and by what right do you breathe such an insinuation into my ear, against the daughter of one whom you well know has offered me a protecting asylum beneath his roof, and with whom, it appears, you yourself are on terms of the most familiar inti- macy ? what is your motive, Mr. Shelty, for address- ing me in this extraordinary manner ? unless, indeed, it affords you a satisfaction to render the wretched still more so, by reminding an unfortunate child that she has lost the only friend who could have pro- tected her without censure." " Me remind you of your unfortunate loss, and make you more wretched than what you are. Miss Sin- gleton!" cried Shelty, wounded to the heart by re- proaches he neither expected nor deserved, " may 1 perish this moment, if I intended to do either, or that I did not wish to serve you !" "You surely cannot do that while you give me un- favourable impressions of the character of my friends ;" rejoined Agatha, " and whatever be your intentions, and you know best what they are, I will not again listen to such reports as you have given of Miss Olive Blust, whom I do not know, but when I do 1 will judge for myself, and abide by the consequences." " You may do that and welcome ;" now gruffly re- plied Shelty, " and since, miss, you are so much offended with those who mean you only good, I bid you beware of those v»'\io msy not deal with you quite THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 55 SO fairly, though they may have smoother tongues to recommend them to your notice ; but farewell, miss, and may peace and happiness dwell with you, and your innocence and beauty find you many friends ! I had no interest, Miss Singleton, in the caution I have given you ; — no interest but that every honest man will take, when he sees a lovely young woman like you on the brink of a thorny precipice, and bids her to take care of it ; this was my meaning, I had no other, so Heaven help me ! God bless you, miss ! you may despise poor Shelty, but " Shelty was advancing towards the door, one foot upon the threshold, and the other in Agatha's apart- ment ; he had spoke to her heart with resistless force, and she doubted no longer the motive which had in- duced him to act thus openly, and independently of the prejudice which she might conceive against him for so doing; and Agatha now felt that she was bound in gratitude to thank him, for troubling himself at all on her account; in a voice, therefore, of the most melo- dious sweetness, she exclaimed, — " Despise you, Mr. Shelty ! no, I beg you will never entertain such a thought; it is not in my nature to despise any one, much less you, who are desirous of doing me service, — and you have my thanks most sin- cerely my thanks, for your kind wishes towards me ; I will remember your caution too — ^yes, I will think on your words, Shelty." " Will you indeed, my dear miss, remember poor Shelty ?" cried the poor fellow, heartily glad to find that he had at last made some impression on her, *' and that you will make me your friend, whenfe' had appointed that they should watch for the night,) " wont they love her?" To which Shelty replied, looking at the downcast eyes of Agatha with a peculiar sort of expression, — " Love Miss Singleton, master, — they must have hearts of stone that would not love her. There's Miss Jessy, God bless her sweet little soul, she will love 'Miss Singleton, and be as kind to her as if she were her own sister ! — don't I know Miss Jessy Blust ?— have not I known Miss Jessy ever since her sweet lit- tle lips could lisp out the name of her father ? and she was the prettiest poppet my eyes ever beheld in my born days ; — ah, poor Mrs. Blust, how she doated on 76 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Miss Jessy, and no wonder, she was the very model of her, as like as two peas in the same pod ; she has just such fair hair and merry blue eyes, and when she smiles, and opens that pretty mouth of her's, with, * good morning, Mr. Shelty,' I can't for my life, but think it's my dear mistress come out of her grave again." " Avast there, friend Shelty !" cried the fisher, drawing his hand across his brow, and in a stifled tone of voice, that showed he was evidently affected by the manner in which Shelty had drawn a portrait of his beloved wife and favorite child ; simple, indeed, was the colouring, but it was true to nature and to feeling; and the fisher felt it was so, for he hastily brushed a tear of genuine affection, while, looking at Shelty, he further exclaimed, — " Shiver my topsails ! dost think I can bear this heavy sail, without feeling my eyes a little swiramy ? talk of my Jessy as long as you please, but say nothing about her blessed mother ; I cannot endure it, Shelty ; — 'tis a wind that I cannot weather, for the soul of me ! Poor Peggy ! she was the pride of my heart, and I little thought to have bu- ried her so soon after she brought me that cherub girl, who is, indeed, the image of her, and that is one rea- son why Jessy is the darling of my heart ! not but what I love my Olive too, and why should I not ? Olive is as good a girl as ever lived, only a little too high spi- rited or so, when the humour takes her ; no matter, she is a very good kind of a girl, for all that." It was very singular that, to the latter part of the fisher's speech, Shelty pretended to be deaf, for no an- swer was responded again to the fond father by Shelty, to the praise of his elder daughter, which struck Aga- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 77 tha very forcibly that there must be something very repulsive in the disposition of Olive Blust, which could induce a man like Shelty to be so silent on her merits, when even her father could not draw a sen- tence from his lips in favour of her ; which was an almost incontestible proof of his sincerity, and that what Shelty had uttered to her, respecting the cha- racter of Miss Olive Blust, was too just a portraiture. Still Agatha, ever liberal in her own sentiments, either on the merits or faults of others, shrunk from the painful and mortifying reflection, that she should ever be the object of envy or ill-nature in the house of the fisher, who had so generously offered her an asylum there, from no motive but the purest compas- sion and benevolence ; and much more would she dread to excite it in the bosom of his daughters, one of whom she had seen, and frequently entered into con- versation with in her walks by the sea-side — the lovely, simple, and unassuming Jessy, and whom, she already felt, she should always admire and prefer to her sister; for though Agatha had only once seen Olive, yet there was a peculiar expression in her cast of features, al- though regularly beautiful, that was not pleasing. She had a dark piercing eye, but it was neither lively nor intelligent ; for the glances which she occasionally shot from it had more a mixture of disdain and pride, than of softness or feminine sensibility : the smile on her lip too, was scornful, rather than lovely, and her voice had more of shrillness than melody, when she spoke quick and loud, which was generally the case with any of her inferiors ; yet the figure of Olive Blust was gracefully tall, elegant, and even commanding, apd, on the whole, her beauty was far more striking 78 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF than that of her sister's, till Jessy opened her pretty mouth, and you listened to the sound of her voice, which was melody itself; her complexion was much fairer than Olive's and glowed with health, and every feature was brightened with vivacity and good nature. Jessy too was small in stature, though prettily formed; she was more plump than Olive, but she had neither the elegance nor the majestic height of her sister's figure; still Jessy pleased most, because she had an expressible charm about her that Olive never had, even in her most agreeable humour, and much less was she likely to acquire in the house of her father, which she governed as if she were born to command, and others to obey. Not that Miss Blust ever troubled herself in the household management of affairs, beyond that of finding fault with them whenever she thought proper ; all the fatiguing part of the business was left in the hands of Jessy, who assisted old Alice, the housekeeper, in all her occupations, such as pickling, preserving, making tarts and jellies, looking to the pre- parations being made for guests, whenever any were invited to the feasts of Herring Dale ; seeing that the furniture was kept in order — that the butter and cheese were well made, in short, nothing was done of this kind that was not superintended by the lovely Jessy, who, though two years the junior of her sister, Olive being nineteen years of age, was in every re- spect more fit to be the director and manager of a fa- mily, and the sweet girl was content to bear the bur- then on her own shoulders, so Olive, of whom she was passionately fojid, might escape the drudgery and fa- tigue of the business ; which, however, was without either the knowledge or the inclination of her father. THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 79 and therefore concealed from him as much as possible; He often, indeed, chid his eldest daughter for having too much pride, and endeavoured to mortify the great and inordinate share of personal vanity, of wliich she was possessed, but never had he to find fault with Jessy for a similar weakness ; at which times the fisher would exclaim, when he beheld Jessy in tears for his rebuke to her sister, — " Shiver my topsails ! what are you snivelling- for, Jessy Blust ? did I speak to you ? did I call you to account for being so proud and disdainful ?" " No, father," answered the sobbing Jessy, " I did not say you did, but you distress and pain my feelings the same as if you had been angry with me." " Why, shiver my topsails ! how can that be, you little whimpering fool ?" demanded Ihe fisher, behold- ing the encreased agitation of the lovely girl with astonishment, not unmixed with concern. " By your being angry and displeased with Olive," replied Jessy, " she is my sister, and -we are one ; and when you give pain to her heart, my own shares in part of it. I am happy when you make Olive happy, and when I see her miserable I am wretched myself; and therefore my father is as unkind to his Jessy, as he is to her who has offended him." " Come here, you dear little slut, and let me devour you with kisses;" cried the fisher, penetrated to the soul hy so noble and generous a 'rait of disposition in his amiable child, " there, you hussy, there's a hearty smack for you ; now go and bring your sister Olive hither, and I will serve her the same, for the sake of my Jessy." In this sort of way, (the most re- sistless, surely, that can find a passage to a father's 80 THE COTTACJE ON THE CLIFF. heart,) were all disputes adjusted, and all quarrels set aside in the family of Fisher Blast, by the good natured intercession of the sweet Jessy, in whose lovely, artless bosom, anger or resentment never yet found a place ; and with this disposition, which every body knew that she possessed, it is little wonder that she was a favorite with all ; even her sister Olive, who scarcely loved any thing better than herself, could part with a small share of that self-love to give to Jessy, though she always found means to quarrel with' her on the most trivial occasion ; yet, as they never slept apart, the morning never arose to witness the lovely sisters in anger with each other. When the intelligence had first arrived at Herring Dale of the untimely fate of Captain Singleton, and the wreck at the Cliff, the tender-hearted Jessy had wept abundantly at the situation of his lovely and un- fortunate daughter, while she as bitterly lamented the poor sufferers who had perished in the wreck ; but still the misfortunes of the poor unhappy Agatha affected her yet more deeply, and were ever upper- most in her thoughts : but Olive had not shed one tear, but was constantly lamenting that the absence of their father had deprived them of the company of all the guests that had been invited to Herring Dale, to commemorate the birth-day of Jessy ; to all of whom they had been obliged to send word not to come, in consequence of the misfortune that had happened at the Cliff; and this was, for many reasons, so severe a disappointment to the eldest daughter of Fisher Blust, that when David, by order of his master, informed them of the catastrophe which had taken place, and of the manner in which Captain Singleton had lost his THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 81 life, it occasioned a momentary shock, even to the feelings of Olive ; but when David communicated the remainder of his intelligence, and added, that the Cap- tain's daughter had been invited to Herring Dale, till her affairs were settled at the Cottage, the scornful smile of Olive was exchanged for a frown of the dark- est and most envious hue, and she unfeelingly ex • claimed, — *' Miss Singleton coming to live at Herring Dale ! and pray what is she coming here for ?" *' Lord, Miss Olive, how can you think of asking such a question ? because my master has invited her here, I suppose ; and because she has had the misfor- tune to lose her father in such a kind of manner as to make every body pity her ;" cried David, perceiving the storm that was gathering on the brow of his young mistress, " and because " David stopped, as if afraid to proceed, fill the shrill voice of Olive made him start, and she exclaimed, with no small degree of impatience, — " And because what, you oaf?" The oaf not sounding altogether very pleasantly in the ear of David, he hesitated not to pronounce, — ** Why, because Miss Singleton is so beautiful a young lady, that nobody can look at her without feel- ing pity for her misfortunes, and who can help it ? — she is one of the handsomest, — one of the sweetest, — most beautifulest " " I wish you would go and mind what better be- comes you, than standing prating here a parcel of ri- diculous, idle nonsense, about Miss Singleton;" cried Miss Blust, with a yet more disdainful and angry frown, " who asked you any questions about Miss Sin- C. M 8$ THE COTTAGE ON THE CT>IPF. gleton? I don't want to hear any thing about Miss Singleton ; I only want to know when my father is coming home, and whether he intends to stay out ano- ther night at the Cottage on the Cliff?" " Nay, Miss Olive, you need not be so cross and so snappish with a body, only because I happened to say that Miss Singleton was " It was a fortunate cir- cumstance for poor David that he made a full stop, or his young mistress would certainly have deposited the basin of milk, which she held in her hand, full in his face, so highly had he enraged her with his persevering description of the beauty of Miss Singleton, had not Jessy immediately come into the room, and the whole subject was again renewed by David, with additional force and energy ; but how different was the conduct of the amiable Jessy on the occasion, who, lamenting the great affliction which had fallen on the Captain's family, declared how happy she should feel in consol- ing the unhappy Agatha under her misfortunes, and rejoiced at the invitation which her father had given her to Herring Dale. " Where I am sure," added Jessy, " nothing shall be wanting on my part to make the dear girl comfort- able, if I cannot make her happy." " Not on your part, I dare say, Miss Jessy," an- swered David, as he sneaked out of the room, almost afraid to look behind him, lest he should catch an- other angry glance from the eyes of the incensed Olive, and no sooner was he gone, than the following con- versation took place between the two sisters, began first on the part of Olive, who, flinging herself in a chair, pettishly exclaimed, — '' So, we have had a pretty night of it, and are as THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 83 likely to have as pleasant a day, how provoking, after we h-ad invited all our friends to the birth-day feast, and were to have had such a nice dance; father, too, to stay out so long, as if he could do any good at the Cliff now all is over." Jessy, whose thoughts were alone occupied by the sorrows of the unhappy Agatha, immediately replied, — " Yes, Olive, all is indeed over ; poor Miss Single- ton, how I feel for her misfortunes." No kind of response was made to this feeling and compassionate speech of Jessy, who continued, — " So young, so beautiful, to be so suddenly deprived of her father, her only friend and protector." "All your nice cakes, pasties, and jellies, too, Jessy, that you and Alice have been at such pains in baking, we shall never be able to cut them up for a fortnight though we should have them at every meal." Olive had started this subject, and expressed this regret, merely to avoid speaking of Miss Singleton, it was not that she cared for the loss of the entertainment, and Jessy, much shocked at her apathy, could not help expressing her sentiments at her conduct ; while Olive tartly replied, — " And pray, Jessy, what is Miss Singleton to you, that you concern yourself so much about her ?" To which Jessy mildly answered, " What every one would be to me, were they suffering under the same misfortunes, sister Olive, and what every one ought to be to all who profess to call themselves christians What would you or I be, had we no father, protection, or friends ? 'Tis very fortunate that we have, but surely we are not to forget to feel for those who have not ; indeed, Olive, I am quite hurt to see you bestow such i 84 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. little thought on the situation of poor Miss Sin- gleton." "If you are displeased at this part of my conduct, you may be pleased again," cried Olive, very disdain- fully ; " 1 have my reasons for it, and that is sufficient." " No, it is not sufficient, Olive," cried Jessy ; " none I am sure that can excuse the want of humanity, you have just expressed towards an unhappy orphan." "Well, I don't feel much anxiety about Miss Sin- gleton, that I must declare," retorted Miss Blust, "and I never shall, because 1 don't like her." " But can you tell why you dislike her ?" enquired Jessv, with some archness blended with concern in her love-beaming countenance ; " if you will plainly tell me the cause, I will believe you." Olive perceived the arch look, which her sister had directed towards her, from the dark-fringed lashes of her blue laughing eyes, and quite unwilling that Jessy should slily detect, or even suspect her real cause of dislike to the beautiful Agatha, she blushed deeply, but declined pursuing this conversation any further, saying she had other matters to attend to than the repetition of a name of which she was already quite weary ; she did not know what she should be when she came wholly to reside with them at Herring Dale, whether she might not be able to like her better, but at present she did not wish to say any thing more about her : — " And will that please you, Jessy," cried she, half inclined to be in good temper with her angelic sister, with whom she could not be seriously offended. But Olive was condemned to endure a much severer investigation of her feelings, and to conceal emotions THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 85 which she dared not reveal in the presence of that earthly being of whom alone she stood in awe, and that being was her father, who quickly arrived to aid the benevolent intentions of his lovely daughter, by imme- diately giving orders, that no one dared to dispute, and that was, that an apartment be prepared for the recep- tion of Miss Singleton and her attendants, as soon as possible, at Herring Dale, and every other convenience and accommodation which the house could afford ; old Alice, being summoned on the occasion, desired to be informed where Miss Singleton was to sleep ; and to this enquiry, the fisher returned the following reply : — " Why, shiver my top-sails, in the very best bed T have in my house ; what, do you think, because the poor girl has lost her father, and has no friends in the world to look after her, that I am going to let her see that I know she is in distress ? — no ; I will let her see no such thing, I promise you ; and, shiver my top-sails, if I see any one of you at Herring Dale reminding her of it, if 1 don't send you a packing at a moment's notice, — so go, you old hag, and ask me no more ques- tions about Miss Singleton, I am her father now, and father to the poor boys that old Davy Jones* has spared from the wreck, and we are all one family, and a very comfortable snug family I say we shall be, in long winter nights, to keep the fireside warm." To these observations of her father, Olive re- mained quite silent, for he had given pretty tolerable hints of the reception which he expected Miss Sin- gleton would find beneath his roof, and the respect * A sea phrase. 86 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. with which she was to be treated by every member o* his family ; it was not, therefore, to the interest of Olive seemingly to oppose the wishes of her father, by adopt- ing a contrary behaviour, to an object who stood so high in his estimation ; so, for the first time. Miss Blust made a virtue of necessity, and offered her ser- vices with much alacrity, to assist her sister and old Alice in making such arrangements for the accommo- dation of their expected guests as were absolutely ne- cessary, considering the addition which was now going to be made to their family ; and this unexpected ex- ertion on the part of Olive, so delighted the affec- tionate and good humoured Jessy, that while they were employed in placing a few ornaments in the apart- ment which was intended for Miss Singleton, she threw her lovely arms around the neck of the beautiful (but too artful and insidious) Olive, and exclaimed, — "Ah ! my dear sister, how amiable you appear at this moment, and I think I never saw you look so handsome, — and what is it that makes you so ? I will tell you, Olive, you are now assisting me in the pleas- ing task of trying to render the unfortunate happy,** THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF 87 CHAPTER VI. " The mother dove ne'er watch'd her ynutig, With half the pensive pleasure, The hope, the fear, with which I've hung, O'er thee, my bosom treasure. Come, make thy pillow of my arm, And if a tear should fall, love. Let it Mot wake one fond alarm ; 'Twill be to Heavon^-that's all, love. Not all the united persuasions of the faithful and vigilant Slielty, nor those of the young fishermen, could prevail with Mr. Blust to quit the situation he had designed for himself alone, and that was, of be- coming- stationary in the adjoining apartment, which was next to the chamber of Miss Singleton and her attendant, for which, perhaps, he had a motive that he did not choose publicly to declare, even in the pre- sence of his so greatly-attached friends and kinsman ; for young Craftly was distantly related to a branch of the late Mrs. Blust's family, and out of respect to the memory of a tenderly-beloved wife, had always been received with marks of peculiar kindness by the fisher, and by Olive and Jessy with all the familiarity of an affectionate relative, except that Olive was the most distant and reserved in her manners towards him, though it was evident that these manners were rather 88 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. affected than natural towards the young and handsome Leontine ; for whenever he had been a considerable time absent from Herring Dale, or unusually long on his herring fishery, she frequently expressed regret, and even apprehension, about his safety, but this anxiety was never manifested but before her sister Jessy. Never had Olive enquired of her father, during a fearful and long continuance of any tempestuous wea- ther, if Leontine Craftly had yet returned to his native dwelling, or successful from his voyage round the coast ; not so the unaffected, frank, and open-hearted Jessy, she did not see why she should not feel anxious about the fate of her cousin Leontine ; (for so they always called him at the Dale) or what should pre- vent her from paying friendly visits to Margaret Craftly, his sister, in the absence of her brother, which were always kindly received. It was a ro- mantic and secluded spot, situated about a mile and a half distant from the habitation of the fisher. The father and the mother of Leontine were both deceased, but had left their little all, which they had scraped to- gether by means of perseverance and industry, in which they had been tolerably successful, to their sole surviving children, Margaret, and Leontine ; the former of whom, being considerably the senior of her brother, and who had by choice embraced a life of celibacy, had the sole management and entire direction of his affairs; and although their cottage was but humble, yet it was a happy one, for Leontine never found fault or quarrelled with his sister, but submitted to her government and advice on every oc- casion ; being well aware how far her experience and THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 89 judgment exceeded his own, who, always engaged in his hard and laborious occupation, and generally out at sea, was very glad to possess so faithful a guardian and inspector of his aifairs as his sister, during his frequent long absences, as he was sure to find on his return, that the careful Margaret had rather en- creased than diminished the profits of their industry ; not that Craftly busied himself very much at home about household affairs, or the sum total of expences that had been incurred in his absence, or that he passed the whole of his leisure hours in the company of his sister ; no, indeed, there was always " metal more attractive" to be found for Leontine at the house of his kinsman, the Fisher Blust, who always received him there with the most cordial welcome. The lovely Jessy always smiled too, at his approach, with that good-humoured sweetness, which at all other times so remarkably distinguished her ; and Olive, whose clear complexion was seldom lighted up with a tint of a roseate hue, could not heai of the safe return, and successful voyage of Craftly, without exhibiting some outward signs of satisfaction, when she be- held him at her father's ; nor was Leontine himself insensible to the smiles and attractions of the lovely daughters of his kinsman, though he preserved an equal kind of balance in the favour of both, by paying them an equal portion of his attentions. Never yet had Leontine Craftly been heard to give a separate opinion of the Miss Blusts, whom he always classed together: thus, whenever they hap- pened to be the subject of conversation vyith him and his young companions, — " Yes, they are very good girls," or " yes, they are pretty lasses," and so forth ; N 90 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLTFF. SO that it was utterly impossible to g-uess at the real sentiments of Craftiy, with respect either to the merit or beauty of his pretty kinswomen. Miss Margaret too, it must be confessed, had likewise her favorites in the family of the fisher, but from prudential motives, best known to herself, she distributed her favours to one equally as she did to the other, and was therefore always a welcome visitor at the Dale, whenever her household affairs would permit her to step over and take a dish of tea to which was always added a cake, manufactured by the notable hands of the sweet Jessy, which Margaret never failed to pass the highest encomiums on ; taking care, however, that Olive should come in for her share of the compliment very soon after, so that good humour was preserved on all sides, without giving offence to either party. Still Margaret Craftiy had her little foibles like other folk?, and from which huujan nature, let philosophers boast what they will, is inseparable ; and that was an insatiate thirst of curiosity, and a propensity to know as much of the affairs of others as she did of her own ; consequently when any new comer came to reside for any length of time in the neighbourhood of Cromer, she was always anxious till she could be informed of their history, their circumstances, and their quality — whether simple or gentle ; and never was there a finer subject for enquiry to the curious Margaret, than Captain Singleton and his beautiful daughter, when they came to live at the Cottage on the Cliff; and it may very naturally be supposed that a string of queb- tions ensued, when she went over to her kinsman's to take a friendly dish of tea, which began in the follow- ing manner, by Miss Margaret somewhat lowering her 1 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 91 voice into a sort of half whisper, as she reclined her arm on the back of Olive's chair, while she slyly ob- Berved to the intelligence communicated by the fisher of the Captain's arrival in their neighbourhood, — " Well, 1 protest, he is more welcome to sleep there than 1 am, for what with one thing, and what with another, I think he is likely to enjoy a pleasant life of it ; to be sure he has a right to live in the cottage after he has bought it of you, kinsman, and has laid out so much money in repairing of it ; every body has a right to do what they please with their own money, — but the Captain is a strange man, or he would never think of shutting himself up in that solitary place, which is so frightful when the wind is stormy, that one would suppose the very sea was troubled with evil spirits, and witches and such like, — I say, kinsman, that it is an odd out of the way sort of thing, for a gentleman, like him, to choose to retire to the top of a Cliff, where no mortal soul will like to visit him for fear of the ghosts, which, they do say, haunt that cottage continually." " Haunts a fiddle-de-dee !" cried the fisher, who had listened somewhat impatiently to the foregoing con- versation of his kinswoman ; " shiver my top-sails, why Margaret Craftly, are you going to be such a fool in your old days as to give credit to any such idle story ?" To which Margaret replied, — " Idle or not, kinsman, it is a ^ Sea-side Story.' " " Indeed, Cousin Margaret is right, father," cried Miss Olive Blust ; " I have heard it myself twenty times, and so has Jessy, that a young lady all in white, sits in theivy chamber, whenever the weather is stormy, and sings as if she were hushing a little baby to sleep ; 92 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLlPF. and Alice told us one night the whole history of her, and it is very shocking and melancholy, I assure you ; —it was a lady who " " Came out of her grave on purpose to tell Alice the particulars of her story, very probably," cried the fisher, who had interrupted his daughter with a vio- lent burst of laughter ; " why, shiver my top-sails, dost think, girl, 1 will hear any more of this fool's nonsense; though I don't know but what there is some truth in the young lady, for I have actually seen her at the Cottage on the Cliff." All ears were now open, and all eyes earnestly fixed on Fisher Blust, when he uttered these words, and the curious Margaret exclaimed,— " Bless me, kinsman, you don't say so ? what, have you indeed seen the lady on the Cliff"?" " Yes, and a more beautiful one I never beheld in my born-days," answered the fisher, " and what is more, she is as much alive as any of you — flesh and blood, I will answer for it." " Then she is no ghost after all, father," cried Olive, in astonishment while, surprise was equally blended in the countenance of Jessy and Miss Margaret Craftly, who repeated, — "No ghost, kinsman !" and the fisher burst into an immoderate fit of laughter, while he exclaimed, — " Ghost, silly Margaret, I tell you, no, — unless you call Miss Singleton a ghost, for, shiver my top-sails, if I have seen any other but her at the Cottage on the Cliff!, and no one else, I will wager my life on it." The whole expression of Olive's countenance had changed during this speech of her father's, and an en- vious sneer was too perceptible on her underlip, while THB COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 93 Miss Craftly felt her curiosity on the rack to hear something more of the family which now inhabited the dreary mansion on the Cliff; it was not indeed the first time she had received hints of the extraordinary beauty of the Captain's daughter, for her brother had seen and even talked of the charms of Miss Singleton, one morning when she had accompanied her father to look at the fishery, declaring that she was the most beautiful young lady he had ever beheld, and this cir- cumstance just popping into the pericranium of the wily Margaret, she made use of it as a pretext for a further continuance of conversation, on a subject she was anxious to investigate much more than her kins- man was aware of; and, without being at all consci- ous, or once suspecting that she was inflicting pain on the heart of the beautiful relative, who was sitting beside her, exclaimed, — > " Well, how stupid I must be, kinsman, not to know what you was driving at about Miss Singleton, for, if I had given it a thought, I should have presently known who you meant that was so exceedingly beau- tiful, and that it was the Captain's daughter all the while; yes, it is very true, she is remarkably handsome, and very polite and affable, I assure you, quite a lady, bred and born, as they say." The cheeks of Olive were now suddenly flushed with a colour of the brightest crimson, and turning disdainfully, if not fiercely, towards Miss Craftly, she scornfully enquired, — " And pray, Cousin Craftly, who gave you this ac- count of the Captain's daughter so very particularly ? You never heard any body say she was so exceedingly handsome besides my father, did you ?" 94 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Surprised at this interrogatory, but far more asto- nished at the warmth and manner in which it was ex- pressed, Margaret, who possessed a kind of blunt sin- cerity about her, which she never attempted to conceal, promptly replied, — " Why yes, my dear, but I am very sure that I have though, and from one who never speaks without his book, and that you all well know at Herring Dale ; it was my brother Leontine, who extolled so highly the beauty of Miss Singleton, whom he once saw with her father as they were standing at the sea-side, when he was busy with his fishery, and moreover Leontine said " " I don't want to hear any more about what Leon- tine said," cried Olive sharply, and hardly conscious at this moment of what she herself was saying, or the confusion and anger she had betrayed. " Well, well, child, there, I have done," cried Mar- garet, " though I do not see why you should feel so displeased at what I did say, there was no harm in speaking the truth." Olive, not deigning to reply to this observation, disdainfully cast her eyes down to the ground, which, however, at this moment, were filled with involuntary tears, the real cause of which was only suspected by her sister Jessy, but which was attributed to sheer envy by her cousin Margaret, and to something like jealousy by her father ; not willing, however, to ex- pose this failing of Olive's to the severe censure of his kinswoman, the fisher very ingeniously contrived to turn the current of the discourse ; and no more being said of either the Captain or his beautiful daughter, Olive, by slow advances, recovered the tone of her THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. S5 natural humour, so as again to enter into conver- sation with her honest kinswoman, and before she de- parted front Herring Dale, to resume her wonted man- ner of kindness towards her, though it was very ap- parent that Margaret had left a sting behind ; and that when she was going away, the friendly hand which Miss Craftly held out to her young relative was pressed by Olive with less warmth than usual, and the " good night, Margaret" was pronounced more fri- gidly than occasion required. But the good-natured Margaret had not only quite forgotten the petulance which Olive had so impru- dently betrayed, but, at parting, gave the most cor- dial and pressing invitation to her young and pretty kinswomen to favor her with an early visit, which Jessy promised to avail herself of as soon as possible, adding, with one of the sweetest smiles, — " Bui it v/ont be till after the birth-day feast, you know. Cousin Margaret, and we shall all meet then, I hope, to commemorate that happy day ; Leontine will be at home too, perhaps, by that time, and he will come with you to the Dale, and we shall have such a merry day of it !" To which Margaret, heartily press- ing the hand of the lovely girl, (for Jessy was the pride of her kinswoman,) replied, — " True, my love, I had forgot that you have now nearly numbered seventeen years, though 1 can well remember the day that my Jessy was born : dear child, we have all reason enough to remember it, but we wont talk of it now, love. — Farewell, Fisher ! and when you go to bed to-night put up your prayers for my brother Leontine ; the weather is stormy, and be is exposed to it." 9Q THE COTTAGE ON THlv CLIFF The fisher nodded his head expressively, but did not utter a word, save the response of a good night to his kinswoman, which was always his custom when the wind blew unfavorable for the fishery, and Margaret departed to her own habitation ; but it may easily be imagined what impression she had left on the heart of the fisher's eldest daughter, for the conversation which had taken place on this evening led to that fatal prejudice, which, ever after, Olive conceived against the lovely and innocent daughter of Captain Single- ton ; and which had become so rooted a principle of her mind, that not even the calamity which had be- fallen this amiable and unfortunate young woman, had the power to soften its continuing inflexibility, and which, the many charms that Agatha possessed, only served to encrease and to strengthen ; and that Miss Singleton was admired by every one, was not the only cause of Olive's antipathy towards her. There was another, still more potent than the first ; for she was the object of admiration with Leontine Craftly, whom she had never heard praise mortal be- sides herself; and that he should presume now to do it was a cause of displeasure so great, and a fault so heinous in the eyes of Olive, that she determined, on the return of Leontine from his fishery, to receive him in the most cold and disdainful manner, such as, she was aware, would be wounding to his feelings and in- sulting to his pride, while he would be unable to guess the cause ; for Olive had every species of a real coquette in her composition, and delighted in tor- menting even the only being that she ever fancied she eould love ; if, indeed, her heart was ever warm enough to be inspired with a tender emotion, Leon- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 97 tine, and Leontine only, had ever yet excited any in- terest there. It was no wonder, then, that in such a heart envy, jealousy, or even suspicion should take place; yet beware of it, my dear young- friends, should the fol- lowing pages ever be perused by you, or particularly engage your attention, reflect how unworthy are either of these sensations to find a place in your bo- soms ; for they not only debase ourselves, but they injure others. Envy is contemptible, and jealousy is a mean and dangerous impression, as in cherishing it, it frequently exposes us to the most dangerous and even alarming situations. But to proceed ; such were the circumstances in the house of the fisher, and such was the untranquil state of Olive's feelings, when the fatal catastrophe, and the dreadful cala- mity succeeding it, took place at the Cottage on the Cliff; but even the misfortunes which had rendered Agatha Singleton an unhappy orphan, by the un- timely death of her father, had not touched the heart of this insensate girl with pity, at the severity of a fate which every one else pitied and commiserated ; she still remembered the words of Margaret, who had declared that Leontine had admired the charms of Miss Singleton, and shut her heart out to compassion and to feeling. By what, then, were those feelings suddenly sur- prised and confounded when, on the return home of her father, she was informed of his benevolent inten- tions towards the beautiful and unfortunate orphan, to whom he had offered an asylum beneath his own roof, and now commanded every one to treat with respect and kindness ? what were now the sensations of the 98 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. proud, disdainful Olive, when she should be obliged to offer that homage to Miss Singleton, which she despised, but which there was an absolute necessity for her now showing, or incur the penalty of her fa- ther's displeasure? JLeontine too, even he would de- spise her, and censure her unfeeling conduct, if she betrayed any dislike to one who was suffering under such heavy misfortunes ; — and what was Leontine's opinion to her ? Olive, who was exactly opposite to a mirror at this moment, blushed deeply as she asked her heart this question, and a certain strange flutter- ing there too plainly told her a secret she wished to conceal from every one else, " that Leontine Craftly was an object of the highest importance to her happi- ness and peace." Well, then, she must try to be civil to this Miss Singleton, when she came to live at Herring Dale, though she hated her ; yet at this crisis of affairs she must let nobody know it ; she had already said too much to her sister Jessy about this hated girl, and she must now repair the fault, or even Jessy would feel angry with her. These were the motives that had induced Olive to be so active in the preparations which were making for the reception of Miss Singleton, and to assist her sister and the old housekeeper in getting things in rea- diness for their new comers ; and the innocent Jessy, too good herself to form suspicions of others, never once imagined that such seemingly virtuous conduct was only the offspring of deceit, much less that it sprung in the heart of her sister, and that sister she so idolized. In the evening that Agatha discovered that she had THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 99 been treacherously robbed of her father's effects, and had sent Shelty to apprize the fisher of the dangerous situation in which she now stood at the Cottage on the Cliff, young Craftly had returned from the herring fishery, far more successful than on any of the pre- ceding voyages he had made round tiie coast; of course his spirits were highly elated when he reached his na- tive dwelling, and was folded in the arms of the affec- tionate Margaret, who, rejoicing in her brother's safo return and the successful voyage he had made, forgot to mention the disastrous fate of poor Captain Single- ton, till Leontine, after he had refreshed himself with a few hours sleep, made as many enquiries as he thought necessary about his kinsman, Fisher Blust, and the health of his pretty daughters. " They are both well, for any thing 1 know," cried Margaret, " except that my poor Jessy happened to have but a sorry birth-day of it ; poor little soul, it was a sad disappointment to us, but there is no help for misfortunes !" "Misfortunes, sister! and in the house of the Fisher Blust, my worthy kinsman !" exclaimed Leon- tiiie, instantly changing colour, and exhibiting signs of the greatest anxiety and impatience; "for Heaven's sake, tell me, Margaret, what misfortune has hap- pened there ? is Jessy ill ? — or Olive ? — or what ?" " Why, dear Leontine, you seem frightened I" cried Margaret. "lam frightened, sister;" uttered he, "tell me, instantly tell me, is " It was Jessy that again trembled on the tongue of Leontine, but he was at last relieved from the apprehensions, which, to say truth, he most dreaded, of any accident having befallen 100 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. the youngest daughter of his kinsman ; for Margaret, without further preface, immediately related the cala- mitous fate of Captain Singleton, and the crew of the ship that had perished on the night of the tempest, at the Cliif. At the recital of which unhappy news the generous Leontine shed many tears, while he ex- claimed, — " Poor fellows, they have found a watery grave ! but I hope they are happier aloft, where no future misfortunes can ever reach them ; but poor Captain Sinffleton ! that is the worst of all, sister !" " Why, it is very shocking, that I needs must own," cried Margaret, " and every body ought to feel for the poor girl ; I am sure I do, brother, and so does our kinsman ; he has done all in his power to comfort the dear afflicted child, since she has met with this heavy loss, and she is going to live at Herring Dale, to be brought up with his own daughters ; he has promised to be a father to her." " Has he !" answered Leontine, " why, then, God bless him for it ! and Jessy and Olive too, are happy, no doubt, of such an arrangement being made by their father for the suffering daughter of Captain Singleton : oh yes, 1 am sure that Jessy Blust has too good a heart to forsake the unfortunate ; and Olive too," added Leontine, his colour a little reddening into a deeper tint, " she will be kind to Miss Singleton, I dare say." A silence ensued, which was filled up by Margaret coughing two or three times, but without uttering a sentence in praise of the sisters, which very much surprised Leontine, and, wishing to define the cause, he uttered with affected carelessness, — THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 101 " Well, I will just take a walk over to the Dale, sister, and enquire how they all are, and what sort of a reception they are likely to give Miss Singleton ; surely they cannot but be kind to so sweet a crea- ture !" Margaret had occasion to cough again, instead of making any reply to her brother's observation, which so exceedingly surprised him, that he at last ventured to say, — " I should feel for your cough, sister, were it but natural, and you really endured any inconvenience from it, but you are well aware that you do not ; you are only blinding me." " Blinding you, Leontine ! to what ?" enquired Margaret, half smiling that he had detected her in the little stratagem of hiding any thing from him, that he might not like to hear. "Why, you have twice played the hypocrite with me," answered he, " as to Jessy and Olive not being kind to that lovely creature, when she is under the same roof with them." "Nay, I must deny that, " uttered Margaret, "you never heard me say a word about either." To which Leontine exclaimed, — *' And why don't you ? have you any doubts that my pretty kinswomen will pursue a contrary beha- viour to the orphan whom their father has so kindly taken under his protection ; if so, why don't you plainly tell me, Margaret ? wherefore do you dis- semble with your brother ?" I will tell you, plainly, Leontine," answered Mar- garet, a little hurt by his last insinuation, "that if you speak in such high terms of the Captain's daughter when she is in the house of our kinsman, as you did 1^2 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. ■jfrst noiv, that you will make a hole in your manners that you will not find so easy to mend, that's all, and now you may guess at the rest if you please." L/eontine was surprised, confounded, and even em- barrassed, at this plain elucidation of Margaret's troublesome cough, which had sat so uneasy on her, and for many minutes remained quite silent ; at length he repeated, — " Why, surely Jessy cannot doubt of " Leon- tine stopped and reddened like scarlet, perceiving that the eyes of Margaret were fixed steadily on him, and he added, though with the greatest embarrass- ment, " 1 mean Olive, sister, I mean " *' You mean something, bi'other," cried Margaret, now laughing, " but 1 am sure it would puzzle a body to find out what it is ; all I know, that when I was jast at my kinsman's taking a dish of tea in a friendly manner, we fell into a bit of chat about Miss Single- ton ; and because I happened to say that you said she was very handsome, 1 thought Olive Blust would have snapped my nose off, and was quite saucy, I assure you, if any body had minded her ; but it is no wonder, her father lets her have so much of her own way, that she is quite spoiled." "And what said Jessy r" enquired Leontine archly. "What said Jessy!" repeated Margaret, "why, nothing." " She could not say less," cried Leontine, with a graver tone, and a look that expressed disappoint- ment, which was by no means unremarked by his sister. " Why, you know very well, Leontine," cried she, " that Jessy never says any thing to hurt or ollend any body ; bless her, she would not harm a worm !" THE COTTAGE ON TllR CLIF.F, 103 *' Still yoii should not have mentioned my name in 80 silly a business," exchiiiued Leontine. " And where was the harm of it ?" replied Marga- ret ; " and pray, why should you not give your opinion of Miss 'Singleton as well as other folks, without oitcntling that saucy minx, Miss Olive? who, every body may see, with half an eye, is only envious of this poor girl ; and good reason why, because she is so much her superior." " I should hope not, sister," cried Leontine, now putting on his hat, in order to go over to the fisher, " I should hope not, Margaret, for envy is the foulest weed that can take root in a female bosom. Olive is beautiful herself, and when nature has been, so lavish of her beauties to her, why cannot she spare a smajl portion of it to others." *' Because she does not like to see others in posgesn. sion of these gifts besides herself;" she is a proud, ambitious girl, Leontine, and Heaven grant that our worthy kinsman may not have cause to rue the hour that Olive was born. I have not liked her ways for some time past, nor do I see what right she has to .stick herself up in the parlour, as though she was the first lady in the land, while her sister Jessy has all the drudgery of household affairs to attend to every where else ; the poor thing is made quite a slave of,; and it; is a great shame, I say, that our kinsajan should suffer it." To which Leontine, who fejt hjig. feelings greatly irritated by the account of « the servi-^ tude of the sweet Jessy, and who couldnot contrad^t the assertion, that she was the most active aad indus- trious personage in his kinsman's house, replied \yi,thi. some warmth,— 104 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " And yet she is as delicate as Olive, has feelings as acute, and a heart as tender with a person, which, oh, to me, possesses ten thousand more charms ! 1 mean, sister that Jessy is " " Well, you need not tell me where she is ;" cried Margaret, heartily enjoying- a laugh at the expense of the embarrassed Leontine ; " it is very plain to see where Jessy is at at this very moment, brother. — Well, I protest I always thought as much ! yes, when Jessy was no bigger than a rabbit, I always said to myself that she would be the " The talkative humour in which the sagacious Mar- i^v garet now found herself would probably have been exercised a considerable time longer, had she not per- ceived, by suddenly glancing her eyes towards the door, that it was wide open during the progress of her speech, and that the bird was actually flown ! for Leontine was gone ; he had made a sort of precipitate retreat, to hide his blushes, which had pretty nearly covered the whole of his face, when he recollected how much he had been saying in favour of Jessy ; and that it had partly revealed a secret, he was very far from wishing should be publicly made known to any one, and lamented his want of prudence and circum- spection, when it was, indeed, too late ; for Margaret had now found a key that had unlocked the treasure of his heart, and laid it open for her inspection, and, turn which way he would, he could not escape from her investigation. In a few moments, however, he arrived at the habi- tation of his kinsman, where all unpleasing sensations were speedily forgot by the transports he felt at the sight of Jessy, breathing of fresh health and loveliness TilE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 105 as ever, and welcoming him, after the dangers of his long and perilous voyage, with the most unaft'ected smile of joy and sensibility alternately blending with each other, in her pretty face. Olive Blust was not present when Craftly made his first entrance in the house of the fisher, who, the moment he caught a glance of his young kinsman coming into the gateway, sprang forwards to meet him, and cordially tendered him his hand, while he exclaimed, — " Shiver my topsails, lad ! how dost do? what, thee beest returned safe and sound, never the bit the worse for blowing winds and rough gales ; thou hast had prosperous ones too, my lad." "Yes, thank Heaven, Sir, I have been successful, far, far beyond my expectations, considering the stormy and tempestuous weather we have had almost every day since I have been out ;" answered Craftly ; to which the fisher replied,— " You may say that, Craftly : the devil has blown a gale upon our coast, the most terrible my eyes ever witnessed since I was a fisher ; it has blown away our captain that went to live in my old crazy water-butt, you know, on the top of the. cliff. Poor fellow, he is gone! but (hat is not all : on the night of the same storm a ship was wrecked, and every soul, saving two boys, perished ; but I suppose you heard the whole of this misfortune before you set out for Herring Dale, from Margaret, so we will say no more about it, for, shiver my topsails, if my heart don't ache, whenever 1 think of it ! but where is the use of grieving?" " Grieving's a folly, kinsman," answered Craftly. " So it is, lad ! so it is," cried the fisher ; " so we'll go in and wash it down with a stiff glass of 106 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIPF. brandy and water ; and while T smoke a wliiff of to* bacco, you shall relate the adventures of your voyage, and tell Jess and Olive what a mountain of fish you have brought home with you, — and that will make us all comfortable a bit, wont it? Shiver my topsails, how glad I am to see thee, Craftly !" And the fisher was glad to see his young compa nion, friend and kinsman, for every feature in his warm and benevolent countenance expressed the most joyous satisfaction ; and after another cordial shake of the hand, they adjourned to the old oak parlour, into which Jessy had just brought her work, and was sitting down to it on the entrance of her father, who, pushing Craftly towards her, jocosely exclaimed, — " There's my mountain daisy, fresh as a lark, sweet as a primrose, and plump as a partridge ! Well, why dost not give her a hearty smack ? — why dost shiver and shake so, lad ? Jessy, why dost not get up, wench, and speak to cousin Craftly?" A salutation now was exchanged between the young kinsfolk, of a much warmer kind than either of them was conscious of at the first moment, — and perhaps a certain pressure of Craftly's hand, reminded Jessy that the joy they both expressed at beholding each other after so long an absence, was something more tender than sisterly or brotherly affection, for the hand was quickly and gently withdrawn, and the cheeks of Jessy glowed with blushes, which received a deeper tint, as her sister came into the room, and placed herself between her and Craftly, who took good care to be equally fervent in his salutation of Olive, who, however, received it with a frigidity bor- dering on rudeness, and who congratulated him on THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 107 his successful voyage with a mixture between disdain and pride, her scornful lip scarce deigning- to smile even on the pleasantry of her good-humoured father, who, for some reason or other, did not seem to notice the altered manner of his eldest daughter towards his young kinsman, but, calling for his favorite beverage and some pipes and tobacco, bade Craftly sit down and regale himself, and consider that now his anchor was afloat there was no squalls would upset him, and that he was always in safe harbour, and sure of a snug hammock, whenever he was at Herring Dale. — " For, shiver ray topsails," uttered he, " if 1 don't love thee, lad, as if thee were my own son ; and so does Jess, and so does Oily, too, for all they look so shy. Come, girls, what hast thee good in the house to give your cousin Craftly for supper? — a chicken, mayhap, and a bit of bacon, — I warrant me he has stomach enough for either, hast not thee, Craftly ?" " I am much bounden to you, kinsman, but I pro- mised Margaret to return before supper-time," an- swered Leontine, a little piqued at the coldness that Olive had evinced towards him. " Didst thou !" cried the fisher, " then shiver my topsails if I let you, that's all, so let Madge pout and scold, if she pleases, but I will have my way, — Jess, do as I bade you." Jessy immediately arose — " Cousin Craftly will stay to oblige you, father," uttered she, and smiled. That smile was irresistible, and Craftly sat down to supper, with his kinsman and his family, without a moment's further consideration. 108 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. CHAPTER VII. *' Youth is sweet with many a joy That frolics by in artless measure, And age is sweet, with less alloy. In tranquil thought and silent pleasure: For He who gave the life we share With ev'ry charm his gift adorning, Bade Eve her i)early dew-drops wear, And drcss'd in smiles the bhish of morning." As every man (let him deny the assertion how he will) has his peculiar likings and dislikings, his vices and his virtues, have we any right to suppose that the Fisher Blust was without them ? Born on the rough seas, his cradle had been the tempest, and the keen- blowing winds his nurse ; but his education was the gift of Heaven, for earth had not bestowed it on him ; he was also the favorite of fortune, but by unworthy or ungenerous means he had never obtained her smiles, and therefore was his heart cast in humanity's softest and purest mould, though his language was not al- ways that of smooth-tongued hypocrisy, or polished eloquence, but it flowed from nature, it flowed from feeling, — Heaven had inspired it, and that is the most resistless language in the world. Yet it was certain that the Fisher Blust had his peculiarities of humour, in which he could never bear the slightest opposition, or rather contradiction, to his favorite propensities, one of which was, that when THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 109 sitting down to his meals, with his family around him, he had given the most peremptory orders never to be called from thence, or disturbed by trifling oc- casions, on which more than once he had set the whole of his household in an uproar, by betraying marks of the most violent and impetuous passion. The conse- quence was, that when Shelty arrived at Herring Dale, and informed David that he had particular bu- siness with the fisher, and must see him immediately, that he met with a direct refusal to this request, from both David and old Alice, protesting that whatever he had to say must be deferred till their master had eaten his supper, to which he had only just sat down, and from which, on pain of his displeasure, and even dismissal of their service, they never dared to disturb him. " But what does it signify talking to you about that concern, Mr. Shelty," cried David, " when you know it as well as I do, that lived so long in his service before I was born ; — though you have got the good chance to be in housekeeping now, you have been a servant yourself, and know the ways of Fisher Blust, and that if the devil was riding across his sheet anchor, he would not stir an inch to set it afloat, when once he is stowed in his hammock." "And, more than that, he has got his kinsman with him, young Mr, Craftly, who is just returned from the herring fishery," cried Alice, who was warming her- self before the embers of a large wood fire, after the fatigues of her cookery, without observing the anxiety, and even impatience which was so strongly blended in the countenance of honest Shelty, who, exceedingly provoked at the old woman's apathy, as well as the indifference of David, exclaimed, — 110 , THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " I tell you that I must see the fisher, and see him I will ; I have got a message from Miss Singleton, that admits of no delay, and, as to Mr. Craftly being here, that is no hinderance to the business, for mayhap he will go along with us. There is sad work going on at the Cliff, I promise you, and I should not wonder if, before the morning, we sha'nt all be blown up with gunpowder, and treason, and such like." *' The Lord be good unto me, Master Shelty, and why did you not tell us this before ?" exclaimed Alice, instantly putting herself into a more alert position, while David, not staying to hear further particulars, betook himself into the presence of his master, to whom he imparted the intelligence he had just received from honest Shelty, which put the whole of the party, Olive only excepted, in the utmost consternation ; and Shelty was instantly summoned before them, and simply related the disastrous event which had taken place at the Cottage on the Cliff, and of the danger which still awaited the situation of Miss Singleton, if she continued there without her property being pro- tected from further molestations from the hands of the treacherous Paulo, who, though he had escaped, had doubtless more accomplices in the business." By this time the fisher had quitted his station at the head of his table, and, calling loudly to David, bade him muster all the arms together that they had in the house, and to send for Sam Russel, the fisher. " P'eanwhile," cried he, "Craftly, let you and I arm ourselves in the best manner that we can to at- tack these villains, if they venture there to-night to commit further robbery. Come, let us hasten to the Cliff, and let us save that dear, suffering, persecuted angel fvom being destroyed." THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Ill In one moment all was bustle and confusion at the houseof the fisher. Sam Russel quickly made his ap- pearance, with half a dozen stout fishermen at his heels, who, all prepared for defence, generously and manfully offered their services to protect the property of Miss Singleton from any further depredation of the robbers, at which the fisher exultingly exclaimed, — "True hearts of oak, every mother's son of you, brave boys ! and you wont be the worse for saving a woman in distress, take my word for it ; it will sign your passport, my honest lads, — there!" and tli€ fisher pointed his finger upwards, with an expression in his rough and benevolent countenance, the nature of which could not be doubted or mistaken in its mean- ing ; for every heart felt it, and every eye glistened with something like a tear. What! a tear! and of sensibility too, in the eyes of fishermen ! rough, hardy, and uneducated ; unskilled to fawn, or flatter, where interest only leads the way, and how much profit they will gain by their la- bour is their only calculation through life. Is it pos- sible that such beings can melt into tender sympathy, and tears of sensibility ? — Hush your revilings, severe and censorious critics, and ask your own hearts the true and only source from which sensibility flows! Is it not from the consciousness of having per- formed some kind action, and of having bestowed some compassionate thought on the sufferings of our fellow-creatures ? — and more than all, when we have by any means relieved those sufferings, and behold the change we have produced in their care-worn counte- nances, and the burthen we have removed from the an- guished heart, and the tear we have dried on the Ian- 11^ THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. guid cheek ; — if there is no pleasure to be derived from these reflections, why, then virtue is a bubble, and humanity a cheat. For the elucidation of these reflections, however, we will only apply to the fisher, who, desiring David to bring a small keg of his best brandy before he de- parted from Herring Dale, gave a full bumper of this enlivening beveridge to each of the brave fellows who, unasked, had come forward to assist in the cause of humanity, and who, though no reward awaited them, were ready to protect the property by every exertion in their power, of the unfortunate daughter of Captain Singleton. It was not that Craftly had uttered a word more than the rest of his companions to assist in this bene- volent undertaking, or had expressed any sentiment warmer than humanity in the cause of Miss Singleton, that could give offence to the already-roused jealousy of Olive Blust towards the lovely orphan, who had excited, and drawn all hearts to befriend her ; but there was a peculiar expression in the countenance of her always proud and disdainful, though beautiful fea- tures, that, some how or other, attracted the attention and, perhaps, excited the displeasure of her father ; when Jessy, on his departure from the gateway, en- treated that he would bring Miss Singleton home with him, and added, with her usual softness, — " Pray, father, do not let her stay another night in that horrible place ; indeed, indeed, I am so miserable till I know that she is safe from the dangers of that terrible Cliff"! Cousin Craftly, pray, pray be careful of poor Miss Singleton ! don't let her be hurt, pray don't •" THE COTTAGE ON THE CMFF. 113 Poor Jessy, in the affectionate warmth of her na- ture, had even followed Craftly and her father to the gateway with this injunction, hardly conscious of what she was saying or doing- at the moment ; but so beau- tiful did she appear in the eyes of Leontine, for the generous compassion she had evinced, and her anxiety for the fate of the suffering daughter of Captain Sin- gleton, that, almost involuntarily, he exclaimed, — " Oh, Jessy ! fear not for the safety of Miss Single- ton ! an unhappy orphan, like her, who would not commiserate, and who would not befriend ? while prayers such as thine will ascend to Heaven itself, an- gels will waft them there, the most resistless, because they are the most pure, of human homage ; for Jessy, what would not Leontine effect ? — what would he not risk ? — what would he not endure ? Oh, Jessy ! ask me not to be mindful of Miss Singleton, when, every time I look at her, she will only the more strongly remind me of the kindly, gentle, and compassionate angel, who is so solicitous and anxious for her safety !" Although these words were uttered in the lowest tone that v/as possible, and had reached no ear, save Jessy's alone, yet she treinbled, and turned pale with apprehension, fearful that a sentence should have been overheard by any body else ; for Craftly had never addressed her in this language before, and, however pleased or suddenly surprised by the effect which it produced upon her feelings, there were sufficient mo- tives and causes why she should never permit such language to be addressed to her again, and, as Craftly lingered a few minutes longer in the gateway, it was very likely that he expected her to make some sort of reply to this direct, and even abrupt, avowal of hi? C. Q 114 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. passion. There was no time, then, like the present, and not a moment to spare, to give him to understand the nature of her sentiments on the subject, and that such an avowal must neither be listened to by her, nor yet repeated by him again, and that, whatever pain it cost her, there was a necessity of telling- him so, but which a circumstance now entirely prevented; for Olive, surprised that Jessy did not return immedi- ately after she heard the trampling- of the horses' feet from the gateway, came to enquire into the cause of her absence, and there, to her utter astonishment, and no less displeasure, discovered Leontine in conversa- tion with her, who also, confused at the sudden ap- pearance of Olive, uttered, with evident marks of em- barrassment, — " I shall remember all you have said, Jessy, relative to Miss Singleton ; I will not fail to tell her, you may depend upon it :" and, setting spurs to his horse, was out of sight in a moment, leaving on the countenance of Olive an expression of ill-concealed rage and jea- lousy, and on that of the lovely Jessy, a confusion of sentiments hard to be defined ; yet that her sister was far from guessing at the nature of the conversation which Craftly had been addressing to her, and which she should never be informed of, gave her the most secret satisfaction ; she was therefore prepared for any questions which Olive might think it necessary to ask her, with the calmest composure, and, linking her arm in her's, they returned to the house together, and, being late, also retired immediately to their chamber, but certainly not to enjoy very gentle, or pleasing slumbers ; for Olive was not only out of humour with Jessy, but exceedingly offended with her, because she THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. LlD iuuJ been conversing with Leontine about Miss Sin- gleton, and did not, unsolicited, immediately disclose what she had been saying respecting an object, whom she now mortally detested, in the supposition that she would be, if she was not already, a most dangerous rival in her way of attracting the attention of her cousin Craftly. Meanwhile the thoughts and reflections of Jessy, were not more comfortable or pleasing than those of her sister's, for she dreaded the discovery of Leon- tine's partiality for her, beyond any earthly thing, be- cause she felt more than half convinced, that he was the object on whom Olive had placed her aff'ections ; and, though Leontine was far from being indifferent to her, yet she spurned at the ungenerous thought of superseding her sister in his esteem ; neither could she approve of the abrupt and hasty manner which Craftly had intimated that she was dear to him. He might have recollected that there was some delicacy due to the situation of a female ; of his great obliga- tions to her father, and of the little probability there was of his ever succeeding in her affections; neither could Leontine himself be blind to her sister's predi- lection in his favour, although she had adopted a sin- gular and unpleasing method of showing it ; yet it was perceptible enoagh that she really preferred him to any one else, and she considered his manner of ad- dressing her on this evening rather an insult offered to her darling Olive, than any compliment paid to her- self, and determined to resent it at some more conve- nient opportunity. Thus was the sweet restorer, balmy sleep, with- drawn from the eyes of the lovely sisters, till nearly 116 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. the approach of morning, when they only slumbered, but not rested, from the harrassed and perturbed state of their feelings. To which we will leave them for the present, while we pay a visit to the inhabitants at the Cottage on the Cliff; — the morning which succeeded to the night, on which the kind-hearted fisher and his young and brave companions, had been the faithful vigils to protect and guard over the safety of the afflicted, suffering, and persecuted daughter of Captain Singleton. Never, indeed, since the loss of her parent, had Agatha been permitted to enjoy such undisturbed re- pose, and, exhausted by the tortured state in which her feelings had been kept for successive hours, and the constant dread and apprehension of something more alarming, than even her present misfortune, awaiting her, Agatha slept profoundly ; though be- fore she had retired to her chamber for the night, she used every persuasion in her power to prevail on her benevolent protector to quit his stationary situation, of sitting up the whol'e of the night in the adjoining- chamber. " Indeed, dear sir, I cannot rest satisfied at your depriving yourself of your rest,and enduring so many hours of fatigue on my account," uttered she. At which the fisher smiled, and, shaking his head, declared that nothing should alter his resolution ; " and as to fatigue, my dear," exclaimed he, " I should be glad to know which of us is best able to bear it, you or I; dost think that a seaman must re- gard wind and weather, when he is steering his little cock-boat safe into harbour? not he, indeed ; I am a tough heart of oak, Miss Singleton, never fear me ; I TtlK COTTAGE ON Till; CLIFF, 117 shall take no liann with that watch-coat about niv shouhiers, and this pouch of tobacco by my side, I >varrant me ! there's Shelty too, will now and then light my pipe, and trim my lamp, and we shall jog on merrily till the sweet little cherub that sits up aloft ushers in the break of morning ; so get thee to bed, child, and sleep soundly, there's no one shall disturb thee, I promise thee, while Peter Blust is the sentinel that guards the door." " Agatha, perceiving that the fisher was resolutely bent on his purpose of keeping watch all night next to her chamber, and that no argument of her's could prevail upon him to resign or quit his post, retired, with, " Good night, Sir, and may Heaven eternally bless and reward you V And Claribelle and she arose the next morning so comfortably refreshed by their slumbers, and so relieved from the terrors which had possessed their minds, since they had discovered the treachery of Paulo, that they were both able to pre- pare a comfortable repast for their generous and kind protectors, to whom, as soon as the breakfast was ready, Claribelle immediately repaired at the com- mand of her young mistress ; and the fisher, who had taken several short naps during the course of the night, was presently roused by the voice of the at- tendant, and instantly telling Shelty to go and call his kinsman and Sam Russel, and bring the two boys along with him, he entered the apartment of the now- smiling Agatha, where he received her heart-felt thanks, and the warmest congratulations of the no less grateful Claribelle. " Weil, my love, there has been no occasion for swords, pistols, or gunpowder, as yet," cried the 118 THE COTTAGE ON THE C^LIFF, fisher, taking his seat by the fire, and close to Agatha, " and thou hast rested comfortably, hast thou ? well, so much the better, thou had need of it, child ; now then, let us return thanks to Providence, that things are no worse, and enjoy a comfortable meal. There's my girls, I dare say, are waiting for me, but they may wait long enough : they wont see my face at Herring Dale, till I take you with me, shiver my topsails, if they do ! come, Mistress Claribelle, now then, for your tea and buttered toast." And the fisher was just going to extol the flavour of the hyson tea, when Shelty, Craftly, and Russel en- tered, followed by the two boys, for whom a table had been spread apart, and on which was placed a plen- tiful supply of provisions, and the best that the cot- tage could afford, while the smiles of the lovely hostess sweetened a repast, the most welcome that the fisher and his young kinsman had ever jiartaken of, because it was accompanied with the pleasing and gra- tifiing sensation of the purest benevolence; — the con- sciousness of having performed a generous action, and the reward which Heaven always bestows on it,~ self- approval ! THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 119 CHAPTER VIII. * Fie, fie ! unknit that threat'ning unkind brow ; And dart not scornful glances from those eyes :— — It blots thy beauty, as frosts bite the meads ; Confounds thy fame, as whirlwinds shake fair buds ; And in no sense is meet, or amiable. A woman mov'd is like a fountain troubled, Muddy, ill-seomiiig, thick, bereft of beauty ; And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty Will deign to sip, or touch, one drop of it" Nothing was greater than the contrast which was exhibited in the manners and the countenances of the two boys, when Shelty brought them into the apart- ment of Miss Singleton, nor had any description so entertained the fisher, as that which Shelty had given him of the behaviour of the little hardy stranger, who had hitherto obstinately persisted in refusing, even to tell his name ; and, as the fisher had desired that he might be treated with the utmost gentleness, he had been suffered to give way to all his little pets and hu- mours, without any controul whatever to oppose him. Now, however, it was thought necessary to impose a little restraint on so violent a disposition, for not even the presence of so much company either abashed, or prevented him, from greedily devouring his meal in his usual manner ; and when he had taken a suffi- cient quantity of what he chose, he got up hastily from 12() THE COTTAGE 0^ THE CLIFF. the table, and was going out of the room without fur- ther ceremony, when the fisher, with some authority, called out, — " Where are you going, young gentleman ? I want to speak with you : to which the little savage gruffly replied, — " I am going where I please, and I am no gentle- man : what did you call me gentleman for, pray ?" It was almost impossible for the fisher to resist laughter at the air of effrontery with which this speech was uttered by the undaunted little stranger ; but the singular manners of this extraordinary boy excited his astonishment and curiosity in such a degree, that in a more soft tone he bade him sit down beside him, at which he exclaimedj— " Why can't I stand ? 1 don't like sitting ?" " Why, then, standing or sitting, 1 don't much care," said the fisher, " provided you will answer the ques- tions I am going to ask you, and tell me the truth ; and if you don't, I will make you." " Make me ?" demanded the little fellow, with firm- ness. " Yes, I will punish you ;" retorted the fisher ; " do you understand the meaning of that word?" To the utter astonishment of the fisher, and all pre- sent, he boldly answered, — " Understand you ? to be sure I do, you will l)eat me ; and so you may, if you think J deserve to be beat, only tell me for what, and I shan't mind it," " He is no coward, at all events ;" cried the fisher, in an under tone to his kinsman, who replied, — " And he has one of the finest countenances in the world ; I would venture my life that the boy has been THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 121 dealt unfairly with, and is not what he appears a base- born hireling." " 1 am of the same mind, Craftly," cried the fisher, and turning- to the boy, who did not appear the least intimidated by the foregoing- conversation, he de- manded to know what was his name, and that of his parents. *' Parents !" cried the boy, staring wildly. * Yes, your father and mother ; tell me who you belong to, and where you came from in the ship you sailed in, that has been wrecked on this coast : tell me the truth of these particulars," uttered the fisher, softening his tone gradually to his usual benevolent custom, when he thought any one was suffering, or had been ill-treated ; " and, so far from beating you, I will show you every indulgence and kindness in my power." Agatha, from the moment that this boy had entered the apartment, had fixed her eyes steadily upon him ; she had somewhere beheld a countenance that resem- bled his, but where, her utmost recollection now failed to inform her of; yet she was unable to remove her eyes from his expressive features, which, as Craftly had observed, bore a stamp far more noble than the style of his rude language, or the hardiness of his manners ; and the idea of his being some unfortu- nately neglected, and deserted offspring, whom no one had the humanity or the generosity to own, struck her most forcibly, and, some how or other, strongly inte- rested her for his hapless destiny; and whether the boy had the sagacity to perceive the impression he had made on a countenance so enchantingly lovely, that its softness could not be mistaken, or whether, C. R 122 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. her being- the only female who had ever regarded him with compassionate interest, but the moment that the fisher had pronounced these words, he sprang towards Agatha, and, sinking- on his knees, caught hold of a part of her dress, while he exclaimed, in the most alarmed and terrific accents, — " If I tell him my name he will send me back to the Black Forest, and the woman and the man will beat me ; they beat me before, when I ran away from them. Save me, lady ! save me ! you look like an angel ; perhaps you are come down from Heaven on purpose to save me !" And the boy clung- fast round of the beautiful arm, which neither had the power, or felt the inclination, to resist him. While the astonished fisher continued to gaze alter- nately on the boy and her, without being able to utter a single sentence, at length, more collected, he turned to Craftly and exclaimed, — " Why, shiver my topsails, cousin Craftly ! did you ever see any thing like unto this ? look, how he clings to that angel's arm for protection ! when, who the de- vil is going to hurt a hair of his head ? poor fellow ! he has been hardly used ; if he tells the truth, well, well, he is come into safe quarters : there is the dove protecting the young lion, and who would harm him ?" " That an angel of compassion hovers over," cried Craftly; '• no, kinsman, let Miss Singleton have the management of this boy, and, take my word for it, she will soon tame him." This was accordingly done ; every one left tlie apartment but Claribelle and little Alfred, whose countenance confessed the sympathy and sorrow he felt for his companion, and fellow-sufferer in misfor- THK COTTACE ON THE CLIFF. V23 tune, and, no sooner were they left alone, than the boy quitted his hold of Agatha, on her repeated assur- ance that no one should hurt him, and that she had taken him under her own protection. *' And will you never let me leave you ?" uttered he, " will you never forsake me, lady ?" " No, you will be safe, under the same roof where I shall be protected," returned Agatha ; " you have the same friend, who will treat you as kindly." "And who is that, lady?" demanded the boy, with some impatience. " Even he who has just quitted us, the Fisher Blust ; he who took you and your companion from the sea- beat shore, on which you were driven by the tempes- tuous waves, and, when you were nearly expiring, brought you hither, when you were quite insensible of your situation ; he has since fed, clothed, and che- rished you ; you owe him gratitude for so much hu- manity and kindness ; you might, — you would, have perished, but for the assistance that he afforded you." " Indeed !" cried the boy ; " was he indeed so good to me ? then may I perish, in right earnest, if ever I forget it ! what shall I do for him, lady ? shall I ga- ther sticks for him in the forest, or fight for him ? I can fight very well, and fire off a gun ; I shot at a crow once, and never missed my mark ; they wanted me to knock down a pigeon, that had some young ones, but I could not bear to do this, because she tried to cover the nestlings with her wings ; so I let her go, and then I got beat for it, but I did not mind that, so I had saved the poor bird." " Kind boy ! and you acted rightly ;" cried Agatha, bestowing a look of the sweetest complacency on him. 124 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. at the same moment that she felt a stronger interest than ever in the fate of her little favorite, and bidding him sit down quietly beside of her, and that he had nothing to fear, requested he would tell her his name, and to whom he belonged, and that part of his history which he did not choose to inform any body else of. " Then I will not fear to tell you, lady," cried the boy, " because you have promised to protect me.' *' And I will protect you, to the utmost of my power ;" uttered Agatha, " yes, I will protect you, though I will not take an oath ; yet, take my word, — it is my bond.'* " Yes, lady, I will take your word, even unto death," uttered the boy, "for I know that you will never break it to poor Wolf." " Wolf!" exclaimed Agatha, fixing her eyes stea- dily upon the fine crimson glow which now animated every feature ; " and is that thy name, boy ?" to which he instantly replied, — " So they told me in the Black Forest ; but I have often thought that I had some other name, that did not sound so harshly ; for once I heard Ronaldo say that my father, who died in battle, was a brave war- rior, and my mother, a beauteous lady ; yet, may be, he lied, for he was drunk when he said so ; and when I told him what I had heard, he tied me to a tree and beat me." "Unnatural and cruel monster!" exclaimed Aga- tha ; " and how came you, poor boy, in the hands of so bad a man ?" " I do not know, lady,' answered he, " for Rolando told me that I was born in the Black Forest ; so I be- gan to tiiink, when he used to speak a little kindly to THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 125 me, that he was my father ; but, when he beat me so sadly, I could not think so, lady, because something told me in my heart that if Ronaldo was my father he would not be so cruel ; — then I was afraid of the woman too !" " A woman !" exclaimed Agatha, " and was there then a woman to witness such barbarity, without in- terposing in your behalf? oh, no ! you mistake, boy, she could not be a woman !" " Yes, lady, Ronaldo called her woman," cried the boy, "but she did not look like you ; she was old, and so hideous, that I could never bear to look upon her ; and she used to beat me too ; and when I pouted at her, she would give me nothing to eat but black bread and water ; so, one day, when tliey sent me in the fo- rest to gather firewood, it began to lighten, and to thunder, and the rain poured heavily, so I sat down all night under a tree, for it was very dark, and I could not find my way back again ; when morning- came, I could not see where I had laid my bundle of sticks, nor the basket that the woman gave me to put them in, and I was terribly afraid she would catch me, and beat me ; so I ran a great way out of the Black Forest, till I got into a place where there were houses, and ships sailing in the water, and churches, and castles, and men and women walking about ; but they did not mind me, though I was so cold, and so hungry, and cried so sadly." " No, poor boy, because you were the child of po- verty !" exclaimed Agatha, shuddering at the inhuma- nity of mankind ; " hadst thou been the son of bloated affluence, or the favorite of fortune, they had looked more kindly on thee, and welcomed thee with blessings 126 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. that thou didst not want ! and so, poor Wolf, you were both hungry and cold ?" repeated Agatha, re- garding the young adventurer with the most compas- sionate softness. ^ "\es, lady," answered he, " but I did not hunger long, for I saw some men by the water side, standing by a boat, and they had plenty of victuals, so one of them looked very hard at me and asked me if I was hungry; and when 1 told him of the Black Forest, and Ronaldo, and the woman, how sadly they used me, and that I was afraid to go back again, he swore a terrible oath, and said I should go along with him and his companions, on board of the ship that they were going to sail in, and where nobody would beat me ; and then he swore another great oath, lady, and said that he would bed d if they should, while he had a spunk of rope yarn about him." "He was a sailor," cried Agatha, half smiling, "a true British sailor, and we must pardon rough lan- guage, when it carries a benevolent countenance and a warm heart to atone for its defects." ''And he was very kind, lady ;" continued the boy; " he took me on board of the great ship, and asked leave of the captain for me to go to sea with him ; he said he would give half of his wages to keep me in meat and drink, while I was there, so the captain let me go, and I never was so happy in my life before ; I had plenty of victuals, and nobody beat me ; Jack would not let them, and they were afraid of Jack ; but I shall never see Jack any more, for when the wind blowed hard, he used to climb up aloft, and, one dark night, he fell overboard into the sea, and — and — " unable to proceed with this affecting account of his faithful and THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 127 only friend, poor Wolf burst into a flood of tears, and continued sobbing violently for many minutes. Meanwhile Agatha, who had caught his last words, and guessed at the melancholy fate of poor Jack, was unable to contain the powerful -sensations which now rushed upon her heart, and the nearly similar fate of her lost, lamented father, burst upon her recol- lection with additional and resistless force. " He perished, then !" exclaimed she ; " thy only friend ! thy generous protector perished, and was lost to thee for ever ! — and so did mine, dear boy ! neg- lected and unfortunate boy ! thy destiny then, in part, resembles Agatha's ; alike have we sustained cala- mity, and by the same means ! alike, then, shall you share the little comforts which Heaven has yet spared to me, or has yet in store. Wolf, dear Wolf, you shall henceforth be the brother of my heart, and I will be your sister !" Agatha stretched forth her hand towards the now transported boy, who almost devoured it with kisses, while he exclaimed, — " What, poor Wolf the brother of such a beauteous lady ! then 1 will never cry for Jack again as long as I live ; he used to say he would take me back to Den- mark, when the ship returned, because he was bound to sail in her with Captain Alfred ; but you know, lady, that will never happen now, because both the ship and Jack are gone for ever ! Poor Alfred, who had silently listened to this me- lancholy recital, not without sympathy and concern, could ill bear the mention of his father's name, and hung down his head to conceal the fast and trickling tears which fell over his beauteous face, (for this boy 128 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. was lovely beyond description,) as if unwilling to re- new the grief either of his companion or Miss Single- ton, but they soon perceived how greatly he was affected, and both endeavoured to pacify and console him ; Wolf flew tO his side, threw his arms round his neck, and affectionately embraced him. "Do not weep thus, dear Alfred," cried he, "be- cause I have got a sister so good and so beautiful, for I will try to make her your sister too." "Will you, pretty lady, love Alfred, as well as you love Wolf?" enquired the half sobbing Alfred. To which Agatha, regarding them both with peculiar earnestness, gave a hand to each of them as they bent over her, while she exclaimed, — " Dear boys ! yes, ye are both my friends and bro- thers ! every son of sorrow is the brother of Agatha Singleton, and every daughter of misfortune shall be her sister ; and though we are fatherless by the ordi- nation of Almighty Providence, yet let us always re- member that if we rely on its protection, that He who clothes the lily of the field, and provides for the tender nestlings of the air, will be a father to us all.' THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. }99 CHAPTER IX. " I know, beneath the blushing ro^e, A cank'ring worm is often found ; And even while it sweetest blows, Its leaves with thorns will most abound. And well I know the peach's bloom, A rugged, flinty heart conceals ; While what is hid within the tomb, Its gilded sculptures ne'er reveal." During the conversation which passed between Miss Singleton and little Wolf, David had arrived from Herring Dale to assist in the removal of the family from the Cliff; and a carriage was ordered from Cromer to convey Agatha, her attendants, and what part of her luggage she chose to take with her, to her new residence ; and all this was speedily ar- ranged by the fisher, who, again entering Agatha's apartment, beheld her seated between the two boys, as if, indeed, she were actually the sister of them, and they appeared evidently delighted in sharing the kind attentions of their lovely protectress ; and the fisher exclaimed, on perceiving the rugged countenance of his little friend greatly softened of its inflexible ex- pression, — " Why, shiver my topsails ! 1 believe. Miss Single- ton, that you are a witch, — a very witch ! and that you c. s 130 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. have the power of enchanting every one who cornea near you. So, my little fellow, you are now come to your senses, and have told this young- lady what you refused to tell me." To which Wolf, immediately running up to him, and giving the fisher his hand, re- plied, — " But I did not then know how much I was obliged to you, but my sister has told me all about it, and I am no longer afraid of you and I will fight for you, if you will let me. 1 told my pretty sister how well I could fight ; 1 am very fond of fighting ; Jack showed me how to fight when I was on board of the ship, and I have never forgotten it." The fisher by turns surveyed the countenance of Agatha, and that of little Wolf, but w ithout being able to resist from laughter, and soon being informed why he had laid claim to Miss Singleton as his sister, and every particular he had related to her, of the man- ner he had been treated in the Black Forest, of the cruelty of the man and woman in whose hands he had fallen, and of the protection and kindness of the ho- nest Jack Tar, who had so unfortunately perished in the sea, the fisher expressed the greatest astonish- ment ; no longer entertaining a doubt but the boy had either been secreted by these perfidious wretches, for some nefarious and wicked purpose, or that he had been deserted by the authors of his being, who, how- ever illustrious or great, had brought him forth in shame, and left him to a wild and merciless world for protection, or what was even more to be dreaded, had employed persons either to destroy him, or conceal the origin of his birth; at all events, it was very clear that the boy was neither the offspring of the woman rilK COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 131 nor the man, from the sentences which had escaped from the lips of the latter, when as Wolf expressed it, he was lying in a state of inebriety, and that he knew who were the parents of the child was certain, and for what purpose he was concealed was as probable, but that mystery had now thrown an impervious veil over these circumstances, which it was very unlikely would ever be removed, except by the miraculous assistance of divine interposition, the fisher was aware, as he had no clue to discover what part of Denmark the ship had sailed from, or where the forest was situated that the boy had spoken of, as being the place in which these barbarians had so long secreted him ; and he was almost as much in the dark about the history of his young companion, for Alfred could give no further account of himself than, that his father was the cap- tain of the ship in which he had sailed, previous to which he had been taken from an academy, where he had been placed for his education, and which was very far distant from Denmark ; that he had never known any other home but this ; that he had never beheld his mother, and did not know that he had any relative living that belonged to him ; that when at the aca- demy he only saw Captain Alfred, who said he was his father, once in the year, and then he brought him presents and clothes, and paid all his expences, till the ensuing year came round again. " And do you not know the name of the person who kept this academy, my dear little fellow ?" demanded the fisher, viewing the fine handsome features of the little narrator with peculiar kindness : to which he replied, — " His name was Stoddart, Sir, one of them, (for 132 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. there were two masters,) and the other was called Se- bastian ; he was a foreigner, a Spaniard, I believe, and used to teach us foreign languages ; he taught us French and Italian, and the use of the globes ; but I liked Stoddart best, because he was an Englishman, and so was my father." " Shiver my topsails ! if your father was any the better for that," cried the fisher ; " there's good and bad in all countries, my fine fellow, and England has no more right to boast of superiority in this respect than any other ; but it don't matter what country we belong to, as long as we perform our duty to enable us to journey to that where we must all meet, every mother's son of us, whether we are princes, peasants, or slaves, and where no distinction will be made, ex- cept in the degrees of how we have merited a title, or deserved a place there ; so, my dear boy, not know- ing- whether you were born rich or poor, you must e'en rank with your fellow-sufferer there ; and shake hands with each other, for he is now your brother in the calamity by which you are both, it is very pro- bably, orphans ; but be thankful that you are not un- protected ones, but have fallen into hands that will take charge of you, and henceforth, Alfred and Wolt^ ye shall both be the sonsof Fisher Blust; and, if you are good boys, shiver my topsails ! if ever you shall have reason to lament the hour that Providence threw you on this coast for protection. Come, I am now going to take you to another home, where too, you will find some more sisters, besides this young lady, to keep you company." " And how many, pray. Sir ?" demanded Wolf, with some anxiety depicted in his countenance. THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 133 " Two," answered the fisher ; " I have two daugh- ters, much about the same age as Miss Singleton." " And are they both so beautiful, and good tem- pered as she, said Wolf? and do they look so much like an angel ?" "Shiver my topsails!" answered the fisher, now laughing heartily, " but if you had numbered more years, boy, you would be a pretty sort of chick to take to roost with my girls ; but come, there is little danger at the present moment, and you shall tell me at Herring Dale which of your sisters is most to your mind, for you are one of those, 1 perceive, who will not be over fond of much ceremony. Come, Wolf, you must bear me company; Alfred must go in the carriage with Miss Singleton, because he is not so well able to walk as you." Wolf, on these words, darted a look at Agatha, and instantly springing to her side, caught hold of the skirts of her gown, and resolutely persisted that he would not leave her behind hira. "But she is going also," cried the fisher; "you will see her again in a few moments." " And why may I not go with her as well as Alfred ?" answered Wolf, " she called me brother first, so I will be the last to leave her ; — I will never leave her ; beat me, if you please, but indeed, indeed, father, I will never leave my sister !" " I will make room for Wolf, if you please. Sir," cried Agatha, unable to resist the growing partiality she felt for the boy. " Well, but, my dear, you will be so crowded, all jostled up together in one chaise !" said the fisher. "Well, but I don't mind that, Sir," rejoined Aga- 134 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIIF. tha, anxiously ; " let Wolf have his way, this once, I implore you !" "Implore me, Miss Singleton!" cried the fisher, surprised at the emotion which her countenance so earnestly betrayed, " and for the sake of that boy, do you find it already necessary to implore me ? well, well, be it so, if you wish it ; let Wolf this once, a' your request, have his way ; but, in future, he must not expect such foolish indulgence, or that I will suffer you to be annoyed thus on every occasion with his perverse behaviour." " He will be more tractable in time," answered Agatha mildly, and blushing deeply, that perhaps she had betrayed more anxiety for the little wanderer than her own forlorn and dependant situation warranted. Meanwhile Wolf, having gained his point, sat a silent spectator of the preparations which were making for their departure, without being conscious of any sensation but of joy, that he was not to be separated from his lovely sister, whose countenance he inces- santly watched with the most vigilant earnestness ; and when she quitted the room with Claribelle for a few minutes, to inspect such articles as she wished to be removed from the Cliff with the luggage, which Shelty was assisting David to put into a cart, he eagerly pursued her to the door, till she was obliged gently to reprove him. " Wolf, you must not follow me where I am going," cried she ; " it is improper, and it is indelicate ; re- member where you are, I beg of you, or you will greatly offend your protector ; he likes not forward behaviour, nor do I : if you wish that I should regard you as my brother, you must deserve it, by attending THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 135 to my instructions ; then, I will return in a few mo- ments. — Sit down by Alfred, till the fisher calls you." Wolf iuuiiediately obeyed, and during the absence of Miss Singleton, began conversing with his com- panion about their departure from the Cottage on the Cliff. " I am glad I am going from this frightful place, are not you, Wolf?" cried Alfred : to which Wolf re- plied, — " Yes, but I don't mind it much ; I have had plenty of victuals to eat, and a nice soft bed to sleep on, and nobody to beat me, and such a beautiful lady to speak to, and I would not care if I stayed here all my life, if she was with me ; — don't you love her, Alfred?" "Yes, very much; — she is very kind; but we are going to see some more sisters, and they may be as kind as her. and then, you know, it would be very un- grateful if we did not love them too, because our pro- tector is their father ; he has told us that our other sisters are his daughters." " I don't care who his daughters are, not I," an- swered Wolf; "for may I be beat twenty times a day, if ever 1 shall love them half so well as I do her !" " Do not say that, Wolf, pray don't," cried Alfred, " or you may chance to make the fisher angry." " Well, let him be so, an' he will," answered Wolf, gruffly, " but I will say it, if I please, for all that, and he may beat me. I always said what I pleased to Ro- naldo, and I will say so still." " Well, but what a pleasant life we shall lead at the house of our father," rejoined Alfred, wishing to change the subject of their discourse ; for Alfred never could contend with Wolf on any point in which 136 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. he chose to take the lead, though conscious of his su- periority of birth, and the different manner in which they had been brought up; " to have lovely fields to walk in, with such pretty sisters by our side, and to breathe the odour of the fresh-blooming flowers ; to hear the birds sing so sweetly all the while, instead of being shut up in this dreary place, where we can hear nothing but the roaring of the sea, the beating of the waves against the rocks, and the frightful howling of the winds." " Which I have been used to hear in the Black Forest so long," cried Wolf, " that I do not at all mind it ; besides, I love to gaze on the sea and see the proud Waves, that can come no further, if they had ever such a mind, unless God pleases. Jack used to read books, and tell me who made man, and what God can do, and man cannot do ; so I am not afraid of man, for he can do me no harm, if God does not permit him, and Jack told me that he never would while 1 prayed to him for protection, and so I do, Alfred, night and morning ; in the Black Forest I never heard God mentioned, but now that I know what he is, I will never, never forget him !" To which Alfred replied, apparently much struck by the unexpected and rational discourse of his young companion, — " Well, Wolf, I am glad to hear you say so, for I have been taught to know what God is too ; — but — but I am ashamed to say that my tutor did not read so many books about him as Jack did to you ; but I learned fine languages, French and Italian, and the names of great heroes, and kings, and conquerors, that were born a hundred years ago, and fought in battles, and died in battles. There was Alexander the Great, he was a great hero, Wolf!" THF, COTTAfin ON THR CLIFF. 137 ** I know what he was as well as you do, Alfred," cried Wolf, a little disdainfully. "You, Wolf! no, you mistake!" retorted Alfred, half smiling at his petulance. "Then how should I know that he was the most presumptuous man living?" uttered Wolf, "who commanded the waves to stop, and the winds to stand still, because he was so ambitious as to imagine that he had the power; but did either the winds or the waves obey him ? answer me that ; no, Alfred, I Can tell you that they did no such thing, aiid that Alex- ander, as great a heathen as he was, could not mov6 them one bit ; for these elements were both made by the hands of God, and his hands only can rule over them." "And did your friend Jack teach you all these things, Wolf?" cried Alfred, quite confounded and astonished that the little wanderer of the Black Forest was almost in possession of as much learning as himself. " Yes," answered Wolf, " and a great deal more such things than I have time to tell you now, but when we go to our father's, Alfred, I will let you know all that Jack has taught me." " Ah ! then I am ashamed of my learning, since it has taught me to know so little," cried Alfred, " and you know so much without any learning at all." " Jack said, learning did not make great men, but great actions," said Wolf; " and that actions could nevei* be called truly great, unless they were truly good ones; now if I had strength to go and pull down this great house, for instance, you know, Alfred, why, it might be said that I had done a great C. T 138 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. action ; but you could never persuade people that 1 had done a good one." The idea of Wolf pulling down a house occasioned Alfred to laugh heartily, and at this very precise mo- ment the entrance of Miss Singleton, Claribelle, and the fisher, put an end to their discourse. David was already dispatched with the cart, and Shelty was to remain in the cottage, with two of the neighbouring fishermen, till proper persons could be found to take charge of the household furniture, and to reside in the house, till it could be let to a tenant whose wish might be to live in so retired and solitary a spot, and of which there was a chance, as the sea-bathing season was rapidly approaching; when strangers, of all cha- racters and description, were in the habit of visiting Cromer, and continuing there for some length of time ; and in the probability that the cottage could not be tenanted, it was already so improved and modernized in its present appearance, from its former ruinous con- dition, that if Miss Singleton wished to dispose of it entirely off her hands, there was no doubt of her find- ing a purchaser, although so solitary a retreat ; for there were many, who, like its former possessor, might make choice of it in preference to any other. There was a depression on the spirits of Agatha as she prepared to quit this abode, which had also been that of her beloved father, which, in spite of the kind- ness of the fisher, she could not easily shake off; and when Claribelle locked the doors of the chambers which they had so lately inhabited, and in which they had passed so many quiet and tranquil hours, she heaved a pensive sigh, as she exclaimed, — "I shall miss the little robin, wnom 1 fed every THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 139 morning with crumbs of bread from my window ; poor fellow, he will want my assistance, and perhaps will perish, or wing his flight to some more genial sky !" To which Claribelle replied, and quickly hurrying her young mistress away from the apartment, — "There are more robins besides the one you have seen here, my dear young lady, and you have too much good sense to let such trifles give you any uneasiness; you will see plenty of robins at Herring Dale, which shelty tells me is one of the most beautiful and ro- mantic situations you can imagine." " But no more fathers !" uttered Agatha, bursting into an involuntary flood of tears ; " I shall have no father to greet me on my arrival there ; and perhaps no friend, save alone the kind-hearted fisher ! Alas Claribelle ! how wretched is the lot of that child who has neither father nor mother left in this wide world to care for its wayward destiny !" " And yet it is the lot of millions, my dear Miss Agatha, with not half your advantages," rejoined Claribelle ; " reflect on that, and do not suffer despon- dency to chase from your mind the enlivening ray, which hope always lends to the afflicted. Come, dear miss, my heart grieves to see you thus, indeed it does ; considerthat Mr. Blust is waiting below in theparlour all this while, and the chaise is already drawn up to the avenue : come, Miss Agatha, lean on my arm, and try to compose yourself." Agatha did so, but it was an effbrt that required some resolution, and, hastily turning her eyes from the contemplation of objects so painfully acute to her re- collection, she drew her veil over her face, and met the fisher, just as he was on the point of coming to seek her. 110 THE COTTAGE ON THIi CLIFF. " My dear, I do not wish to hurry you," cried he, "but the hour is growing late, and my girls are most anxiously expecting you at Herring Dale. There is the young Wolf too, quite impatient at your stay." The door of the parlour now flew wide open, anve them all. "There is Wolf kughing," cried Agatha. "That strange, unaccountable boy, do you mean ?" enquired Olive; " I am told that he is a perfect little saviige, to all but you, Miss Singleton, and that even my father could not manage him till you had tamed him." " And who has been giving you so unfavorable an impression of poor Wolf?" demanded Agatha, in so peculiar a voice and manner, that it immediately crimsoned the cheeks of Olive with a colour of the brightest crimson, and she hesitated in pronouncing what was really the truth, that it was JLeontine Craftly who had told her the history of her father's little adopted sons, at least all that he knew of it. and which the fisher had himself related to him, the moment he received it from the lips of Agatha, and Leontine having called at Herring Dale on his pretty kinswo- men on his way home, Avhen he quitted the Cottage on the Cliff, had amused Olive and Jessy with a hu- mourous description of the manners and behaviour of the little wanderer of the Black Forest : at which Olive laughed excessively, protesting that when he be- came an inhabitant of Herring Dale, that the whimsi- cality of the little urchin would afford her a fund ot c. u 146 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. amusement. To which observation Leontine had an- swered, — "Yes, if you can get him to come near you." Why, he wont bite, will he ?" cried Olive, laugh- (( mg. " No, but he will snarl," answered Leontine; "he snarls and snaps at every body but Miss Singleton ; even your father could not manage him, till she had rendered him something tractable." Olive's good humour instantly faded from her coun- tenance ; she frowned, bit her lip, and remained quite silent till the departure of her cousin Craftly ; it was no wonder, therefore, that she blushed and felt em- barrassed at this question being put to her, by the very object who alone had excited her envy and jea- lousy ; it was necessary, however, to disguise these sensations at the present moment, and, with affected carelessness, she replied,-— "It was only our kinsman Craftly that told Jessy and I of the little boy's irregular behaviour, and ex- traordinary disposition." " Of which Mr. Craftly could know but little," re- torted Agatha, colouring, but unconscious that she did so, while pleading the cause and extenuating the faults of her young favorite ; " and as to his manners, what can be expected of a poor child, deserted by the authors of its being, and reared in a forest, with wretches little short of savages, whose intention very probably was that of murdering the boy, had he not been so miraculously preserved by the humanity of a stranger, and fled from their pursuit." Olive was silent, for Craftly had also related all THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 147 these particulars, and had made similar excuses for the uncouth and uncivilized manners of the little refugee ; but Olive did not choose to say so, for the deep blush which had so suddenly overspread the beautiful features of Agatha had not escaped the ob- servation of Olive, but which her jealous fears attri- buted to a very different cause than the pure source from whence it had sprung, and, with a less air of kindness, she continued to converse with her, till they reached the door of the apartment in which the fisher was sitting ; but Jessy was not there, and neither were the two boys, but the cloth was laid, and every preparation was going forward for dinner ; and on the entrance of Miss Singleton, the fisher arose, and cordially shaking her by the hand, welcomed her with much kindness to her present abode. " Here you are. Miss Singleton, at Herring Dale," uttered he, " safely anchored in comfortable moorings; and, shiver my topsails, if any gale shall overset your boat again, while Peter Blust stands at the helm of it ! Well, my dear, how have my girls treated you? — Jessy told me how main glad she was to see you ; and Olive, I perceive, has had the most of your company since your arrival, — she has been shewing you the chambers I intend for your use and your maid, Mis- tress Claribelle, and pray tell me how you like them, — they are quite snug and comfortable, bean't they now?" " They are, indeed. Sir, all that 1 could wish, and much more than T have a right to expect," replied Agatha, much affected by the unexampled kindness of her generous and benevolent protector; " mayheaveu reward you, amply reward you, for all the kindness i48 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. you have bestowed on one whose gratitude towards you can never end but with existence !" " Nonsense, my dear, nonsense," cried the fisher, regarding her lovely eyes, which were humid with a tear ; " let me hear no more about that, I beg of you : I have done nothing more than my duty, and want no further reward than that which your smiles can afford me, when I behold you happy beneath a roof which I now hope you will consider as your own. Oily, go, my girl, and see if the dinner is not forthcoming. Shiver my topsails ! I could swallow a mainmast, or snap up a whale, I am so very sharp-set ; when the wind blows easterly, I have always an excellent appetite." Olive disappeared ; and the fisher, turning to Agatha with some symptoms of curiosity, as well as anxiety, blended in his countenance, exclaimed, in a sort of under tone, — "Well, and how dost like my girls? — Jessy is a darling, isn't she ? OHy, loo, is a fine wench, isn't she? — They are both well enough for the daughters of a fisher, are not they. Miss Singleton ?" Agatha was about to reply something, but she did hot know what, when, fortunately for her, the dinn.er at this nionient was set on the table, and it was imme- diately followed by the entrance of the whole group, Olive, Jessy, Alfred and Wolf, for whom, ?."« soon as they were seated, Agatha felt greatly in teai that he would not conduct himself in an orderly and be- coming manner ; but the dove-like eyes of the sweet Jessy had some how or other followed the direction of Agatha's, and perceiving that they were bent on little Wolf, she immediately contrived to station him THE COTTAr.E ON THE CLIFF. 149 beside her, to the no small joy of the one, and the en- tire satisfaction of the other ; for Agatha watched him incessantly, and several times had occasion to reprove him for the greedy impatience he exhibited, and the haste with which he swallowed up the dainties which •were set before him, at which the fisher sometimes laughed so heartily, as well as Olive, that, unconscious why she did so, Miss Singleton frequently blushed at the awkward manners of the little rustic, because those of his young companion were so widely opposite; for Alfred behaved at table as if he had been accus- tomed to the habits of polished society, and taught the lesson of good breeding, the distinguishing charac- teristic of which is difficult to be obtained, except by a constant intercourse with persons of delicacy and refinement. The youngest daughter of Fisher Blust seemed as if she was designed by heaven alone to form the hap- piness and constitute the blessing of all around her ; for the very moment that she perceived that Wolf was an object of particular solicitude to Miss Singleton, she endeavoured, by every means in her power, to prevent his committing those little blunders and mis- takes which appeared to give Agatha so much uneasi- ness, by frequently handing him what she thought he liked best, and, whenever the eyes of her father or Olive were turned from him, to whisper softly in his ear. in the most good-humoured manner, — " Make use of the napkin to wipe your hands, and not the table-cloth, my dear boy, and do not eat your victuals so fast. There is plenty of time for you to partake of every thing you see here; and no one will hurry you, if you will have patience." 150 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " But 1 am hungry," cried Wolf, aloud ; and, with- out seeming at first to regard her injunctions, was be- ginning to tear his victuals to pieces without mercy, when Agatha, perfectly shocked at his behaviour, for- bade him to do so sharply : — " If you do that again, you shall not sit here, Wolf," cried she, " and I will no longer keep your company ; do you know where you are, ungrateful and unmanly boy, that you eat thus, like a savage and a bear ? — recollect yourself, you are not now in the Black Forest, with Ronaldo, or the woman who has taught you such unseemly manners ; you are sitting at the table with goodly company, and in the presence of your benefactor, and if you do not treat him with respect, and also these young ladies, who are so kind to you, I will never more speak to you, nor will I any longer permit you to call me your sister, — I will be no sister, nor even friend, to one who so far forgets what is due to his stiperiors. *» «f w * THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. lf)l CHAPTER XI. " The purest treasure mortal times afford, Is — spotless reputation ; that away, Men are but gilded loam, or painted clay. A jewel, in a ten times barr'd-up chest, Is — a bold spirit in a loyal breast." The effect of this speech was almost instantaneous on the feelings of little Wolf, as it not only produced a speedy reformation, but acted like a charm for the future on the hardy disposition and rough manners of the forest boy, insomuch that he never more off'ended on the like occasion, but cautiously avoided every op- portunity of giving the slightest displeasure to his pretty sister, for so he always called Miss Singleton. Jessy, too, shared some of his attention ; but it was very evident that Wolf did not like Miss Blust, and it was as plain that she did not like him ; for only two days after his arrival at Herring Dale, Wolf off'ended Olive, by making an observation on the beauty of her sister Jessy, for which he never more basked in the sunshine of the smiles of Miss Blust, nor ever was a favorite with her afterwards, and this offence was ac- tually occasioned by the fisher himself, who one day, when his daughters were dressed more than usual, in order to accompany Miss Singleton, to return a tea- visit to their kinswoman, Margaret Craftly, who had 152 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. given a very cordial and pressing- invitation to the lovely orphan, at the sly suggestion of her brother, though Margaret cautiously avoided saying so; and it was just as they were all assembled at dinner, that the fisher suddenly exclaimed, — " Well, Mr. Wolf, you are looking very hard at your sisters." " It is because I like to look at every thing that is pretty," answered he, " and why may I not make use f>f liiy eyes, pray ? but I don't think all my sisters pretty, for all that, though Alfred does." "Indeed!" cried the fisher, "you are always dif- fering in opinion from Alfred, and you stand on very little ceremony in letting us know it." " Well, what harm was there in saying what I did to Alfred ?" cried Wolf; " he said what he pleased to me, and so did I to him, and it was all about Morning, Noon and Night, for so I have called my three sisters. In the first place, there is Morning : it is light and rosy, when the weather is fine, and so is my sister Jessy ; her eyes are so blue and so clear, and so lively, and she has such pretty light hair, — so I named her Morning, because she always put nje in mind of it. Then comes Noon, you know, which is brighter still, because the sun shines then with ten thousand times more light, and it is so l>eautiful, that it often dazzles our eyes ; but then it makes us feel so warm and so comfortable, that no one can help admiring and won- dering at its charms, and that is just what I feel whenever I look at Miss Singleton, — so I named her Noon, because I like noon better than morning. Well, last of all comes Night, which is dark and frowning, and so is my sister Olive there, — though THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 163 Alfred will have it that she is more beautiful than either of my sisters ; but 1 am sure I don't think so, because she looks so cross." A silence of some minutes ensued, not much to the satisfaction of either of the parties, and it was parti- cularly unpleasant to the feelings of Agatha and Jessy, who felt that they had no right to feel pleased or gratiiied at the compliments bestowed on them by the little forester, which had so many disadvantages on its side, as to mortify the pride of the indignant Olive, who, having shot at Wolf the most angry glances, demanded to know in no very gentle accents of her sister Jessy, if she was ready to go to her kins- woman's ? " or, perhaps," added she, deeply colouring with resentment, ^' you had much rather stay and listen to the conversation of that rude, bold, and forward urchin, who thinks, because my father has given him a shelter beneath this roof, that he is at full liberty to insult every one with impunity ; but let him beware how he presumes a second time to throw out his gibes and sneers at me, or I will make him dearly repent his insolence, I promise him ; for it is neither my fa- ther, nor Miss Singleton, nor you, Jessy, that shall . screen him from having what he so justly deserves, — a sound horsewhipping ;" and, whisking her scarf about her, Olive flounced out of the room, and walked so rapidly, from the violence of the passion in which she had put herself, that she was almost in sight of her kinswoman's habitation before either Miss Singleton or Jessy could overtake her ; for the fisher had nc sooner heard the conclusion of Wolf's speech, than he had darted out of the room to conceal the loud bursts of laughter which he could no longer restrain; not c, * X 154 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. that he wished the boy to be rude or uncivil in his lan- guage or manners to his eldest daughter, or that he would receive any toleration from him in future for so doing, but because he was absolutely astonished at the boy's singular address and effrontery, and the un- daunted and whimsical manner he had in showing it ; nor could the fisher but admit that there was truth in the figurative comparisons he had drawn, for there was seldom that a frown did not dwell on the counte- nance of Olive, and that a smile did not rest on that of the sweet Jessy, and they must be insensible indeed who could not be struck with the superior loveliness of Agatha Singleton ; so that, taking ail this into se- rious consideration, the fisher could not reasonably blame Wolf for the just discrimination he had dis- played, though he had taken an improper time for dis- covering it ; and he only waited till his girls were fairly out of sight before he returned to Wolf, in order to give him a necessary caution against offending Olive, by any of his rude and abrupt remarks or ob- servations for the future, and found him by no means dismayed or intiiindated by the threats with which he had been menaced, or conscious that he had been guilty of the slighest impropriety ; and when the fisher prepared to approach him, with a stern and angry look, he exclair.ied, — " I always thought you looked like Jack, when you were in a good humour ; he used to whistle like you, and drink grog like you, and hold his pipe just like you." The fisher advanced a step or two further, and no- thing relaxed in the stern frown he had with much difficulty curled round his broad, chubby face, that THK COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 155 nature never made in an angry mood, and art could not invent for the life of her, yet he managed the fol- lowing sentence to escape from his lips, which rather startled the young forester : — "And suppose, Sir, that I were to resemble your friend Jack in the strength of my arm also, and brandish this stick about your shoulders, which you so richly deserve, for your insolence just now to my daughter, what would you say then ?" " Why, I should say that you and Jack were two then," cried Wolf, with a flushed cheek, and un- daunted expression in his eye ; " for Jack would never be guilty of so cowardly an action as to strike a poor boy, who could not return his blows again, and what's more never would, because you are his benefactor ; but you may beat me if you please, I shall never flinch ; it is not the first time that I have been beat for only telling the truth ; but Jack used to say 1 should never mind that, for the smarting of the whip could not last but a very few moments, but that truth would last for ever : ' so,' says Jack, ' stick to truth, my boy, and that will shame the very devil.' " We do not know by what instinct the fisher was moved so far (by the influence which this speech had upon his feelings) as to drop the stick, which he had brandished in his hand for some time, on the ground, and to smile with his usual kindness and complacency on the little undaunted forester, who, though cer- tainly a diamond in the rough, had exhibited some strong traits of a disposition, spirited and noble, and vet so singularly eccentric, that he felt himself amused with even his audacity and his impudence ; telling him, therefore, that he would this once look over his 156 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. indiscretion, if he would amend in future his manners to Miss Blust, and behave with civility to her, the fisher again became on the most friendly terms with his strange little protegee, and, shaking- hands with him before he set out for his kinsman's, gave orders to David to take Wolf and his companion a pleasant walk round the neighbourhood of Cromer, and amuse them with such objects as he thought would be most likely to entertain and please them; with which injunction ' of his worthy master, David cheerfully complied, and the fisher journeyed on to the mansion of his cousin Craftly, in his usual jog-trot manner, musing on the behaviour of the little wild urchin he had taken be- neath his roof, who was likely to produce some unplea- sant disturbances in his hitherto quiet and peaceable family, if he did not speedily adopt some other method of chastisement with him than that of brandishing a cane over his shoulders, for which he had plainly told him that he did not care ; and though the warm- hearted fisher could not but acknowledge that he was far better pleased with this hardihood in the boy, than had he betrayed signs of cowardice 'or fear, yet he was also sensible that so forward a colt would soon require the bit and the bridle, or he might one day chance to overthrow his riders ; he resolved, therefore, to con- sult with Leontine Craftly and Sam Russel the very next morning, about what sort of a plan he should pursue with Wolf, and to appease his daughter Olive for the present, by telling her that he had severely lectured him for the impertinence he had been guilty of towards her, for which he seemed sorry, and had promised to amend ; and that if he did not, he would send him from Herring Dale immediately, and place THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 157 him under the hands of a rigid master in the neigh- bourhood of Cromer ; and, while these reflections en« gaged the mind and attention of the fisher, not more pleasing ones had filled the bosom of each fair guest, on their arrival at the house of Miss Margaret Craftly, who arose to receive them with her accus- tomed kindness and urbanity, giving to Miss Single- ton, of course, being the greatest stranger, the most particular welcome ; she then returned to Olive and Jessy, and saluted them both affectionately, while she exclaimed, — " Well, dear girls, and how do ye both find your- selves ?— well and heartily, I am sure, for you botn look charmingly, — yet, let me look again, — I am near- sighted, you know, my dears so, so, — now I see clearly " Margaret had recourse to her spectacles, to help the defect of which she complained, and was now placing them on her forehead, while she perused the countenances of her lovely kinswomen with the nicest and most exact attention, when the frownins: brow of the offended and still pouting Olive coming in contact with the fair, open and smiling one of Jessy's, the surprised Margaret added, " No, — I can- not see clear, though I have put on my spectacles." " And pray, cousin, what do you want to see, that you examine me so very particularly?" demanded Olive, somewhat tartly. To which her kinswoman, smiling, replied, — " To see how the sun looks under a cloud, my dear; or, in other words, my spectacles misled me, for I fancied that I discerned an angry frown in my pretty Olive's face, that I have been mistaking for a smile; — that is all, my dear, but we are all liable to mistakes 158 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. of one kind or another, so you must pardon me, my love." But this time the good-natured Margaret was not to succeed in restoring her kinswoman to her usual temperament; for Olive not only continued to frown, but to repeat the cause of it, to which she did not fail to add some embellishments of her own, by no means in favor of the little forester ; and when she had suffi- ciently enlarged on the culprit's behaviour, she de- manded of Margaret if she did not think that the audacious boy should be severely punished for his insolence ? " In proportion to the enormity of his crime, do you mean, my love?" answered Margaret, and smiled, for, stealing a glance that moment at Jessy's laughing eye, she could not help it. " Which you, probably, think does not entitle liim to any, cousin Craftly," retorted the disappointed Olive, finding that she was losing ground, instead of having gained it, in Margaret's opinion. " I say nothing, my dear," replied Margaret, " and could wish, indeed, that you had not said quite so much, on a subject which I do not at all understand, therefore we will drop it, if you please. \ love to see my friends happy, when I invite them to my house, and I am certain they cannot be so while their minds are occupied, and their attention called off by un- pleasing retrospection ; banish them, dearest Olive, at least while you remain the guest of Margaret Craftly, for you well know that she is an avowed enemy to all gloom and melancholy." " And so, cousin Craftly, you do not think that the boy behaved at all rude to me?" cried the now more TlIK COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 159 highly enraged Olive, by no means moved by the friendly hints which Margaret had given her, and still obstinately persisting in a subject so disagreeable to the feelings of her affectionate relative. " My dear, I rejtjly have not time to think at all about it," answered Margaret ; " I am going to order tea in this moment, and then we shall be more plea- santly engaged. Would that your father were come, Jessy, and then I protest that I should feel quite comfortable, — my brother, too, promised he would return at an early hour, on purpose to" Margaret made a full stop, for Olive Blust had suddenly turned an inquiring eye full upon her, and she added, though with a little embarrassment, " to — to play a hand at cards with us; — are you fond of cards, my dear Miss Singleton ?" To which Agatha replied, with that sweet and un- affected ingenuousness which invariably marked her character, — " Were I to tell you. Madam, that I am wholly un- acquainted with the use of them, you would think it .strange; but nevertheless it is true, — I was never in any place where cards were played." " But I hope you do not object to being instructed in the use of them, my love," rejoined Margaret, glad to be relieved, at last, from the insupportable con- versation of Olive ; " it is merely a harmless and cheerful amusement, when not converted into a spe- cies of gambling ; I mean, my dear, when people do not sit down with the determined and horrible inten- tion of picking one another's pockets, too generally practised in most families of distinction, as if they could not invite their friends to partake of the deli-* 160 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. cacies which they set before them, without making them pay dearly for their entertainment. This, in- deed, is a species of amusement (if it can be called such) which I should be very unwilling you should ever be initiated in, my dear ; but when conversation becomes torpid, and flasjs, you cannot conceive how a pack of cards fills up the time." " Well, but cousin Craftly, I have seen you play for money," cried Oiive, now happy that she had af- forded her an opportunity for retaliation. " Never, Miss Oiive — never," answered Margaret, deeply colouring, " not to my recollection." '' Then your memory happens not to be so reten tive of a circumstance which every body else must re member," answered the malicious girl, " because, at the very last birth-day feast, save only one,, when you and Miss Pen Clutterbuck were partners at quadrille, how it amused the whole company to hear you snarl and snap at each other, just like two she-dragons, both eager to grasp at the prize. Let me see, — there was about nineteen shillings standing in the pool, when, my heavens ! what a contest there was between you, — how Miss Penny snapt, and how you snarled ! We were just going down the middle of a dance, you know, Jessy, at the other end of the room, when the lucky card was thrown. Poor Miss Pen ! I shall never forget her dismayed countenance, when she arose fiom the table; nor your joyous one, cousin Craftly, as you counted your winnings, and dropped them, one by one, into your purse, — how Jessy and I laughed !" And so would Agatha, had not delicacy and good manners absolutely forbade her from indulging her THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. IGl niirtli at the expence of poor Margaret, who blushed up to the very eyes ; while Jessy, who felt for her i^ooci-humoured kinswoman, exclaimed, at the con elusion of Olive's speech, — " I wish, Olive, you had not thought proper to couple me so often in your ridiculous and foolish ora- tion ; if I laughed it was because others did, but I am sure it was not at cousin Craftly." " But you did laugh, Jessy, so what is the use of «lenying it?" cried Olive ; "and there was no harm neither; was there, cousin Craftly ?" " None in the world, unless Miss Blust is disposed to make harm of it," replied Margaret, with some little warmth. " Who, me ? not 1," answered Olive, " I would not be so malicious, cousin ; only as we were all inclined to be so grave and so melancholy, I thought I wonld say something just to enliven us or so." " And which you have taken every possible means to prevent. Miss Blust," observed Margaret, coldly ; " however, let it all pass, as chaff before the wind ; it can do me no harm, and you no good, but you will know better in time than to use weapons which inflict wounds, but cannot heal them." The tea-things were at this moment brought in by a domestic, or probably the thread of this conversation would again have been resumed by the saucy Olive, were it only for the propensity which she invariably discovered to torment her fellow-creatures ; for con- sider human nature how we will, we shall always ob- serve a peculiar cast of mind distinguishing every part of it, a predisposing impulse almost in every breast, and it would be a vain task to attempt at altering the C Y 1G2 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. work of the Supreme Being, and manufacturer of the whole ; for though it would be very possible to destroy its effects, it would be utterly impossible to change its habitual constitution for any advantage : our tempers are born with us, they are cradled with us, and they continue with us to the end of our frail and mortal existence. It is true that the events of our maturer years are frequently suffered to pass without leaving any impression behind them, while those of our early- youth are associated with our warmest feelings, and our most ardent and sanguine expectations • because youth is a summer flower, and age a cold and wither- ing one. And it was a most seasonable relief to the feelings of some of the female party, when the fisher made his appearance, with Leontine Craftly at his heels, and his cheerful countenance was a sunny beam to the gloom which hung over them, like a cold and uncom- fortable mist. He offered some slight apology to his kinswoman for having kept her so long waiting ; " but, shiver my topsails !" added he, " I did not think it had been so late by an hour and ten minutes, till I fell in with Craftly." " Well, better late than never, kinsman," cried Margaret, as she sat down to commence her opera- tions for tea-making ; meanwhile Craftly had paid his compliments to the young ladies, and the fisher had taken care to draw Olive aside to inform her how se- verely he had chastised Wolf for his rough behaviour, at which she receivea so much satisfaction, that a smile at last succeeded to the frown which had so long overshadowed her fair brow ; besides, Leon line had THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 10"3 drawn a chair close to her's, and, excepting a very distant bow to Miss Singleton on his first entrance, had noticed her in no other particular manner, neither had he spoken to Jessy more than he did at any other time ; she was the exclusive object of his attention ; and Olive, imagining also that she was the chief object of his attraction, began by slow and imperceptible de- grees to recover her good humour, taking good care, however, that nobody should have any chance of edging in a word beside herself, or sharing any of those at- tentions from Craftly, which she claimed as her own. During tea, the news of the town was discussed, and the arrivals talked of; among which the fisher stated that there were several families of distinction, come for the sea-bathing, who had already taken furnished lodgings in the vicinity of Cromer." " There will be a prodigious overflow of company this season, then, I dare say, kinsman," cried Margaret. "Yes, the inhabitants of Cromer are likely to have a fine harvest," answered Peter, chuckling as he spoke ; " there was not a bed left, for chick nor fowl, last night, at the Star and Garter Inn, which is the place where all the quality take up their quarters ; and, shiver my topsails ! if I don't think we shall have a chance of letting the Cottage on the Cliff to some of them, be- fore we can cry Jack Robinson ! The highest bidder is the surest finder, you know, my dear Miss Singleton ; and as you have no sort of objection to the cottage being inhabited, why I will try whether I cannot clap fifty or sixty guineas into your pocket by these fine gentry. You wont be the worse for it, and they can well spare it ; they come down here to spend their money, and why shouldn't they ? — they have plenty, 164 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, and it is much better circulated in the hands of the poor and the industrious, than squandered away at the gaming-table ; so I will write a bit of a bill, sig- nifying that the Cottage on the Cliff is to be let, and stick it up to-morrow morning at the door of the public library." " A most excellent plan, kinsman," observed Mar- garet ; " don't you think so, brother?" To which Craftly, who had been sitting for a few moments in a sort of abstracted manner, as if his thoughts were wandering, and employed by some other subject, now, roused by the question which his sister bad suddenly put to him, replied, — " There cannot be a better, in my mind, nor one so likely to succeed. The cottage is in excellent repair, and is so delightfully situated, for those persons of a highly romantic and secluded disposition, and who prefer calm retirement to the noisy bustle of the busy town, that I should not in the least wonder, if, by the plan you are going to adopt, that a tenant will be found for it immediately, — that is, provided no idle reports have been spread about to its disadvantage." " Which the silly and the ignorant will only give credit to," cried the fisher. " Shiver my topsails I do you think any body in their senses will believe in apparitions, and such nonsensical tales ?" "And do you really think, kinsman," cried Mar- garet, for the fisher had most unfortunately started her favorite topic, " do you truly think there was no truth in the young woman and the infant that were drowned there, just under the cliff; and who, when the wind blows in a certain quarter, has been heard singing there, with the baby in her arms ?" THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 163 "And don't you believe in the spots of blood that were found in the haunted chamber, father ?" cried Olive, shuddering. "Spots of a fiddlestick's end !" vociferated the fisher, perceiving that even the complexion of Agatha turned pale at the last-mentioned circumstance ; " do I be- lieve that the bright silver moon is made of green cheese; or that fishes will swim without water? — do 1 believe that a lobster is made like a herring ; or that a whale will sail upon a dolphin's back, you silly young goose? and you, cousin Margaret, — you, too, who are old enough to know better, — you to listen to such gossip's stories !" " Well, but you know, kinsman, though one is old, one cannot stop up one's ears to what people are ready to take their Bible oath of," uttered Margaret, not much pleased with the last-mentioned observations of the honest Peter : "there certainly has been some colour for such a report." " Then it must be the colour of a fool's head," re- torted the fisher, " for a wise one had known better : for my part, I have been, at all hours and in all wea- thers, when the wind has blown north, south, east and west, sailing round the cliff", and under the cliff', and over the cliff", but deuce a bit of any ghost I ever encountered, but a poor sea-gull, or solitary wild fowl, who used to flap their wings about the edges of the boat, poor starved-gutted rogues ! for a morsel of something to eat. Ghosts, indeed ! did you ever hear the like of these women, Craftly ? — they would per- suade a man out of his senses," " To argue against a belief in apparitions would take a wiser head than mine, kinsman," answered 166 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Craftly ; " for, absurd as it may appear, those of no ordinary intellect admit the possibility, and even the probability of their existence." The fisher was silent ; and Margaret, taking ad- vantage of his silence, exclaimed, — "And therefore, kinsman, it is evident that super- stition, as it is called, is not confined to the vulgar, but that people of sense and education have been af- fected by it." " Don't believe it, Margaret, — don't believe it. Shiver my topsails ! it is a confounded cracker. Miss Singleton, my dear, did you ever see a ghost in all your life ?" The manner in which this question was put by the fisher made it almost morally impossible to resist laughing; and Agatha replied, — " No, Sir ; nor can I at all conceive the mere ex- istence of sound without matter possible, or that it can emanate from a being purely immaterial ; but I had much rather decline entering on subjects so very much above my comprehension. I certainly have seen nothing of the kind since I became an inmate of the Cottage on the Cliff, though my ears have frequently been assailed by the reports you mention, and I had much difficulty in dispelling the influence of such re- ports on the mind of my attendant, Claribelle, — nay, she has absolutely told me, that she had seen and heard things ; but my poor father never would permit such conversation to be carried on in his hearing, or even in the house, — he had a particular aversion to any thing of the kind." " Shiver my topsails ! and your father was in the right," cried the fisher ; " and he was a sensible man, THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 167 and you are a very sensible girl for following his ex- ample; — so, here's to the confusion of all ghosts and ghostesses, in a full bumper of brandy and water." And the fisher swallowed oflf a large glass of his favorite mixture, which his kinswoman Margaret had taken care to set before him, well knowing that the moment he had drank his tea, he loved to enjoy his pipe and his grog, till the supper hour, which was to be filled up with conversation instead of cards, as Miss Singleton had discovered no inclination to be initiated into this agreeable practice of killing time, which she could always employ to much better ad- vantage. More general conversation now took place between the ladies ; Margaret's currant wine being introduced, and its qualities canvassed over, Jessy praised its excellent flavour, and acknowledged that it was greatly superior to her's ; Olive denied the fact; and Miss Singleton, who did not understand any thing about the matter, was entirely neuter on the occasion. Some excellent peaches, and other fruit, were handed round by Craftly ; and when it came to Miss Single- ton's turn to take one, he selected it, and presenting it to her, exclaimed, — " Let me recommend a smaller one to you. Madam ; they are generally of a finer quality than those of a larger size." Agatha did as she was desired, and took the peach from the hand of Craftly, rather mechanically than from inclination ; but even this small mark of civility was highly offensive to Olive Blust, for she herself had made choice of a large peach, and Leontine had said nothing at all about it, and why should he be 168 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. SO solicitous in recommending one of a better kind to Miss Singleton more than to her or Jessy ? — and she frowned, and bit her lip disdainfully, when the fruit was again handed round to her, refusing to take any more. "Had you not better?" cried Craftly; "the plums are very fine." " Then you may eat them yourself," answered she, and turned away her head with a disdainful sneer, so perceptibly rude, that it could not escape the obser- vation of her father; and, highly provoked at her continued sullen frowns, he exclaimed, — " And what the dickens is the reason you don't choose to take a plum, when you see every body else mating them ?" " Because I don't choose," answered Olive, tartly. "Why, then, shiver my topsails! let it alone," cried the fisher, taking an extra whiff of his pipe, " for, of all the fishes that swim in the sea, thou art the oddest ; but enjoy thy spleen, even till thou burst, thou little fintail, do, — there's nobody minds thee. Come, Craftly, drink, boy, and let the hussy alone ; — confound her, she is always blowing a gale some- where, never contented but when she is kicking up a breeze." " If I don't like plums, am I obliged to eat them, father ?" cried Olive ; "Jessy knows that they always disagree with me, don't they, Jessy r" " Yes, indeed, father, they always have the effect of souring on her stomach," cried Jessy, colouring like crimson, on perceiving that the eyes of Leontine were fixed on her, during the appeal made by her sister, with the tenderest emotions of something like coni- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 169 passion, if it could not be called love; but he as in- stantly withdrew them, the look having drawn a deep sigh from Jessy's heart, which reached no ear but his alone. "Well, well, if they don't agree with her, that is another matter," cried the fisher ; " but, shiver my topsails ! if I did not think that they had soured her temper too ! well, now let's to business, as the saying is ; to-morrow, cousin Craftly, I shall want your assistance; you must come and take a snap at Herring Dale, and then we will take a walk to Cro- mer, and stick up the bill at Adams's circulating li- brary, where all the great folks go to read love-non- sense, and such like ; then they will cast their eyes on the paper, and all hands will read what it says, — ' A Cottage on the Cliff to be let,' cries one ; ' in a beau- tiful situation,' cries another ; ' delightfully romantic, and by the sea-side,' says one ; ' I'll have it,' says an- other ; so down it goes to them that will name the highest price; in they pop — take possession of it; some great lord, or some great lady, and in about six months after — pop goes fifty guineas into Miss Sin- gleton's pockets." " Well, and it would be something worth popping for, would it not, my dear ?" cried Margaret, address- ing herself to the silent and listening Agatha, who modestly replied, — " You are all too kind, indeed, dear madam, to one who can never sufficiently repay the interest you are so good as to take in my unhappy destiny." There was a tone in the voice of Agatha which was melody itself, for, whatever she said, vibrated on the heart ; and whether Margaret Craftly thought Aga- c. z 170 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. tha particularly interesting at this moment we know not, but she certainly looked at her with peculiar ad- miration, while she exclaimed, — " My dear, every body must feel interested about you that has the pleasure of knowing you, for you are exactly what every body could wish; but what is so seldom to be found." " So she is, cousin Craftly, so she is," cried the fisher ; ^' that is the most sensible remark you have made for along time; and I wish that I could see some folks learn to copy her example." The bonnets and scarfs were now loudly called for, as the hour was growing late ; and though Margaret had declared that she had provided an excellent sup- per for her guests, it was with much difficulty that Peter could be prevailed on to stay and partake of it ; yet the sound of roast ducks, swimming in gravy, and a dish of green peas, roused his attention ; and Jessy, whispering in his ear, that she hoped he would not dis- appoint his kinswoman in the expectation of his staying to supper, the pipe was cheerfully resumed, the glass of grog replenished, and the bonnets and scarfs laid down again ; after which some general chit-chat took place : Margaret asked Miss Singleton how the ladies dressed in a convent, and Agatha, willing to oblige this ami- able old maid in all her enquiries, began very accu- rately to describe the costume of the nuns, and then the novices and the boarders, and was interrupted in the very middle of her discourse, interesting only to the females, by the appearance of the roast ducks and a large dish of green peas. " You shall finish the cap after supper, my dear." cried Margaret, THE COTTAGE ON THE CI.IFF. 171 " Shiver my topsails, if she does though !'* said Peter ; " Zounds ! have you no mercy on the dear girl, cousin Craftly ! you have talked her now into a high fever about your cufts and your ruffs, and your capes, and your furbelows." " Why, lord, kinsman, we women must talk about something," cried Margaret, and smiled " That you must, Meg," answered the fisher, as he prepared to take his seat at the table ; " and, when once you begin, the devil himself cannot stop you !" CHAPTER XII. " Come, braid for me the simple tress, That curls so wildly round thy brow ; Beneath whose arch of loveliness, Thy bright blue eyes are beaming now : And place this wreathe of flow'rets there. To form some emblems sweet for me ; I chose them, for I thought them fair, But find them not so fair as thee." On the return of the family party to Herring Dale very little conversation was exchanged on either side, and in a few moments they retired to their respective chambers, but not before the fisher had bade Miss Singleton good night in his usual kind manner, Jessy 172 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. always following his example ; but Olive, whose jea- lous fears had only lain dormant for a short time, was now again roused against an object, so pure, so innocent and so spotless, that celestial angels might have been witnesses to all her actions, and still looked down with approving smiles ; and the cold good-night and distant curtsey were neither unfelt by the lovely Agatha, or unnoticed by the sweet Jessy, the cause of which was too well known to her, — and painful and agonizing were the reflections of this amiable girl, when she considered how hopeless was the at- tachment which her sister had conceived for one whom she felt well convinced never could return it. That Olive loved in vain, she had long known ; and that she herself was the object on whom Leontine Craftly had placed his affections, she was also fully sensible of, and her throbbing heart but too consciously con- fessed that such a conviction was not unpleasing to her, though she vainly tried to conceal the passion that triumphed in her heart, and she as vainly endea- voured to imagine that friendship had only found a place there, yet the little urchin-winged boy, who shoots at random quivers from his bow, had been too certain in his aim, when he glanced at poor Jessy, and she loved Leontine long before she was conscious of what nature were the sentiments with which he had inspired her ; — and it was a moment of indescri- bable anguish to the amiable and aflfectionate girl, when she was aware of the deep-rooted passion which had taken place in the bosom of her sister for her cousin Craftly, since Olive absolutely thought herself the mistress of his affoctions ; and it was also a source "if no small regret to Jessy, that Miss Singleton was THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 173 selected as the victim of her ill-grounded jealousy, the trifling attentions he had paid to her, and to which so excellent a creature was entitled from her ex- clusive merits, resulting from the purest motives of humanity, and the benevolence of his disposition ; and while these painful emotions filled the heart of Jessy, and kept her from enjoying her peaceful slumbers, not more pleasing ones occupied the mind of Agatha, as, in retiring to her chamber, she seriously turned her thoughts to the occurrences of the day, and there was more than one circumstance which had given her pain. The conduct of her little favorite, who was likely to become a very disagreeable inmate in the house of the fisher, and for whom she felt a growing partiality, the nature of which she could not account for, occa- sioned her to feel a great share of uneasiness on his account, in the fear that he would in time weary out the patience and good humour of his benevolent pro- tector, and by continually behaving rude to his eldest daughter, induce him at last to send the poor boy away from his friendly roof ; and what could her en- treaties then avail ? — if she pleaded for Wolf a second time, it would be thought that slie wished to encou- rage him in the improper freedom he had taken with Miss Blust; and if poor Wolf was banished from her sight, she felt that her abode at Herring Dale would be rendered extremely uncomfortable ; the cool man- ner, too, in which Olive had bade her good-night, and her previous conduct at the house of her amiable kinswoman, portended nothing very pleasing while she remained under the protection of the fisher, as she could not but perceive that she was the object of 174 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. her jealous fears respecting her cousin, Leontine Craftly, from whom she neither wanted, nor was at all ambitious of receiving any particular attentions other than common politeness demanded ; for, though a very pleasing and prepossessing young man, still Agatha felt that he was greatly her inferior, and that her birth and education had taught her to look higher than to the son of a fisherman, even in the supposition that she was the object of his pursuit; but A^-atha was not blind, and soon began to discover that the real object of this young man's repeated visits to Her- ring Dale was the sweet and unassuming Jessy, and that, though he evidently laboured to conceal his passion for his young and lovely kinswoman, that his glowing admiration of her daily increased ; but hei observation of Jessy was not so successful, for no look of her's betrayed that Leontine was beloved by her, and Agatha almost doubted whether this lovely girl was conscious of her cousin's ardent attachment towards her, much less could she divine the cause, or see the necessity of Craftly's attentions being always so conspicuously directed to the elder sister, when the younger was in possession of his affections : it was a sort of system of conduct which she could not volun- tarily approve, and certainly was not a point in favor of Craftly, who, if his views were honorable, had no reason to be ashamed of selecting such an object as Jessy for his choice ; and as he could not love both sisters, she thought it highly imprudent, and systema- tically cruel, in paying attentions to the one whom he actually did not love, and therefore had no inten- tion of marrying, unless it was a stratagem only to inspire an interest in the heart of Jessy, by Snaking THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 175 her sister apparently her rival, and certainly it had such an appearance, which occasioned Agatha to form no very favorable opinion of the sentiments or prin- ciples of Crafdy, as such conduct was decidedly against honor, delicacy or feeling, and the consequences likely to be most detrimental to the peace of the fisher's family, whenever a discovery should take place of the real object of Leontine's pursuit ; and haughty and unamiable as Olive confessedly was, Agatha yet re- garded her as a being more to be pitied than con- demned, but was fully determined, that, whatever mo- tives Craftiy had for adopting such conduct towards the two sisters, that she would not be the third in giving a colour to such duplicity, but utterly repel all advances made to her by Craftiy, in any shape but that of the most distant civility, and that if Olive Blust had began to fear a rival in her, she should very shortly find herself mistaken. All these reflections, blending also with some pain- ful retrospections of her dear lamented father and her unhappy orphan state, kept Agatha from sleeping, in- somuch that her attendant, Claribelle, frequently heard her deep-drawn sighs, and, urged by her affec- tions for her beloved young mistress, could no longer remain silent ; (for by the express desire of Agatha, Claribelle always slept in her apartment ;) and she ex- claimed, — " Dear Miss Agatha, what has made you so rest- less ? I protest that you have not closed your eyes the whole of the night ! or if you have, sleep has not re- freshed you ; I have heard you sigh too, heavily, as if your heart was breaking; pray pardon me, my dear youii^lady, for making- the enquiry, but I cannot bear 176 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. to see you unhappy, and would willingly know the cause of it." To which Agatha, who had been startled by the voice of Claribelle, replied, — " It is true that I have had but little sleep, Clari- belle, but I do not know that 1 have any right to feel particularly unhappy ; it would be ungrateful to Pro- vidence to murmur or repine at my lot, when there are others who have more cause to mourn at their misfortunes." " Why, that is true, miss," answered Claribelle ; many are not half so comfortable as you are, — in so nice a house, where every body loves the ground you walk on ; the fisher perfectly adores you, and though one of the Miss Blusts is not quite so agreeable or so kind as she ought to be, yet there is the other quite the reverse of her cross sister. I protest, that Miss Jessy Blust is an angel of a girl, is not she, Miss Agatha ? and, if I may believe in what Shelty told me, she is quite the blossoni of the family, what a pity then she is so tyrannized over by Miss Olive ! but that wont be for long; for do you know, Miss Aga- tha, that David tells me, that she is going to be mar- ried to Mr. Craftly, her father's kinsman, and that he has been paying his addresses to her ever since they were quite children, and I think it very likely ; for you see that Mr. Craftly cannot stay away from Her- ring Dale, for the life and the soul of him, he is al- ways here, and close at the heels of Miss Olive, see him when you will." " And so these are really the observations which have been made by the fisher's servants, on the con- duct of Mr. Craftly," cried Agatha, perceiving that he had given the strongest colour to such a supposition, ,^P*M* ^i, cny?tZ'?'ice^c:>j Aiblished bj- G.V7rhf£.,/'uite. /Hi'S. 2(iJvy /.aiit: ,£ ,ii>/r'n &£nth Stroll risto l. 1 V THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 177 by his artful and invidious attack on the weakness of Olive's well-known partiality for him, and that he had began with this system of duplicity, even so early as the days of childhood ; and, shocked at the discovery of so much cruelty in the heart of, apparently, so ami- able a young- man, she mentally ejaculated, — poor Olive, how 1 pity thee ! in the meanwhile Claribelle, had replied, — " To be sure, miss, it is the observation of every one who has seen them together ; Mr. Craftly pays Miss Olive Blust so much attention that any body, with half an eye, may see that they are lovers ; so, 1 say, that when she is fairly married to Mr. Craftly, that it will be a great relief to poor Miss Jessy, for then she will have every thing her own way." " Yes, when he is really married to her ^ister, or to any one else, there is no doubt but Jessy will have reason to be thankful," cried Agatha, believing that Jessy would be very indifferent as to who he married, and that the affections of such a man vv'ould be no prize to any woman ; but these sentiments were not ultimately disclosed to Claribelle, fearful of exciting any prejudice in her mind against a relative of her protector ; still Agatha arose on this morning more disgusted than ever, at the conduct which was so un- generously adopted by Craftly, and well aware, that if it could be even surmised by the fisher, that it would never meet with the sanction and approbation of a father. On her entrance to the parlour, the very first object she beheld there was Leontine Craftly and Jessy, whose hand he had snatched, and was about pressing it to his lips, when the door was suddenly opened by c. 2 a 178 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Agatha, who, starting back with involuntary surprise and confusion, not only at what she beheld, but well knowing that the scene she had witnessed must over- whelm the parties themselves with shame and embar- rassment not to be described, she blushed deeply, while she exclaimed, — " Pray pardon me, dear Jessy, I did not know that you had company, or I should have been the last being in existence who would have intruded on your pre- sence ! pray, pray forgive me!" and Agatha would instantly have again disappeared, had not the confused and blushing Jessy, in a tremulous voice, implored her to remain. "You do not intrude, — you can never intrude on one to whom your presence is always welcome, dear- est Miss Singleton," uttered she; " our kinsman, who has visited us thus early this morning, at the express desire of my father, had been saying something at which he imagined I had taken offence, and as 1 did not speak, he — he — very ridiculously took hold of my tiand — at the moment you came in, but it was merely a silly affair between us, nothing more, I assure you ; and you will not mention it to my sister, — not that it would be of the slightest consequence, only Olive is so strange a girl that" Jessy paused and looked indeed ridiculous enough, while Agatha, delicately feeling for her situation, instantly replied, " You linow but little of me, as yet, dear Jessy, if you are not sufficiently aware that I have no disposi- tion to make any one uncomfortable by any interfer- ence, in matters that do not immediately concern me, neither does my curiosity extend to any person's business but my own ; I beg, therefore, you will not THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, 179 again repeat a caution so perfectly unnecessary, at the same moment, let me add, as painful to my feelings as to your's." Jessy blushed a deeper red, but was silent, and at this moment Agatha stole a glance at the countenance of Leontine Craftly, which did not betray the slightest emotion ; every feature was calm and settled, as though no conversation had passed between her and Jessy, on a subject in which he had no small share : was it confidence, or effrontery the most consummate? — she was at a loss to guess which ; and the entrance of the fisher, with the two boys, with whom he had been taking a walk by the sea-side, very fortunately relieved the embarrassed feelings of poor Jessy, fot whose happiness, as well as Olive's, Agatha now en- dured the most alarming apprehensions ; for it was now evident that Craftly was making love to both of them, and that both sisters were likely to become the victims of his duplicity: at which she shuddered; for the system of education which Agatha had received at the convent of the Holy Sisters though unfa- shionable to that of the present day, had taught her immediately to revolt at any sentiment clothed in ar- tificial virtue ; and youthful and inexperienced as she literally was, in the ways of the world, she was not to be deceived by the false glare of the superficial light floating only on the surface of the human heart ; for the intrinsic value of those virtues which ought al- ways to compose the interior part, without which it is of little value at all. At the appearance of Miss Blust, towards whom Craftly immediately flew, and conducted her to a chair, taking one himself close beside her, Agatha 180 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. averted her head with a sort of involuntary disgust she had never felt before towards any one human be- ing, and she sighed at the reflection, that mankind were indeed but wolves in sheep's clothing, and more than ever commiserated the fate of the sweet Jessy, who had yielded the treasure of her innocent and guiltless heart, to the possession of such a monster of duplicity. Little Wolf had a large bunch of beautiful wild flowers, which he had been at no small pains in col- lecting on the banks of the river, in his hand, and hav- ing arranged them into two pretty poseys, he pre- sented one to Jessy, and then, very awkwardly went up to the side of Olive, exclaiming, " this is the pret- tiest ; will you have it, and be friends with me ? fa- ther says I ought to go down on my knees, and beg pardon, for what I said to you yesterday after dinner, — but make me if you can ; I will go down on my knees to none but God : yet for all that, sister Olive, I'm sadly sorry that I vexed you so, and if you will take these flowers, which I have gathered for you, I will offund you no more." Olive disdainfully held out her hand to receive the flowers, but no returning smile of good humour man- tled on her cheek, to assure the little forester that his offence was either forgotten or forgiven ; but he re- ceived the approbation of the whole company, and was instantly restored to the good opinion of the warm-hearted fisher, who, whispering in the ear of Craftly, protested that he was one of the finest spirited boys in existence. " Though he has a comical way of shewing it," uttered he, " yet, shiver my topsails ! if I don't like THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 181 the boy the better for it ; I hate your smooth-tongued oily chaps, who look as if butter would not melt in their mouths, but cheese would not choke them. Shiver my topsails ! if ever I knew one of them that was worth a rope's yarn." " Wolf is certainly a most singular and extra- ordinary boy," answered Craftly, " and if his under- standing ripens with his years, he will most avowedly discover some traits of uncommon genius ; but you will allow that Alfred is by far the most interesting of the two ?— Wolf will be no favorite with the ladies." " The devil he wont," cried the fisher; " and why not, pray ? — it is not every woman that loves a sugar sop, or a soft tommy, and, curse me, if I think the other will be any thing more ; turn him which way you will, he always gives you the same answer." " While Wolf retains the very spirit of contradic- tion," answered Craftly ; and although this conversa- tion was carried on in an under tone, the last sen- tence, pronounced with some asperity, reached the ear of Agatha, and bv no means diminished tiie un- favorable impression she had that morning imbibed against the character of Craftly, who once caught a glance of her expressive and intelligent countenance, beaming full upon him, and betrayed no small embar- rassment, but from what cause was best known to himself. Affecting, however, a happy indifference as to what might be the subject of Miss Singleton's thoughts, or as if he had not been conscious of the se- rious expression which her dignified look had con- veyed, he began playing with a little spaniel, which was the favorite of Olive, and then, addressing Wolf, 182 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF who was feeding the dog with a small portion of his buttered roll, he exclaimed, — " And pray, Wolf, how comes it that you have this morning been so unmindful in your duty to another fair sister, for whom you have gathered no posey ?" Instantly the cheeks of Wolf became flushed with a colour of the brightest crimson, and leaving the side of little Silvia, and running up to Agatha, he replied, "I will answer that question to her, not to you, for it is no business of your's ; you are not my bro- ther, neither is Miss Singleton your sister." Craftly coloured deeply, and, for the first time, threw a contemptuous look at the little forester, which was not unfelt or unremarked by Agatha, who, telling Wolf, in a mild and gentle accent, that he must not speak so boldly to those who were so much older, he instantly retired, with Alfred, to see if his ship would sail, that David had made him a present of. " And David is to go down to the river with you, a-emember that," cried the fisher, as Wolf was about to make his exit ; " 1 will not permit either you or Alfred to ramble about alone." " And why not ?" answered Wolf; " why not, fa- ther ? — do you think that we shall run away, or that I will let any body hurt Alfred ? — No, I would knock any boy down, if he was as big as a man, that would offer to hurt Alfred. I whacked a boy yesterday, only because he called Alfred a numskull, when he could not make the ship sail." The manner in which Wolf had uttered these words produced an involuntary fit of laughter from the fisher, in which Craftly joined, in spite of his utmost endeavours to look displeased with the little champion. THK COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, 183 "What, you whacked a boy yesterday in the neigh- bourhood of Cromer !" cried the fisher ; " why, yt)U young lion I I shall have you taken up for an assault upon some gentleman's son, some day or other." " Oh, I am very sure that the boy I leathered Wiis no gentleman's son, father," cried Wolf, "orhewoulid have behaved like one, — would not he, Alfred?" " Yes, he called me names. Sir," rejoined Alfre you put upon in the manner that you are, always sla> ing, morning, noon^ and night ; first in the dairy, then in the larder, then in the kitchen, then in the wash-nouse, then in the cellar ; it is a burning shame, that's what it is, Miss Jessy !" How long Claribelle would have chatted away on this subject we know not, but it may be possible to guess, had not her young mistress called her to order, and desired her to go for her work-basket, which having done, she quitted the room immediately, and left Jessy and Agatha to enjoy the pleasures of an un- interrupted conversation. But poor Jessy felt abashed and painfully embar- rassed, even when left alone with the only being in whom she was assured she could place implicit confi- dence, or to whom she could impart her sorrows, or unburthen her whole heart ; and it was a considerable time after the departure of Claribelle, that Jessy could muster up courage to articulate a sentence, and during this painful interval of silence, two or three silver- eyed needles had been completely demolished, and the cotton broke in twenty pieces. " How tiresome, that j^^^ THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 189 I cannot find a needle to suit my work !" uttered she, with some embarrassment. " You are indeed unfortunate, my dear girl," re- plied Agatha, half inclined to smile ; " suppose you try one of mine." The needle-case was handed to Jessy, and the of- fering was accepted, but tried with as little success ; and Jessy, throwing down her work, protested that she could not do another stitch, so she would not at- tempt it ; " for, you know. Miss Singleton," uttered she, with a deep blush overspreading her fair and in- nocent countenance, " when one's thoughts are em- ployed on other subjects, one cannot work, if one had ever such a mind." " It is very true, my love," rejoined Agatha ; " I very frequently endure that uncomfortable sensation myself, and am then obliged to leave my most favorite occupations." The ice was now broke, and Jessy sighed deeply ; still Agatha, though greatly sympathising in her feelings, was too delicate to enquire into the cause of her present inquietude. In a few moments, however, Jessy resumed the thread of her discourse as follows, to which Agatha became silently attentive. " Yes, no doubt, my dear Miss Singleton," uttered Jessy ; " you have had great occasions for reflections of an uncomfortable nature, yet, alas ! they are not so agonizing, so terrible, as mine !" *' Good Heavens ! my sweet Jessy," exclaimed Aga- tha, now removing her eyes from off her work, and fixing them on the deeply-blushing countenance of her fair friend ; " how you alarm me ! what can pos- sibly have given rise to sensations, either of a nature 190 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. terrible or agonizing, in so young, so innocent, a breast ? if you deem me worthy of your confidence, as I judge that you do, freely unburthen the source of those sorrows which so heavily afflict you, and, be- lieve me, you will neither find your confidence mis- placed, nor have cause to lament that you have chosen nie as a participator of them." " Ah ! I know that already, dearest Miss Singleton," cried the tearful Jessy, " or I had not thus ventured to disclose them ; I know you will never betray poor Jessy to the displeasure of her father, or the censure of her sister, both of which I should deeply feel, did they but even guess at my situation." Here Jessy made a painful pause, and Agatha, more alarmed than ever, and really imagining that her situation was even of a nature more delicate than she had suggested, ex- claimed, in the most terrified accents, — " Situation, my dearest Jessy ! your situation ! I implore you to tell me what that situation is ! surely that insidious, artful young man, has not dared to but no, no ; forgive me, Jessy, — it cannot be !" " Of whom are you now speaking in such cruel terms. Miss Singleton ?" cried Jessy, in the utmost astonishment. To which Agatha, not yet relieved from one dreadful apprehension, immediately replied, — " Jessy, I am no dissembler ; I am a lover of sacred, yet plain and simple truth, which, however painful, is the only beaten path, through which I have been taught to go ; I cannot wander from it, even to serve a friend, nor disguise my sentiments in the shallow veil of hypocrisy, and, though I wound your feelings, I must be explicit. You cannot imagine me to be blind to the dishonourable and cruel system of conduct THE COTTAGK ON THE CMFF. 191 which a certain relative of yours is now adopting, both towards you and your sister,— your kinsman, Leontine Craftly ; 'tis of him I am speaking-, and if, as I much fear, he has already obtained too powerful an influence in your heart to be easily shaken, as it appears he has also in that of Olive's, what should I say in favor of such a man, since there is no term vile enough to give him a name. Oh, Jessy ! if you love Leontine Craftly, my heart does indeed bleed for you at every pore." "Oh, do not think so hardly of htm !" cried Jessy, now bursting into an agony of tears ; " I cannot bear to hear him so reproached." " No, Jessy, I am aware that you cannot," returned Agatha, in a calm but impressive tone, " and I would most willingly spare you a trial of such painful feel- ings, could I use duplicity towards you, or conceal . mine ; but this I cannot do, and be your faithful friend, and it is much better for him to merit re- proach, than you to be reproached, Jessy. You had better abandon such a hypocrite, than he to abandon you, — than your father to abandon you, for his sake ; the injury he would render you would be irreparable ; you can render him none, for a libertine feels nothing, ; Jessy, — he has no feeling but for his exclusive self: — :> self is the god of his idolatry, he worships nor bends to no other shrine, save his licentious passions ; and * such a man I take Leontine Craftly to be." " Indeed, indeed, you are deceived, Miss Singleton," cried the weeping Jessy ; " I have known Leontine from the days of my earliest childhood, and never heard him taxed with such a crime before ; we have been brought up together, even as twin lambs, and 192 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. frolicked as harmless and as playful ; together have we kneeled, — together have we prayed before the holy altar, where first he confessed that I alone was the ob- ject of his affections." " Very likely, ray dear," cried Agatha, feeling more deeply for the innocent victim of man's perfidious art; " he did all this, and it cost him but little pains. Men can swear at the holy altar, and as they bend to the holy shrine with vows of everlasting love, deceive, betray, abandon, the object of their then seeming idolatry ! — Well, my love, and if Craftly swore to you that you were the sole and entire object of his affections, pray what is your sister Olive the object of? if you will an- swer me that question, my sweet Jessy, I will cease to rail at Craftly, and tell you that he is a fair and ho- nourable man : what is Olive the object of, since it is apparent, almost to every one, that he pays her far more attentions than he does you ? Has the pious young gentleman had recourse to the holy altar here too ? tell me, Jessy." " I cannot. Miss Singleton," replied the trembling, too conscious, blushing girl ; " I cannot imagine the reason why he wishes to persuade Olive that he is at- tached to her, when he tells me that she is wholly in- different to him : alas ! I know that she loves him, and it gives me great pain ; I am tortured to think that poor Olive will one day be so deceived !" "And what day will that be?" cried Agatha, un- able to resist smiling. " When he marries me," replied Jessy, with the most unsuspecting innocence; "yet I own, that at times 1 think it strange, and could be angry with Craftly. as I was this morning, Miss Singleton, when THE COTTAGF, ON THE CLIFF. 19'3 you came in so unexpectedly and surprised us ; he was sadly vexed, I assure you." " And yet he did not appear much chagrined," an- swered Agatha ; " he could smile at Olive too, when she came in, and conversed with her, as if nothing had particularly occurred to give you uneasiness, which is a proof at once of the baseness of his heart, and the wan- ton depravity of his disposition. Now, hear me, dear Jessy, before we are presently interrupted, and I shall not again have an opportunity of conversing with you on a subject in which your peace, your happiness, and your honour, is so materially concerned: hear me, dear girl, and do not listen to me lightly, but regard me as your monitor and friend. I know as little of the world, and am as inexperienced in the real character of man- kind, perhaps, as you are ; but I had a father who knew them well, and he has taught me to distinguish be- tween the semblance of virtue and the reality, and that a man of honour has but one way of gaining the affections of a woman of honour, and both he and she would disdain any other. There are no round-about ways in pure and honourable love : a man neither seeksconcealment, nor wishes to hide the passion with which he is inspired, much less does he show it to an- other, merely for the gratification of his vanity, but is proud of the being whom he has selected to be the partner of his heart's secret choice : he glories in her, • — makes her his wife in the face of the whole worlo, and puts it out of the power of mortal man to censure her; but a licentious lover only of woman, — a liber- tine, — oh, Jessy ! he is a monster under the canopy of sweet Heaven, abusing holy nature, and her sacred laws ! he lives unpitied, if he lives at all, and when he c «c 194 THE COTTAGE OS THE CLIFF. dies, ah, Jessy, think how dreadful will be his fate, when the victims whom his base arts have sent to ap. early grave shall meet in terrible array against him ! — then, Jessy, and not till then, will his heart be open to remorse, and feel that he has merited the bitter thorn of compunction I CHAPTER Xin. " Do yoH remember the last sweet tone Of this dear liaip, now broken 1 Do you remember the days long flown Since last that tone was spoken ' Oh ! often at night it came like the light Of some angel, earthward flying, Whose heavenly wings had touch'd the strings, And soften'd the sound with her sighing." Jess V had reclined her head on the table to conceal her fast-flowing tears from the observation of her fair monitor, and, during the last speech of Agatha, her bosom heaved with the most convulsive agitation, which awakened the tenderest emotions of pity and compassion for an object so innocent, so lovely, — so amiable ; but Agatha did not repent, that though she had sustained a sharp trial of her feelings, that she had gradually opened her mind to contemplate the too faithful portrait she had drawn of the insidious, and THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 195 cruel arts of mankind, by which hapless woman be- comes too frequently the unfortunate victim of her own credulity ; still Agatha wished to say something to relieve the feelings of the so suddenly surprised, and heart-wounded Jessy, before the arrival of the fisher, and, in the kindest and gentlest accents, she en- treated her to compose her agitated feelings, and to consider that the exertion of every faculty of her mind was now necessary to conquer an unhappy attachment which she feared, under present appearances, it would be the height of folly and even madness to yield to ; and that, unless Craftly acted very opposite to what he was now doing, there would be little chance of his ever requiting her faithful love, in the fair and ho- nourable way that every honest man wishes to do with a female whom he really respects and loves. " For, believe me, Jessy," cried Agatha, " and it grieves me deeply, while candour urges me to declare it to you, that I do not think Craftly loves either you or Olive well enough to act on honourable terms, and that it is only a base counterfeit that he is offering to both of you, to gratify the most detestable and cruel of all human passions and purposes ; weep not, sweet Jessy, such an object is unworthy of your tears; the possession of such a heart is not worth sighing for, — the attentions of such a man valueless ; were it other- wise, (and for your sake I would that it were so !) why should Craftly wish to dissemble with your sister Olive ? — why conceal from your father his affection for you ? Is he not your parent ? is he not the most proper personage to disclose his sentiments to on such an occasion ? has he not a right to be consulted on the happiness of his child ? sf3 kind, so good a father too I ah, Jessy ! you are the pride of that dear father's 196 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. heart, — the darling, the blessing of his old age ! I think how it would break to hear his Jessy deceived, betrayed, — perhaps torn from his tender arras, and by whom ? — the man in whom he most placed implicit trust and confidence; — the boy too, in childhood, that he most loved ! Jessy, turn from the sickening picture which fancy now has drawn! may the reality never have existence but in fancy! Heaven and all good angels, guard my Jessy from such a fate !" Agatha had now touched the most tender chord in Jessy's heart, and that was her father ; and Leontine, Olive, all were forgot, when she thought of her duty to this most kind, this most dear of all earthly friends ! "Victory is yours, dearest Miss Singleton," ex- claimed Jessy, instantly drying her tears, and throw- ing her arms round the snowy neck of the lovely mo- nitor ; " I would not pain the heart of my dear father for the wealth of worlds; and though 1 hope my cou- sin Craftly is not the faulty being you describe, and though my silly heart would yet encourage the pleasing hope, that he would not be so cruel as to deceive poor Jessy, still. Miss Singleton, I would perish ere I would again listen to vows so offered ; no, I would rather resign him to my sister Olive than to receive a heart so divided, or believe in a disposition so waver- ing and inconstant, and which does not appear to know itself" " You have said rightly, dearest girl," cried Agatha ; "a libertine is the last person in existence to know him- self." " And you believe that 1 shall be happier without the attentions or aflfections of Leontine, dearest Miss Singleton," repeated Jessy. To which Agatha gravely replied, — THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 197 " Happiness, my dear girl, results from the con- sciousness of having acted rightly ; 'tis that, and that alone, that is the surest founder of peace, and every noble, every generous thought springs from it ; we cannot be unhappy, while we feel assured that we me- rit the approval of conscience, and the protection of that all-seeing eye to whom all hearts are known, and from whom our most secret thoughts cannot be hidden. This is happiness, dearest Jessy, and this happiness will be yours, should you shun the path, of which 1 have fortunately been the instrument of warn- ing you ; in the meantime, behave in your usual man- ner towards your father's kinsman, in all but listening clandestinely to any secret avowal of his passion, and give him no reason to imagine that you suspect his designs, till he affords you an open and a seasonable opportunity for so doing, then bid him apply to your father; and, trust me, if he means you honourable affection, he will not be long before he discloses his intentions to your father; and believe not in vows, promises, or oaths, which sooner or later may be bro- ken, for, as the poet too justly describes the passion of his sex, the vows and promises of mankind are not to be faithfully relied on ; as in the following passage from a well-known play : — " When a man talks of love, with caution hear him ! But if he swears — he'll certainly deceive you." Jessy heaved a deep sigh, responsive to her feeling^ and her faithless Leontine, for such she feared he was but the powerful impression he had so long success- fully made on her young and innocent heart, repelled the thought of his being a professed libertine : she 198 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. hoped that time would convince her gentle monitor that she was mistaken, still she determined faithfully to abide by her better counsel, committing to her judg- ment her most secret thoughts, and thanking her a thousand times for her friendly advice. Jessy and her separated for the preseTit ; the one to inspect the pre- parations which were making for the dinner, and the other to make some little alterations in her dress ; for Agatha could never divest herself of a certain system in which she had been so delicately educated, and though she had but little pride in adorning her beau- tiful person, she had a close regard to simplicity and neatness in her attire, and to braiding regularly those lovely tresses, which needed no other additional aid of ornament, and assisted by Claribelle, they were put into their usual form, and she had just finished her toilet, when she heard the door of her chamber softly unclosed, and the head of Wolf obtrude itself on her notice ; he held out a fine peach in his hand, while he exclaimed, — " This is for you, dear sister, it was given to me for my management of sailing my little ship on the water, by such a fine beautiful lady, who was walking by the sea-side with a fine gentleman ; so they stopped to look at my ship, and when I had got it to sail so )iicely, she said I was a clever little fellow, and gave me this peach, and Alfred some apples ; so then they went away and left us, and when David came up to where we were sailing the ship, he said that the lady was the greatest in the place, and that the gentleman who was with her was a lord, and that 1 might be very proud of the present she had given me ; so Alfred has brought home his apples, and I have brought home my peach, but deuce a one shall have a bit of it but THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 190 you, my dear, dear, pretty sister ; so take it, pray take it from your own poor Wolt*, who loves you so dearly !" The peach was accepted, and Wolf invited into the chamber, where he soon began to seat himself without further ceremony, while Agatha, dividing the peach into three parts, insisted that he should that moment go down into the parlour, and offer a share of it to his sisters Jessy and Olive. '' On no other condition will I eat one morsel of it, dear Wolf," cried Agatha ; " remember, that they are your sisters as much as I am, and would think them- selves slighted were you to show any preference to me, neither would it be very proper in the house of your benefactor ; I thank you, dear boy, all the same, but indeed, indeed, you must obey me." " Well, I will do that, because you would have me," uttered Wolf, a little surlily, " but I did not save that peach for them ; I don't mind going without a bit myself, as long as 1 thought you would have it ; but as for sister Olive, she might whistle for a peach before I would get her one ; and that Craftly too, I don't love either of them, because they are so cross to me." " Well, that is reason enough^ I am sure. Master Wolf," cried Claribelle, who had attached herself to the little forester, because her young mistress had done so; "and if I was my young lady" here Agatha gave a look, perfectly understood by her at- tendant, and she was immediately silent, while Agatha mildly exclaimed, — "If you were me, Claribelle, I am persuaded that you would think it necessary to act just as I do now ; come, my dear boy, let us go down stairs together. Wolf, now cheerfully obeyed, and, on their en* 200 THE COTTAGF, ON THK CLIFF. trance, ran up to Olive and related his little tale with great glee, about the grand lord and lady, and to which she listened with more complacency than usual, and, while she took her share of the peach, she ex- claimed, — " Well, and I shouldn't at all wonder if it was the marchioness you have seen, the marquis was at Adams's library only this morning ; Jessy, there's news for you ! — all Cromer will be alive ; for, do you know that their beautiful daughter, Lady Lavinia, is with them, aye, and the young lord too, — that sweet young man, who was here last season.' " What sweet young man ?" cried Jessy, in so appa- rently listless and mournful a tone, that Agatha was under some serious apprehension that the agitation which she had been suffering would have excited the attention of her father and Olive ; for Craftly, under some trifling pretence or other, had stept out But the fisher was peeling an apple which Alfred had given him, and Olive, whose spirits seemed greatly slated by her morning's walk, burst into an immo- derate fit of laughter. " There, father," cried she, " if that is not a good one !" Jessy is pretending that she don't know who I mean by the ^ sweet young man,' when that is the name that Lord Montague goes by whenever he comes to Cromer ; and well he may, for I do not think there's one to match him in the whole world for beauty, and politeness to the ladies ; but I will tell Miss Singleton about the raffle, and the parasol ; — You must know, Miss Singleton, that father let Jessy and I put our names down for a raffle at Adams's circulating library, It was for a most beautiful parasol, all mounted with TIIR COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, 501 silver; well, when we went in to throw, who should pop into the shop but the Marchioness of Moiitault and Lady Lavinia, her daughter, and Lord Montague, her son, and several other grand lords and ladies ; how Jessy and I blushed when it came, to our turn to throw, did not we, Jessy ? because, you iuust know, Miss Singleton, that Lord Montague looked very hard at us, first at Jessy, and then at nie, and then at" " Shiver my topsails ! why don't you tell the story at once?" cried the fisher; "what does it matter where he looked, or how he looked ? what is the use of a man having- eyes, if he cannot see?" " Well, father, and he had ejes, sure enough," re- torted Olive, " and he made use of them, did he not, Jessy ? and they were the finest blue eyes T ever saw in a man's head ; but to come to the story, Miss Sin- gleton, as father says ; — Jessy took up the dice and threw five, and lost her chance ; then it came to my turn, and my lord looked at me again, and 1 looked at my lord, for he had thrown the highest number all but one, — it was thirty-five ; well, lo, and behold, I threw thirty-five too ! so there were no more to throw ; and what do you think my lord did, bc'fore ail the la- dies and gentlemen that were there? why, he took up the beautiful parasol, and said, 'there is no contend- ing with a fair lady, the prize be your's ;' and gave it to me, Miss Singleton, with such a sweet smile and pleasant countenance, that 1 thought he looked ten times handsomer than before! was not that pretty? so I have got the parasol up stairs in one of my drawers, for I dare say I was envied finely that even- ing by all the girls in Cromer, for receiving such a compliment from a lord's son ; and, my patience, how c. 2d 209 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. I blushed ! did not I, Jessy ? and now, Miss Single- ton, what do you think of my Lord Montague ?" To which Agatha, ahnost laughing, replied, — "Why, I think he did nothing more than any other gentleman would have done, precisely under the same circumstance, even though he were not a lord's son ; there was no merit in that if he had no other." " No, shiver my topsails, if there was !" cried the fisher, chuckling heartily at this last observation ; "many lords disgrace their titles, don't they, Miss Singleton ?" " Would to heaven that they did not, Sir !" was the reply of Agatha, just as the dinner was served up, and at which they were again favoured with the company of Craftly, who evidently betrayed some embarrass- ment at the downcast eyes of the sweet Jessy, who now regarded him with sensations very different to those she had experienced at their last meeting, still she evinced no ill humour, — she was the same mild, gentle being, as ever ; but, whenever Craftly addressed her sister Olive, next to whom, as usual, he was seated, her lovely cheeks assumed a colour of the brightest crimson, which suddenly fading, she became pale as the lily, but, as this was frequently the case, it was regarded by no one but her whose sensative heart beat in unison with her's, and that heart was Agatha's, who could not behold the smiling hypocrite before her without feeling the greatest detestation of his cha- racter, when she reflected, that so sweet a flower a« the innocent Jessy might be blighted by such a mon- ster, had she been imprudent enough to have yielded to his demoniac influence over her afl'ections, which she fervently prayed she had been instrumental in de- stroying, at least to render abortive. THt; roTTAGi: on the cmff. i.03 During tho repast the fislur frccpiently addressed Agatha on the subject of his visit to Cromer, assuring her that he had been at great pains in sticking up the bill in the most conspicuous part of Adams's shop; that many had read it even while he was there, and that there was no doubt but there would be plenty of applicants for the Cottage on the Clifl' in a very i'cw days, and concluded this remark with, " and I assure you, that my kinsman has been taking a great deal off my hands, my dear, in describing the romantic situa- tion of the cottage, and about the fine prospect it com- manded of the sea-side, and a thousand other things be- side, that had quite slipt my memory, but cousin Craftiy knows hoM' to talk to the gentry much better than 1 'can, you see, Miss Singleton, now T don't understand the one half of what they are saying ; there is the Marchioness of Montault, she is reckoned a main clever lady in these parts, but shiver my topsails if ever I could find it out ! and I would rather hear you talk for four-and-twenty hours together, than I would be com- pelled to listen to her ladyship for one, so that is the truth of it ; then there is her daughter, that the people of Cromer say is such a prodigious fine creature, curse me if the girl is not half a fool ! and carries a spy- glass, bobbing at her breast, in a gold chain, which she stares every body out of countenance with, on pretence that she cannot see clearly without one ; but. shiver my topsails ! I would make her see, if I were her father, without any such fal-lals, or I would know the reason why." Agatha could not resist smiling at the fisher's re- mark, but conceiving that some portion of thanks were due to Craftly for the trouble he had taken about the cottage, she made an oiler of her grateful 204 THE COTTAGE ON THE CMFF. acknowledgments, which was only replied to with a slight vermilion overspreading- his cheek, as he caught a glance of her bright and intelligent eyes, and a cold " you are welcome, madam !" pronounced in a sort of offended tone, while Olive, delighted at this distance of reserve which was now preserved between ber kinsman, and her so much-dreaded rival, the beautiful Agatha, and believing that she owed the deference which Leontine paid to her, wholly to the superiority of her own personal charms, to those of any object in creation, her spirits flowed with a vivacity which was unbounded, and she neitlier heeded or cared for the depression which so apparently preyed on poor Jessy, or seemed anxious about enquiring into the cause, and to the observation of her father on the Lady La- vinia, she jocosely exclaimed, " Lord, father, as if you did not know that it was the fashion to wear glasses, whether one is near sighted or not ! for my part I think they are exceed- ingly becoming, and give one an air of consequence." " Give you the air of a fiddle-stick's end," cried the fisher, as he whiffed away the smoke of his tobacco with an extraordinary exertion ; " shiver my topsails ! if ever 1 catch you wearing one, 1 will twist a rope yarn about your neck, and you may wear that if you please, to clear your eyesight and give you an air ot consequence, for in my mind one is just as likely to do that as the other ; what say you. Miss Singleton ?" " Why, really, Sir," uttered Agatha, " I scarcely know how to give an opinion where two to one would be against me, with respect to a custom so generally prescribed to by the votaries of fashion ; still I will boldly venture to affirm, that 1 do not think it at all THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 205 necessary to follow a custom so ridiculous, merely be- cause fashion sanctions it ; and, if I were really not near-sighted, I would not wear a glass to please any one, yet you must allow me to say, at the same time, that many do, of very superior intellect ; such is the influence of fashion, which appears to reconcile even contradictions to each other ; if I had not an infirmity I would not affect to have one, and that is all I wish to say on the matter." "Well, my dear, you have said what is very much to the purpose," cried the fisher, " and I wish every body could say as much ; but, as to fashion, why, curse the fishion,! say, for any good that it does to civilized so- ciety, or to the increase of the morals of the rising gene- ration, and if every man was to follow the fashion now- a-days, we should be a set of the most degenerate scoun- drels in existence ; for what does fashion teach us ? There is a man, perhaps a titled one, no matter, that does not make him a bit the better, goes into the house of his friend, and seduces his daughter! while another, does him the same sort of favour with his wife ! and if these circumstances are not publicly known, he sneaks out with a whole skin, because fashion has reconciled it to his conscience as a thing of no consequence, and he having trod in the same path that others have trod be- fore, believes that he is to escape punishment for the commission of so foul a crime, both here and here- after, giving no after-thought to the misery he has heaped on the heads of his unfortunate victims, or the disgrace and ruin in which he has plunged a whole fa- mily. — I say, Miss Singleton, that this is monstrous when we see a man after this, thrusting his nose into society, and pretending to the principles and character 906 THE coTTAGi: on thk CMpr. of a gentleman and an honest man, aftel* an open vio- lation of one of its most sacred laws. — 1 say that this is abomiiTable ! and were such scoundrels to be exter- minated from the race of men, after such a crime, the repetition would be less frequent, and the offenders more generally known.— ^Women would shun them, and men abhor them.'* What effect this speech had on the feelings of Craftly, it would have been difficult to have ascer- tained from the expression of his countenance ; but the paleness of Jessy's, which was now too apparent to escape the observations of her father, directed also the eyes of Craftly towards her; yet quickly averting them, as if fearful of enquiring into the heart-Wound- ing expression they conveyed ; he began as usual to play with Silvia, Olive's little favorite ; when the fisher, regarding his youngest daughter with some sur- prise, exclaimed, — "Why, Jessy, my duckling, what ails thee? why, thee looked as freshly as a rose, when thou came down stairs this morning, and now thee art whiter than a lily ; what be'st the matter, girl ?" "And do 1 not show some symptoms of disorder too, as well as Jessy, Sir ?" said Agatha, hitting upon the only stratagem that could save Jessy from the in- vestigation of her father, " for I assure you, that we have both been alarmed from the same cause." " What, have Jessy and you seen the ghost at last, Miss Singleton ?" cried Olive. " No, indeed, it was mere flesh and blood, in the form of David's mare," uttered Agatha ; but posi- tively I did not see her in the garden till she jumped over the fence, and came suddenly upon us : Jessy THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 207 screamed, and so did I ; for who would have thouj»ht of seeing flying Fan in the flower-garden, when we supposed she was quietly feeding in the stable ? how- ever, the boy soon came to our assistance, and got her away ; but, indeed, it was very silly of us to be so frightened, — was it not, Sir ?" " Yes, I must needs agree with you there, Miss Sin- gleton," cried the fisher ; " for Fan is a quiet beast, she would never have done you any mischief, only Jess, who is so fond of her flowers, was afraid of Fan's treading them down, I suppose, wasn't thee, my Jess? Well, well, never grieve thee, she shan't go there again, I promise you. I will have a new fence put up there to-morrow-morning, the old one has been going for some time ; so Fan has done more good than harm by her unseasonable visit." — And without waiting to hear any thing more of Fan, the fisher arose and went immediately out, to examine the state of the fence, and to give orders that the stable door should be constantly shut, while it was going under the necessary repairs. How true it is that one single deviation from the native truth, however simple it may appear, may, not- withstanding, lead us into error, and be productive of some unpleasing consequences, both to ourselves and to others ; and no sooner was the fisher gone than Agatha blushed deeply at the little artifice she had been guilty of, which, although it had greatly served to lessen the embarrassed feelings of poor Jessy, had made it necessary for her to frame a falsehood, and as Craftly had disappeared too, with the fisher, the young ladies were left togetner to pursue what subject of conversation they liked '^est. 208 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Olive, whose spirits since dinner had not by any means diminished, but rather encreased, of course in- troduced her favorite topic, which was finery and dress, protesting that she had seen the pattern of a beautiful silk spencer at Miss Mury's, the milliner, and that it was very much like the shape of one worn by Lady Lavinia Montault ; in short, Olive so com- mented upon the beauty of this so greatly-admired spencer, that she protested she would have one made like it, whether her father liked it or not; "and so can you, Jessy, if you please," cried she ; '• you know we have got plenty of silk by us, that father got out of the wreck, last year, of the Adona, and it is not yet made up : now let us take it to Miss Mury, and get her to make us the spencers, and father won't be a bit the wiser, you know; Miss Mury can put it in his bill when she sends it in at Christmas, and lump it all together ; father would pay it, if it were twice as much." To which Jessy gravely made the following reply : — " I have no objection to your having a spencer, if you like it, Olive, though, if I may speak truly, I do not see what occasion you can have for such an addi- tion to your wardrobe, for myself I should think it a useless piece of extravagance; but for cutting up the nice piece of silk that father made us a present of to make into gowns is unpardonable, as well as Miss Mury adding it to her bill ; to neither of which, I pro- mise you, would I willingly consent." " Indeed, Miss Formal ?" cried Olive, laughing. " Yes, indeed, Olive, 1 am serious," replied Jessy ; "formal, or not formal, I do not see why we should add to the expenc^s of our dear fatjjor unnecessarily." THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 209 ** Now, Miss Singleton, did you ever see such a simpleton as my sister Jessy," cried Olive, "as if a few shillings, more or less, could make any difference to father, while he is paying it ; but I don't care, a spencer I'll have, and I will tell Miss Mury to be sure to make it as much like Lady Lavinia's as she possibly can : Lord, I should so like to be thought to dress like Lady Lavinia !" "And why should you wish to dress above the sta- tion you are in, Olive ?" cried Jessy : " why cannot you content yourself with being what you are ?" " What is that to you. Miss Jessy ?" retorted Olive, " I wish you would mind your own business, and not trouble your head about mine." " Neither should I," cried Jessy, " if you were not my sister ; and that I cannot bear to see you " " To see me what, pray ?" replied Olive, on whose brow a frown was now gathering that boded some violence ; " to see me what. Miss Prudence ?" " To see you forgetting that you are my sister," an- swered Jessy, in a mild though reproachful accent. " I don't care a button what you or any body think," repeated Olive ; " and I will dress as I choose, in spite of you or father either; cousin Craftly says I ought to dress well, for a girl of my figure, and he is a better judge than you of the matter ; and what is more, he said " Poor Jessy was now almost fluttered to tears, and the unfortunate mention of Craftly at this precise mo- ment of her wounded feelings, very quickly succeeded in producing an involuntary shower, which she was unable to suppress, and she sobbed out, — ** It is of little consequence, Olive, w hat cousin c. 2e 910 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Craftly says ; I donH want to hear any thing that he has said ; — it is a matter of the most perfect indifference to me, I assure you." " So it seems, when, it is plain, you cannot help crying- at it," uttered Olive, reddening like scarlet, and not knowing to what cause to attribute her emotion. But Jessy quickly replied, — " 'Tis your unkindness, Olive, that occasions me to shed tears ; it is you who have drawn them from my heart, and not Craftly." Olive now pouted and became silent, while Agatha, whose heart sympathized in the feelings of poor Jessy, endeavoured by every means to soften the asperity of the one, and to compose the agitated feelings of the other. " Dear girls, I beseech you to let this difference go no further between you," uttered she, approaching, and taking a hand of each in her own ; " I implore you, dear Olive, to kiss your sister, and be friends, be- fore your father returns and sees you at such war with each other ; Jessy could not mean seriously to offend you, nor you, I am certain, would not seriously give her pain. Think for what a trifle you have jarred ; think, dear girls, that you ought not to suffer it to produce a cause of dissention between sisters, who should ever be the dearest friends ; come, dear Olive, let me again see that smile playing on your lip, which only a few moments ago was the sweetest charm in a countenance, that never looks unpleasing but when it steals behind a cloud." If ever a speech was likely to produce the effect for which it was intended, it was this of Agatha's, on the feelings of Olive; for it was not only soothing to her vanity, but she was assured, that if Miss Single- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 211 ton thought her handsome, she must be beautiful be- yond expres<;ion in the eyes of Craftly. And the frown instantly disappearing from her countenance, she gave her hand to Jessy without a moment's hesi- tation, while the amiable girl confessed that she her- self had been betrayed into an involuntary warmth of temper with Olive, which she hoped she would the more readily pardon, as Miss Singleton had most kindly condescended to be the mediator between them. "Well, 1 am sure I am not angry now one bit," cried Olive ; " I was only vexed on account of my spencer, but it is all over now, and Jessy and I are friends again, — are not we, Jessy ?" To this Jessy assented, by cordially returning the embrace of her sister, and it was very fortunate that the absence of the fisher and Craftly afforded them an op- portunity of being perfectly reconciled to one another, a circumstance that was also productive of much hap piness to the kind-hearted Agatha ; while Olive, from this evening began to regard the beautiful orphan with a less prejudiced eye, for she saw that she courted not the attentions of Leontine Craftly, and therefore could no longer consider her in the light of a rival. Agatha in consequence, very soon received a differ- ent sort of treatment from Olive, whose advice and opinion was now resorted to on every occasion, and even the spencer was submitted to her judgment, which was made by Miss Mury, the milliner, on a more reasonable plan than at first proposed, and with- out any infringement on the silk ; for, on its being shown to Agatha, she declared in favour of its being only reserved for gowns, and that it would have beea 212 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. a wanton piece of extravagance to have had it cut up for spencers. Amity and peace now apparently seemed to reij^n in the house of the fisher, for Craftly was frequently ab- sent on short excursions round the coast, to superin- tend the concern he had in the herring-fishery, which greatly served to lessen the depression of poor Jessy, to whom the society of Miss Singleton was not only a source of the most inexpressible delight, but of con- stant improvement ; for Agatha, who had a selection of the most approved authors, occasionally read them to her beloved young friend, and gradually gave her a taste for works of literature, moral and instructive, nor was modern or ancient history neglected ; and Alfred and Wolf, sometimes being present at their researches, were allowed the privilege of taking what books they chose out of the library of Miss Singleton, which they often took to school with them ; for the fisher having consulted with some of his friends, was advised to place the two little foundlings under the care of Mr. Ruthen, a very able master of a public seminary in the vicinity of Cromer ; " for, in the first place," cried the fisher, " it will keep them out of harm's way, and, in the next, it will tame the disposi- tion of that wild boy, Wolf; for when he is old enough 1 will make hi in a trader, and 1 warrant me he will be a clever fellow for the fishery ; he has wit, strength, and hardihood, and will soon learn to handle a rope's yarn as well as the best man in the ship." Agatha heard the destination of her favorite Wolf in silence, but not without experiencing sensations of the most painful kind, or enquiring why her heart beat so tumultuously and anxiously for the fate of this boy ; THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 213 why should she feel repugnant to his embracing the life which his benevolent protector had pointed out for him ? why should not Wolf be a fisher ? the poor, de- serted, neglected, and uneducated offspring of some unfortunate unknown, long since mouldered into dust, perhaps, or if yet living, which was doubtful, ashamed of owning him ; what then were his prospects, or his expectations, that he should not labour in a hardy profession, for which, indeed, his disposition seemed naturally to have formed him ? Ah ? but not for such a life, reflected Agatha ; methinks he has a mind which soars above it, and that he is designed for a higher station ; that noble eye, like the young eaglet of a valiant nest, seems to fix his thoughts far beyond the low dunghill where his fate once threw him, in the Black Forest ; and I know not w liy 1 think it, yet my heart tells me that Wolf is descended from a warlike line. — Ah ! would to Heaven that the ffifts of fortune were alone mine, for thy sake, dear, friendless boy ! how proudly would I lay it down to ransom thee from thy ignoble bondage, the servitude of fishery on the rough seas !" Agatha was sitting at the window of her chamber, when she pronounced these words, and it was wide open, though long after the hour that she usually re- tired to rest ; even Claribelle, who had been desired by her young mistress to go to bed, had sunk into a profound slumber, so that ijt was scarcely possible for any one human being to have overheard the sentences which had just escaped from her lips, for no living soul was stirring in the house of the fisher ; yet over- neard Agatha certainly was by some person, who ap- parently had been stationed under the window, for in 214 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. a voice, the sound of which was familiar to her ear, yet it was neither that of Craftly nor the fisher ; it whis- pered the following words : — " Can Wolf be friendless, when the voice of beauty and compassion so sweetly sues in his behalf? Can Wolf be deserted when a pitying angel is anxious o'er his fate ? Oh, never ! thrice envied, happy boy ! who would not wish to resemble a destiny so blest ?" A slight gust of wind agitated the foliage of the dark pine trees, from whence this voice seemed to have issued, but no vestage of a human being escaped from them ; and Agatha, almost motionless with sur- prise, and even terror, instantly closed the casement, drew the curtains round it, and extinguished the lamp, which was yet brightly burning in her chamber ; after which all was silent as before : whoever had ut- tered these words had suddenly departed, and Agatha, though she endured the most alarming apprehensions, felt that it would be folly and madness to disturb the fisher's family on so trifling an incident ; nor could she do this without being charged with some impropriety, in sitting with her window open at so late an hour after all the family were gone to bed, and that she would be obliged then to repeat the words which had occasioned the intrusion of so extraordinary a visitor. The only remedy, therefore, that she could apply to her fears, under existing circumstances, was silence and patience ; besides, there was no hostility offered against her in the words she had listened to : it could not be an enemy that had spoken thus. And she con- soled herself with the reflection that always accom- panies innocence, that she had injured nor offended no one; except that Craftly might suspect lier having TifF, rOTTAGE ON TIIR CLIFF. 215 obtained some influence over the mind of Jessy Blnst to induce lier to discourage his clandestine addresses towards her ; for Craftly had of late avoided all con- versation with her, and scarcely noticed her, as even being an inhabitant in the house of his kinsman. But this was not the voice of Craftly she was pretty certain, for there were tones in it of the softest yet most manly delicacy, and a sort of affecting pathos, which seemed to awaken emotions of a tender and sacred nature ; it was something like her father's, had her father been a younger man ; and Agatha thought that she had somewhere caught a strain of such a voice, again repelling a thought so vague and uncer- tain, she attributed it to mere fancy, like the illusion of some pleasing dream, which has no existence but in the phantoms of the bewildered imagination. She might have dreamed of such a voice, but that she had now listened to one in reality, the evidence of her Making senses could no longer doubt ; at length sleep gently closed her eyes in forgetfulness, and the guar- dians who ever faithfully watch over innocence, were the harbingers of peace in an orphan's bosom, whose hitherto pure and blameless life was as the fragrant and the spotless rose, in which no canker worm had yet crept to despoil it of its native bloom. 916 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. CHAPTER XIV. "Ah ! what is friendship but a name, A charm that lulls to sleep ? A shade that follows wealth and fame, But leaves tlie wretch to weep. And what is love ? an emptier sound, The modern fair one's jest : On earth unseen, or only found, To warm the turtle's nest." Agatha arose at a much earlier hour the ensuing morning than she had been accustomed to do since she had been an inhabitant of Herring- Dale, and was, to the no small surpriseofClaribelle, ready dressed, and sitting at the window of her chamber when her at- tendant awoke ; of course, an immediate enquiry was made after her health, to which Agatha replied in the following manner : — " I am perfectly well, Claribelle, but 1 confess that I have been disturbed by the wanderings of a restless and feverish dream, which still bears a fearful impres- sion on my memory ; for though I know that it was only a dream, yet it was a frightful one." "My dear, dear young lady," cried Claribelle, "and you will frighten me if you talk so ; you look pale THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 217 too, and your eyes are heavy ! Heaven preserve and ever keep you out of harm's way, I say ! bless your tender heart, you have suffered enough already at your age, and I, do truly hope that all your troubles are now over ! I have had dreams too, but I never told you about any of them, because I thought they would only make you uneasy." " And yet it is very foolish to indulge in such weak- ness," answered Agatha, " and entertain fears that have no existence but in fancy." Claribelle, who was accustomed to water the flowers every morning, of which Agatha was ex- tremely fond, and had a choice collection, which she had cultivated with great care and brought with her from the cliff, had just taken up the watering pot in her hands, and was about to commence her daily oc- cupation, when looking beneath the casement, she per- ceived a beautiful double-blossomed myrtle tree, in full bloom, which was not in the collection of Agatha's favorite plants, and an involuntary exclamation escaped her lips, of — " Lord, Miss Agatha, you never told me you had this beautiful myrtle ! where have you hid it all this while from my observation ? and how long may you have had it in your collection ?" " Myrtle !" repeated Agatha, " you are dreaming, Claribelle ! I know of no myrtle except the one we left behind us at the cliff, and have certainly had no myrtle given me since I have been here." " There is one, however," cried Claribelle ; " look. Miss Agatha, and convince yourself that 1 have got my eyes ; here is the most beautiful myrtle tree I ever saw in my born days, placed exactly under the win- c. 2f 218 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF dow, with your geraniums ! Look, and I protest there is a slip of paper tied round the middle of it ! that is as much as to let us know who it comes from, I sup- pose." The first thought that suggested itself to the mind of Agatha when she beheld this mysterious gift, was, that it was some artful stratagem of the insidious Craftly, who, to answer some wily purpose, had con- trived to place the myrtle there for her acceptance, either to worm himself into her good graces, knowing her passion for flowers, or to excite a jealousy in the hearts of the rival sisters ; and if so, she determined to avail herself of an opportunity of returning it, and proudly to reject the so offered present. With this thought uppermost in her mind, and with this intention, she desired Claribelle to reach out her hand, and unfasten the slip of paper, which was affixed to the middle of the blooming tree. " I know the hand-writing of Craftly," thought Agatha, " but he is mistaken, if he imagines that I- will be the dupe of his artful contrivances, or consent to aid in destroying the peace of two individuals so dear to the heart of my protector." Meanwhile Claribelle, delighted with her mission, and betraying no small symptoms of curiosity to be in- formed who had presented her young mistress with so beautiful a gift, very soon reached her prize, and placing the slip of paper in the hands of Agatha, very eagerly and anxiously watched her countenance as she impatiently run over the contents, which, to the utter astonishment of Agatha, was written in charac- ters entirely unknown to her, and contained the fol- lowing lines : THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 219 Trust not the rose or lily's hue, Altho' they sweets impart, For they are changlings unto you, And hide a changing heart. But take the form this myrtle wears, In silence, lovely maid ; Twill stand the test of lengthen'd years, When beauty is decay'd. Yes, when the with'ring blast shall blow The young rose from thy cheek. And all the world shall let thee know That flatt'ry will not speak. Then take the leaf that's ever green, Whose blossom is thine own ; For he who gave the gift unseen Must live for thee alone.* Agatha had certainly read these lines aloud, much to the delight and satisfaction of the listening and cu- rious Claribelle, and various conjectures filled the minds of both as to the writer of them. They were evidently not Craftly's, and suspicion immediately •ested on the invisible speaker, who had been sta- .ioned beneath the window on the preceding- night, but this was a circumstance wholly unknown to the attendant, and she exclaimed, on Agatha's folding up the paper and depositing it carefully in her pocket- book. " Well, I protest, I never heard sweeter verses in my life. Miss Agatha, and let the writer be whoever he will, it is plain enough that he is over head and ears in love with you j well, that's no great wonder ♦ Original poetry. 220 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. to be sure, for you are worthy of being beloved by the finest man that ever wore a head ; so there's nothing to be wondered at in that ; but the wonder is — who is he ? It cannot be Mr. Craftly, you know, Miss Agatha, because he has got a sweetheart already ; and it cannot be Mr. Sam Russel, the young hand- some fisher, that lives at the bank-side ; so being nei- ther the one nor the other, why who can it be ?" To which Agatha thoughtfully replied, for she was thinking of her mysterious visitor: " I really do not know, nor am I exceedingly soli- citous to learn ; I do not approve of any thing that approaches in a mysterious shape towards me." " Well, miss, I dare say that it is in the shape of a man," cried Claribelle ; " and it is very unlikely that he would do you any harm, when he can make such pretty verses on you ; at all events, it would be a great pity to let the beautiful myrtle tree perish for want of a drop of water, so I will e'en give it some, if you please." " I have no objection to your doing that," returned Agatha, " but a very great one to its remaining be- neath the window of this chamber; you must this night remove it hence. I will give a colour to no clandestine proceedings in the house of my protector, to whom I am under the necessity (whether 1 like it or not) of disclosing this incident, which, however trifling, it would be imprudent in me to conceal from his knowledge." Claribelle was silent, as she generally was when she could not easily or readily adopt her young mis- tress's opinion ; she did not see why the myrtle tree should not remain in its present situation; besides, TIIR COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 221 she was dying- with curiosity to know whose hands had placed it there, and if taken a>>ay, it was very probable that this was a .secret that she might never get to the bottom of. Still Claribelle was obli£:ed to conform to the commands of her mistress, and to ri- gidly perform them. Meanwhile Agatha no sooner made her appearance below stairs, to which she was summoned to breakfast, than she related all that she knew of this mysterious circumstance, produced from her pocket-book the written lines, and of having heard some one under the chamber window on the preceding night. " Shiver my topsails!"' cried the Fisher, " if ever I heard of such an impudent scoundrel in existence ; why, my dear Miss Singleton, I should not be sur- prised if to-night the moon-struck hero was to bring a ladder and ropes, and affix them to the window, in the hopes of carrying you off — but, zounds, I will take pretty good care to give the brazen dog no chance of doing that, I warrant him ; if I catch him there again, he shall meet with a warm reception, — I will have my double-barrelled gun ready to pop at him in the crack of a whip." " Heaven forbid, my dear Sir, that you should have recourse to such violent measures on my account ;" cried Agatha, in some alarm, " I should deeply regret that any one should be wounded or injured in so silly an affair." " And it would be quite ridiculous, father," cried Olive, " for you to think of shooting a man, merely because he had a mind to make Miss Singleton a pre- sent of a beautiful myrtle tree, and to write some pretty verses on her ; for my part, 1 should not think 222 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. myself at all offended by receiving such a compli- ment.'' *' You, silly toad, and do you call that a compliment," uttered the fisher, "climbing up to the top of a house to put a myrtle tree at a chamber window, and scrib- bling a parcel of verses, without letting people know where it comes from ?" " Yes, father, that is the beauty of it," returned Olive, " it would not be half so romantic or pretty if one was to know where it came from, or who wrote it ; but, dear me, now it is quite like a novel, and sets one a longing, and a longing, till one gets the whole of the secret out of the bag." " Like a fiddlestick's end," cried the fisher, " that is all you think of, novels, and plays, and dream-books, and all such idle nonsense ; but, shiver my top-sails, if ever I catch another novel in your hands, I'll put it behind the fire." " Then why does Miss Singleton read novels, if they are so ridiculous," enquired Olive, glad to oppose her father in any argument, that tended to lessen his opi- nion of the extraordinary merits of one whom he was constantly setting before her as a pattern " Come, Miss Singleton, pray tell father why you read novels, as they are called, if they are so improper ?" Agatha now saw the envious, not to say the ma- licious, triumph which now scornfully^ played on the lips of Olive, and without betraying the least embar- rassment, warmly replied, — " I will satisfy you. Miss Blust, in this particular, if indeed you are so exceedingly anxious to learn, and without departing from the possibility of your father' assertion, that novels are sometimes injurious, when THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 223 they do not inculcate morality and truth ; but this is not generally the case, and for the most part I have always found them to convey both amusement and in- struction, and why not ? Has not a novelist the pic- ture of life before him, does he not copy the living manners as they rise exalted to virtue, or sink de- based by vice ? And why should virtue and vice be pourtrayed in one book rather than in another ; and if it tends to improvement and morality by a just por- trait drawn of the human character, what does it matter what the book be called ? Virtue is virtue, and vice is vice, call it what you please ; wormwood would taste bitter were it not called so, and a rose would smell as sweet, had it any other name. Neither are novels prejudicial more than any other composi- tions ; if the writers have not made them so, they can do no harm. While, on the other hand, a sermon may be capable of corrupting the heart, and perverting and blinding the understanding, by leading us to en- tertain a mistaken notion of our religion ; but this must certainly depend on the principle it conveys, and the manner in which it is conveyed by the preacher. So are novels, when improperly written ; but they can have no improper bias surely, when they inculcate humanity, principle and feeling." The fisher was in raptures at the conclusion of this modest and ingenuous confession, as well as explana- tion, on the subject of which he had before been al- ways in doubt and prejudice, but, like mists before the rising sun, they now suddenly vanished, so effective was the influence which the lovely orphan possessed over his mind ; and the disappointed Olive only beheld in the countenance of her father a smile, beaming 224: THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. with the utmost satisfaction on the eloquent and beautiful speaker , and with a sneer, which looked more like envy than any thing else, she exclaimed, — " Now, father, I suppose that Jessy and I may read as many novels as we please, since they are licenced by an act passed in the reign of Miss Agatha Sin- gleton." Agatha coloured deeply, from a consciousness of how little she had merited the bitter envy which was contained in this speech ; but determined that it should not have the effect for which it was evidently designed by the malicious Olive, she suppressed the rising and involuntary disgust she felt towards her, and only smilingly replied, in answer to her obser- vation, — " Would that indeed I possessed the power you have ascribed to me. Miss Blust, there is no act of mine at which I hope I should have cause to blush, or would incur the censure or severity of my enemies, much less draw on me the unmerited reproach of my friends." "And had England such a queen. Miss Singleton, I am inclined to think there would be little cause for murmuring against the state, or to doubt the loyalty of the British subjects," cried the fisher, " for there would be only one voice among them, and that would be decidedly in favor of their beloved sovereign." The arrival of Craftly at Herring Dale, with his sister Margaret, who had come to pay a friendly visit to her young kinswomen, now very opportunely put an end to a conversation which was beginning to grow very disagreeable to the envious feelings of Miss Blust, as it incontestibly proved how high the merits of Miss TJIE COTTAGE ON T|1K CLIFF. 225 Singleton ranked in the estimation of her father, and how great was the influence she held over his mind, of which Olive was particularly jealous, when she re- flected that her sister Jessy was also estranged from her affections, since Miss Singleton had become an in- mate of the Dale, and that even the very servants paid her a respect and homage which they were very far from shewing to her ; and all but Leontine Craftly considered her as a paragon of perfection ; he, for sonje cause or other, had always evaded giving his opinion on the merits of Agatha, though frequently asked by Olive, in various directions, whether he did not think her handsome, his reply was invariably the same, — " She does not look like you ;" and perhaps these words Avere accompanied by certain looks, which never failed to make an impression on the weak heart of the too credulous girl. Tiius every hour she was becoming the easy victim of the smooth-tongued liber- tine, for such Leontine Craftly undoubtedly was : — fain would we deny the assertion, but truth, like the monitor of conscience, forbids us to stray beyond her sacred boundaries : it was even so. Still Olive was not always contented with receiving this general reply from Craftly, on the subject of Miss Singleton, and although it was very certain, that she did not look like her, and that there was not the slightest resemblance between them, yet Olive thought to be like Miss Sin- gleton would have been a compliment she would have prefered to any other, and affecting an air of the most perfect indifference, one morning that she was lefl chatting with her kinsman, she exclaimed, — " There is Jessy and her favourite gone out a walk- ing together; pretty souls! they are just like two 226 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. beans upon a stalk, quite inseparable — well, I don*t envy the pleasure of their conversation, I promise you, for they are always talking about books and the beauties of nature, as Miss Singleton calls it ; now I hate books, except they are some amusing novels, and as to the beauties of nature, I never think it worth my while to study them, not 1 ; but Jessy " " Is a blossom of nature herself," cried Craftly, suppressing a sigh, which, at any other time, would have occasioned him to reflect seriously for a moment on the striking contrast there was in the characters of the two sisters ; but this was not a period for reflec- tion, when he beheld so beautiful a girl as Olive al- most ready to jump into his arms only for the asking, and of whose affections he was perfectly secure ; and he added with a playful smile, perceiving that Olive looked grave, — " And are not you too a blossom of nature, my sweetest Olive? Behold that blooming rose, which no art could ever pencil, on that lovely cheek, and the whiteness of the lily is on thy fair breast; tell me, then, if thou art not a blossom of nature in all its fullest sweets." Olive blushed, for Craftly uttered this with the most impassioned look of fondness, which it was im- possible for her to mistake, and to which he added other compliments equally flattering to her youthful I vanity ; still, however, she artfully adverted to her favourite subject, by aff*ecting to feel the utmost asto- nishment at his indifference to the merits of her fa- ther's protege. At which Craftly carelessly an- swered, " We were talking of beauty, my dear Olive, not THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 227 of merit, and to that of Miss Singleton I am nearly a total stranger, for how should I know the merits of that extraordinary young lady, who scarcely con- descends to bestow a look, or a word, on any but your father and Jessy." " Why that is very true," replied Olive ; " but then we don't talk much to her, you know, nor do we pay her much attention. As to father, he perfectly adores her ; and Miss Jessy too thinks her a wonder, and has the impudence to set her up for a pattern to both of us ; but I should be glad to know who Miss Singleton is, that every body is to make her a model, whether they like it or not. Then she pretends to be such a prude too ; do you know that she was quite offended the other day, only because Sam Russel, who is such a frolicsome young man that we cannot help laughing at him, just touched her hand, and pre- tended that he would kiss it. If you had seen how she coloured up in a moment, and would not so much as give him a civil look for several days afterwards. * Lord, Sam,* cried I, when she went out of the room with Jessy, * how can you be such a simpleton as to mind what Miss Singleton says.' And what do you think was the fool's reply ?" "I really cannot positively guess;" answered Craftly, who, in spite of his utmost art to disguise his feelings, seemed interested in this account that Olive was giving of the behaviour of Miss Singleton to Sam Russel, who was one of his most familiar friends and companions. " Why I will own that it very much surprised me," resumed Olive, " for he said, ' indeed but I do mind what she says, Miss Olive ; for I would not offend $28 THE COTTAGE ON THK CLIFF. Miss Singleton to please my father, or the best friend I had in existence ; she is so sweet and sensible a girl, and I deserve to be hanged for presuming to take such 3 liberty with her. I might have known that she would be angry, but I will go and ask her pardon this moment, and never, never offend her again.' " " Indeed !" cried Craftly, with a sneer, while the colour mounted in deep crimson to his cheeks ; " Sam took care never to tell me of this, so I imagine he has fallen desperately in love with this wonder-working goddess, who seems to have turned the heads and the hearts of every body, except you and I, Olive." Olive was silent ; she had marked the rising colour on the cheek of Craftly, and she saw too, that the ad- miring eyes with which his friend Sam apparently re- garded Miss Singleton, was not a subject of much pleasure to him ; and that he seemed suddenly plunged into a thoughtful reverie, from which not even she had the power to awaken him, or charm away by her usual fascinating smiles ; and, almost unconscious that Olive was present, he muttered to himself, — " So, Sam is caught too, by the witchery of this syren ; — it is well ! the proud girl thinks she cannot hold too many captives in her chains." " What syren are you speaking of, Leontine ?" de- manded Olive, smiling, and laying her beautiful hand on his shoulder. And, instantly recovering his self- possession, the hypocrite replied, — '•Why a syren, Olive, is a — a — a sort of a dangerous — tempting — no, not tempting, 1 did not mean that— A mischievous thing, I intended to say, in the shape of a female ; that sometimes unaccountably seduces and charms the hearts of men, so forcibly, so powerfully, THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 229 tliat they have no power of escaping from the spells which they spread around them." "And are there no male syrens of this description as well ?" cried Olive, in an offended tone ; " and so you choose to apply this epithet to Miss Singleton; really, Sir, it is a great pity that the syren is not here to listen to your compliments.'* " And if she were here, she would not thank me for it, my sweetest Olive," uttered the insidious Craftly; " for when I called her syren, I meant to imply any thing- else but a compliment. . No, Olive, be assured, my dear girl, that Miss Singleton is the last object under created Heaven, whom 1 would address in the style of compliment ; and I should be the last object from whom, perhaps, she would bear it. She knows 1 do not flatter her, and consequently does not covet my society ; and she is right, for I shall never court her's." From lips we love, we do not easily suspect the want of sincerity, or doubt the flattering tale, so oft, so melodiously told, and so frequently repeated ; and Olive confided in the sincerity of Craftly, when he at last gave this his avowed opinion of Agatha Singleton ; for how could she doubt of his assertions, that he did not like or admire? her, when the coldness and distance of his manners towards her, had given a colour of truth to his every word and action ? in all that related to Miss Singleton he had evinced the most perfect in- difference ; and Olive again believed that it really was so; but whether it really was or no, time will yet unfold — that, and greatei^mysteries : sufficient to say, that at the present moment Olive and Craftly parted friends, and certainly lovers ; for in that cha- 230 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. racter, and that only, he had always taught her to consider him. And in what did he appear to Jessy ? why, unques- tionably the same ; he had always told Jessy, that she was the idol of his heart, and Jessy too believed him. It was reserved alone for Agatha to remove the flimsy veil from Jessy's eyes, and to let her behold the mirror of truth ; nor could Jessy turn aside from it when she did behold it. It was a sickening picture that so suddenly met her gaze, but it was drawn in the colours of a faithful artist, and Jessy could not doubt but it was original ; and though she suffered pangs in tearing it from her heart, she was wise in the resolution of never again permitting it to retain a place there ; but alas ! the conviction of the faithlessness of the being in whom she had placed such implicit confidence, weighed hea- vily on the sensibility of the sweet Jessy, and in re- tired moments, when hid from the observation of all mortal eyes, when none but pitying angels could wit- ness her silent sorrow and her heart-felt grief, the apostacy of Leontine frequently occasioned her to shed the most bitter tears, and she would mentally exclaim, — Ah, if such be the cruel arts and deceptions of men towards our hapless and unfortunate sex ! if they can indeed, offer vows only to betray the fond believing victims, whom they afterwards abandon to their fate ! grant to me, Eternal Judge and Father of all created universe, that I may never again become the dupe of another's perjured vows ! or regard protestations and promises which even the holy principles of our sacred religion had not the power of making hallowed and pure! and thou too, my sister, thy heart must bleed, perhaps THE COTTAGE ON Tllili CLlFF. 231 from the same source that mine bleeds now. Per- haps thou art destined to feel the apostacy of thy lover too ; — thy lover ! said he not that he was mine — Did he not swear it, and call upon heaven to witness the sincerity of his vows ? False, injurious Leontine ! how couldst thou play a part so treache- rously cruel and deceitful ? Alas, Jessy could only answer this question with her tears: and, such a baneful influence had these mournful and unhappy reflections on her spirits, that, in spite of all her efforts to appear tranquil and com- posed, they gradually made the most alarming^ ap- pearance on her lovely person, and soon the rose be- gan to fade on her fair cheek, her form to lose its freshness and elasticity, her brilliant blue eyes to sink in languor, and her sweet voice no longer to retain its lively tone. In vain had Leontine sought for an op- portunity to enquire into the cause, and renew his vows of unalterable affection ; in vain did he endea- vour to steal a glance from those lovely orbs whose light he had diminished, and which, till now, had ever beamed with kindness and confidence on him; but Jessy was resolute, and evaded the sight of her per- fidious lover, while Olive endeavoured to wring the secret of her heart by every means in her power, but in vain ; nor were the eyes of her fond father blind to the melancholy change he beheld in the darling o. his heart, and frequently, when alone with Agatha, would mention the alteration in Jessy with the most heartfelt grief. To which, Agatha would always re- ply, when she could no longer evade the subject by any other means : "My dear Sir, you cannot imagine how you distress 232 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. my feelings, in supposing that I withheld from you any communication which it would be proper for you to know, respecting the altered health and spirits of our sweet Jessy ; she is, indeed, not so lively as she used to be, nor does she look quite so freshly ; but she will recover that, and " Agatha had never found it so difficult to finish a sentence, and colouring deeply, added, "will soon be herself again." " Shiver ray topsails ! but that won't do ;" cried the fisher, in a voice of unusual impatience. " What won't do, my good Sir ?" repeated Agatha, half smiling. " Evasion ;" answered the fisher, boldly, " evasion, from you, my dear Miss Singleton, won't do in any shape whatever ; you either know, or guess at the cause of the change in my poor Jessy, and you don't choose to tell me, that's plain — and you won't tell me, though you see a father's heart breaking at the sight of her dear pale cheeks and hollow eyes, that were once as bright as ." (Here the fisher, unable to proceed, passed his hand suddenly across his brow, to conceal a gust of tears which now involuntarily rushed from his eyes.) " But no matter, if I lose my Jessy, I shall die of a broken heart, and there will be an end of both of us ! — yes, poor old Peter will die of a broken heart at last! — I, who never suffered a heart to ache in my born days, without trying to take the load away from it. — Well, well, no matter ; Olive won't cry much after me, and you, Agatha Singleton " " Would be the veriest wretch in existence," cried Agatha, much aff(Bcted, " could I add to those suflfer- ings, which by any effort of mine I could spare you the trial of. — Oh, my protector, my more than father I THE COTTAGE ON THE CUFF. 233 why do you thus reproach the unhappy orphan, on whose head you have so long- showered down bless- ings, never to be erased from her memory ; if with my life 1 could repay them, it is at your service ; if by the sacrifice of any happiness which springs from my- self, you would prove my heartfelt gratitude towards you, you are freely welcome to take all that is within my reach, — but, in pity, do not reproach me for what it is not in my power to remedy or alter." " Then, do you know the secret that wrings the heart of my poor Jessy ?" uttered the fisher, bestowing a look on Agatha which uttered volumes, " and, per- haps Olive knows it, — and perhaps my kinsman Crafltly knows it, and Margaret too, — yet her father is not to know it ; — shiver my top-sails, but this is strange." " Hear me. Sir," cried Agatha, now deeply roused to a just sense of who they had sprung from, and with a look of calm and dignified composure, which arrested the attention of the fisher irresistibly in her favor, and to listen to her with a deference which no human be- ing would have commanded but her ; " hear me. Sir, patiently," again repeated she, " if you can, for you must have patience before I can at all explain myself to your entire satisfaction." " Say what you please, my dear girl, say what you please," uttered the fisher, waving his hand as if for her to proceed, " for, shiver my top-sails, if I would listen to any one else with half the pleasure, and I could give myself a sound drubbing for having said a word to vex so sweet a little soul as I know you to be. — But, my Jessy, my poor Jessy ! go on, my dear girl, go on, — I wont interrupt you again, I promise you. Come, dearest, wluit are you going to say ?" c. 2 H 234 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " I was going to say, Sir," cried Agatha, hardly able to resist smiling at the transitions which the poor fisher had made, of asperity to kindness, and petu- lance to his own natural sweetness of temper, " that when your humanity prompted you to offer an asylum beneath your own roof to a poor fatherless girl, that she was bound, not only in gratitude and affection to you, but to every member of your family, to preserve the same principle and feeling by conscientiously dis- charging her duty, and what does that duty tell me, Sir? — that the peace, the happiness, the honour, the welfare of your children should be as dear to me as my own, and that when I bthold any evil pending on them, that I could by any means avert, that I would fearlessly throw myself between that and ihem, let whatever be the consequence. — Sir, this duty I have performed, — one of your children was in danger of a threatened evil — it was Jessy." " Jessy !" exclaimed the fisher, in the utmost asto- nishment. " Yes, Jessy," repeated Agatha, " it was Jessy, over whose innocent head this evil was waving ; — it was my fortunate destiny to perceive that evil in time to warn her of it ; — I did not wring the secret from her heart, but she reposed it in mine ! Now, Sir, hear my fixed, my unalterable resolution, never to re- veal this secret, till permitted by her to do so, though I lose, what I prize dearer than existence, the affec- tion, the esteem, the protection of my benefactor. Cease to urge or importune me again on this subject, but be satisfied, that your daughter is now safe from being perverted from her duty, and that a short time will restore her to her former health and cheerful • THE COTTAGE OH THE CLIFF. 235 neas ; her form has indeed changed, but unchanged and incorruptible are her principles, — chaste and pure as holy angels. Thus far have I ventured to explain the nature of her late despondency, but no further ; and, if indeed you do regard the little good I still can do in this mysterious business, remember that your si- lence only can sign the passport to my duty." The fisher continued gazing at Agatha for many minutes after she had ceased speaking, with a mixture of astonishment and concern, which almost deprived him of the power of utterance, in which admiration of her exemplary conduct seemed to have no small share; while the communication he had received relative to his beloved child, had so powerfully wrought upon his feelings as to occasion him to burst into an involuntar^y agony of tears, and Agatha, imagining that he was not yet fully satisfied with the explanation she had given him, and was still angry with her, exclaimed, — " Speak to me. Sir, do but speak to me ; your si- lence breaks my heart, tell me that I am justified in your opinion, and I care not what else betides me." " Justified," at length uttered the fisher, regarding her with a look of the tenderest emotion, " shiver my top-sails, you are an angel ! yes, Agatha Singleton, you are an angel, and blessed be the hour that I brought you within these doors. I have let my girls do just what they please with me, but my Jessy was the pride of my heart, and had she fallen into any temptation, I should never have held my head up again ; but 1 will believe you, Agatha, Jessy is still innocent, and she droops because some faithless lover has de- ceived her, — but, the scoundrel, the infernal scoundrel, never let ine know his name, Agatha,— never let me 236 THE COTTAGE OM THE CLIFF. hear his name pronounced in my presence, or belike I may yes, I would pulverize him into atoms ! — what, to creep into the bosom of my blooming rose- bud, and like a vile reptile, only to destroy its sweets! Zounds, I shall go mad ! — Oh, Jessy, Jessy, better had these grey hairs followed thee to thy grave, for then, my darling, I know thou wouldst have been an angel translated to the skies." " And Jessy is an angel still," cried Agatha, dread- fully alarmed at the excessive agitation she beheld in the countenance of her protector ; " I will stake my life on Jessy's innocence, and I beseech you. Sir, to calm and moderate these transports ; by all my hopes of hap- piness hereafter, Jessy is innocent, and free from cen- sure, and will soon be happy again in a father's smiles, be but silent, on that alone depends her restoration to health and peace," " Well, well, I will be silent," cried the fisher, " though, shiver my top-sails, it would be a hard matter, if I knew who it was that but, come, dearest, I will distress thee no longer, and will say nothing more about it ; but pray watch over my darling, bid her not weep, and sigh, and moap so ; tell her it w ill break her father's heart, to see her pine, — do this, love, as often as you can, and, may angels bless you !" " Be assured that I will neglect nothing which can contribute to her welfare, and the peace of her father," answered Agatha ; and leaving him considerably re- lieved from the apprehensions which had at first filled his mind on Jessy's account, she retired to her own chamber, to contemplate the delicate situation in which she now stood in the fisher's family, and the little prospect there was for her enjoying any tran- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 237 quillity again, beneath a roof, the happiness of which was already broken in upon by the insidious and base arts of a designing villain ! Still, however, Agatha forbore to repeat his name to his kinsman, on whom he had so artfully imposed, but to which it was scarcely possible to suppose that the fisher would long be blind; but Agatha, almost unerring in her judgment in all beside, was completely deceived in this respect ; for so far from suspecting Leontine Craftly to be the cause of Jessy's unhappi- ness, or being at all instrumental in destroying the peace of his family, he believed Craftly to be as indif- ferent to Jessy as a stranger who had never crossed his threshold, and that he thought no more for Olive than the mere regard which was attached to their being relatives on his mother's side. In short, the fisher looked higher than to Leontine Craftly for a matri- monial connection in his family ; for though he loved him as a kinsman, and would probably do much to serve him, yet for a husband to either of his daugh- ters, he would proudly have rejected any overtures which would have been made of the kind ; and how was it morally possible for the fisher to have even guessed at an attachment subsisting between Leontine and his daughter Jessy ? for never had he observed the slightest partiality on either side. Jessy hardly addressed any conversation to Leontine, and Leontine seldom exchanged a syllable with Jessy, except on the most general and indifferent subjects, and then it was always in the presence of others ; and of Olive's flightiness with her kinsman, the fisher thought nothing, since he believed she would do the same with any other young man who had been so familiarly brought up 238 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. with her. Thus were all the little flirtations which were carried on between them wholly unnoticed, or if noticed only laughed at, by a too indulgent father. Meanwhile the insidious daftly gradually stole into the good graces of his unsuspecting kinsman, who at length, reposing the utmost confidence in the seeming semblance of so many virtuous traits of character and disposition, believed that few young men were pos- sessed of such integrity and honourable principles as his kinsman, and this confidence had encreased rather than diminished with encreasing years. It would therefore have been no easy matter to have convinced the warm-hearted fisher, that Craftly was a designing hypocrite, much less that he could be the seducer of one or both of his children, had opportu- nity and his insidious arts succeeded to accomplish his base and dishonourable purposes. But of Craftly the confiding fisher thought not, when at the departure of Agatha, he ransacked his memory to guess at the serpent who had undermined the happiness of his sweet Jessy. There were few young men who had the privilege of being constant visitors at Herring Dale, besides Craftly and Russel, whose characters and principles would n.ot stand the test of the most scrupulous enquiry, and which were not fully established in the neighbourhood of Cromer, and the fisher was well assured that none of those would presume to approach his daughters with a dis- honourable passion. Well, then, who was this serpent, whose wily tongue had stung the heart of his Jessy ? Agatha Singleton could answer that question, but she had given her reasons why she was not permitted THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 239 to do SO ; they were strange — tliey were mysterious ! for it was by the heaven-directed agency of Agatha that Jessy had been warned of her fate ; it was plain then, that the perfidious lover of Jessy was not un- known to Miss Singleton ; but, unable to form the re- motest conjecture that could authorise him to suspect any one who was intimate at the Dale, he suspended his judgment till some conclusive evidence might assist him in discovering the villain. CHAPTER XV. " Oh, love! what is it in this world of ours Which makes it fatal lo l)c' lo\'(i ? ah ! why With cypress branches hast thou wreath'd thy bowers, And made tliy best interpreter a sigh? As those who dote on odours pluck the flowers And place them on their breast — but place to die. — Thus, the frail beings we would fondly cherish, Are laid within our bosoms, but to perish !" Time, which brings all things, all seasons, and all changes to an end, whether sweet or sour, was rapidly advancing to that, which was annually calculated by the inhabitants of Cromer for the period of a rich and luxuriant harvest, all their own, because they had looked forward to it with many an anxious sigh, and 240 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. the deprivation of many a pleasure, which their scanty means could not afford ; during the long and tedious reign of winter, dried fish, and a very moderate supply of inferior herrings, with a less proportion of other food, had been the subsistence of numerous poor families, who had drained their little store, gained by hard labour, in order to prepare ready furnished apartments in their houses, for the reception and ac- commodation of the yearly visitors and sea-bathers, who never failed to resort to their coast on the ap- proach of summer ; and if this poor, honest, and in- dustrious race of people were then rewarded for the sa- crifices which they had so patiently endured through- out a long and wintry season, who would grudge them the price of their hire, that had full purses and open hearts ? and yet there were hearts, and there were purses, which were never opened butto wants of their own : wants do we call them ? — no, they were not wants, for nature requires but little ; they were luxuries, idle and fantastical luxuries, which bloated affluence imagines that it cannot do without, and that it has the sole right to enjoy ; and while to real want it is a stranger, how should it either know or feel for those unfortunate beings, who are alone familiar with poverty, and to whom the name of luxury is unknown. Being warmed themselves in the sunny ray of splen- dour, even till they sicken beneath its beam, how can they feel the icy chill of the cold and bitter blast of poverty ? Ask the African, born beneath the influence of the burning clime, if he can feel his limbs benumbed with Lapland's freezing snows, or shiver with the wintry blast blowing round his head, and he will tell you, — no ! Neither can one human being appreciate THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 241 the wants, the miseries, tlie teelings of another, till they themselves have drank at the bitter fountain. Well, then, to return to the inhabitants of Cromer, and the fashionable sea-bathers, who did not, we will suppose, come there to save money, but to spend it, and, having plenty, they could afford it ; at length the influx of company was so great, that not a bed was to be procured at any of the inns, however humble oi obscure ; every lodging was completely crammed, and many families who could not obtain room for their establishment were under the necessity of taking apartments in houses situated at a most inconvenient distance from the town. It was no wonder, then, that in this extremity, ap- plications poured in from all quarters for the beau- tiful Cottage on the Cliff, and that several personages of rank and fashion enquired of Mr. Adams, at the library, the terms of accommodation ; of which, being fully informed, it was immediately followed by an ap- plication to the fisher himself A splendid carriage arrived one morning at Herring Dale, and the name of Mr. Blust being enquired for at the gate, by a foot- man in a superb livery, David came running into the parlour to apprise his master of his distinguished vi- sitors, which was no other than the Marchioness of Montault herself, Lady Lavinia, and a third lady, deeply veiled, and who did not choose to alight ; for the fisher had instantly made his bow to their lady- ships, and invited them in, where only Olive was sit- ting at work, and, on the entrance of their splendid visitants, she arose, and curtsying respectfully, was going to retire, had not the Marchioness entreated that she would not disturb herself on her account. c. 2 1 242 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " Your daughter, I presume, Mr. Blust," exclaimed her Ladyship, and seating herself without ceremony, immediately entered into the business on which she came, namely, to engage the Cottage on the Cliff; " not for myself^ as you may imagine, Mr. Blust," ut- tered she, " for I cannot endure any thing half so ro- mantic as this cottage is described, so lonely too, standing by itself on the sea-shore; 1 positively should die of the vapours were I condemned to endure such solitary exile. I have a perfect antipathy to the lone- liness of solitude, be the prospects ever so boundless or enchanting, Well, it is not for myself that I am going to negociate, so it does not matter, but for a friend, a lady of quality and distinction, newly arrived from the continent, who, if she finds the cottage an- swering the romantic description which has been given of it, will doubtless become your tenant a considera- ble length of tmie. The terms which Adams stated to us are by no means objectionable ; — the point is, — is the cottage duly prepared for the reception of a lady of distinction, Mr. Blust? — by the bye, it belonged to a person of the name of Singleton, who was un- fortunately drowned there, did not it ? I have heard something about it, but the story was so melancholy, 1 could not bear to listen to it. I have an antipathy to all melancholy stories." Here the Marchioness ceased speaking ; from the first moment since she had made her entrance, till now, there had been no chance of the fisher being able to edge in a word, much less to an- swer the interrogations which her ladyship had so ra- pidly made, but the ice being now broke^ he ventured to begin in the following manner : — " Yes, my ladv, I believe you will find that the THE COTTAGE ON THE CMFF. 243 Cottage on the Cliff is exactly the thing, the very thing for dull and melancholy folks to live in. The wind blows like the devil, when there is a gale or a tempest, and the waves will wash over the chimney tops, as nicely as a herring skiif skips over the ocean, — then there is plenty of sea-fowl to keep watch over the premises, — I have seen as many gulls there as would freight a ship ; but the captain did not mind these things a whistle, so the winds might blow, and the birds might shriek, he was never the man to fright them away from their lonely habitation; and as to his daughter, heaven bless her, she would not touch a fly with her little soft hand, if she thought she should hurt it. So, as I was saying, my lady, that the captain enjoyed all these melancholy things, he was a me- lancholy man, and purchased the cottage of me, when it was not worth a rope's yarn, and was ready to tum- ble about his ears, on purpose that he might have it built up again according to his fancy, and indulge in all his melancholy whims, and read books, and look at the stars, and the moon, and the sea, and all those sort of things ; but, poor fellow, he did not enjoy his fancies long, he was lost in that terrible gale of wind that wrecked a ship upon this coast, and made me the father of two as fine boys as ever your lady- ship beheld in your born-days." " Well, I protest, that it is prodigiously kind of you, Mr. Blust," cried the Marchioness, " it is not every one who would have liked to receive so great an addition to their family, — for I am told that the or- phan daughter of this Singleton lives beneath your roof too, and is supported by your bounty; her father no doubt left her quite destitute. A strange charac- 244 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. ter, Adams tells me, this Captain Singleton, whom he supposes, from his extraordinary retired habits, and gloomy mode of living, to have had some singular reason for becoming such a recluse,™perhaps you nave heard ;" — the Marchioness stopt on the eager stretch of curiosity, but during the whole of this speech the colour of the fisher had gradually arose to his cheek, till his broad, round, good-natured face was in a perfect blaze, and he bluntly replied, — " I have heard nothing, my lady, that can reflect on the character of that quiet, honest, peaceable, though melancholy man, and if this be the only fault that he had, I shall pray night and morning, that I may de- scend to my grave with as little." A pause ensued, not much to the satisfaction of the talkative Marchioness, but exceedingly so to the feel- ings of the warm-hearted fisher, who felt that he had done his duty in speaking thus of his departed friend ; he had no faults that had come within the precints of his knowledge, or if he had, why should he rake them up from the ashes of the dead, where they re- posed in silence, till a better judge than him should call them to account. It was the pleasure of the beau- tiful Marchioness, however, again to revive the un- pleasing subject, which was beginning to impose a heavy tax on the patience of the fisher, whom it is well known did not possess any considerable share, and she exclaimed, — " So, then, the Cottage on the Clifl' appears to be the property of this Miss Singleton." " Appears, my lady," rapidly replied the fisher, " it is hers, and, shiver my top-sails, if I know any one who has a right to question her claim to it ; it was her THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 245 father's money that purchased ft, and if she has not a right to it now he is dead and gone, I don't know who has, that is all." The Marchioness coloured deeply, and looked at Lady Lavinia, with something like surprise at the bluntness of the fisher, who she expected would have thought it necessary to have used more ceremony with a personage of her exalted rank, but in this her lady- ship was mistaken, for the fisher was independent of exalted rank, and neither valued the smiles or feared the frowns of the great ones. He had never hung on them for the support or the promotion of his family, never obtained their falla- cious promises, or solicited their patronage : he had been a tub standing on its own bottom, — an oak in the forest, which had never yielded to the rough blast, though it had spent its fury round his head, still he had stood firm and undaunted in the midst of the storm. All the wealth he had acquired was by hard labour and persevering industry, and if the fisher found at last that he had met with a reward adequate to the meritorious exertions he had made for the maintenance of himself and family, he felt that he owed it to a higher source than from the power, or the gifts, which were placed in the hands of earthly creatures. And knowing this he scorned to favour or flatter their several vices ; in short, the unsophis- ticated Peter could not see the necessity of the Mar- chioness being so inquisitive on a subject which did not at all concern her ; for if poverty was, indeed, the lot of Agatha Singleton, it was not the hand of the Marchioness that would be stretched out to relieve her, for generosity was not in the catalogue of the Marchioness's virtues 246 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Meanwhile the illustrious lady had arose from her seat, having first closed the bargain with the fisher, for her friend, the lady before-mentioned, to take im- mediate possession of the Cottage on the Cliff, at an early hour the ensuing morning, at which hour the keys were to be delivered up to the new servant, and the agreement signed by each of the parties ; after which her ladyship departed from the house of the fisher, much in the way she had come, without ceremony, and the fisher, well pleased that he had made so advan- tageous a bargain for his dear little protege, forgot to remark that the Marchioness was a prodigious fine woman, and that Lady Lavinia was a lovelier one. He could not tell whether their eyes were black, blue, or green, or whether their complexions were only ordinary, or transparently fine. Not Peter ; he had been thinking on something else all the while the Marchioness had been in the room, and that was, in calculating on the profits that Agatha would receive from having such a tenant in the Cottage on the Cliff; and that the lady, when she knew the orphan state of Agatha, might probably be induced to act still more liberally towards her, not but what the terms were handsome enough. These were the reflections which occupied the mind of the fisher, so as to render him blind to the fascinat- ing glare of all-powerful beauty, set off by all the ad- ventitious aid of the most costly attire; but not so blind had been the bright eyes of Olive, she had stole side-long glances both at the dress of the Marchioness, and that also of the Lady Lavinia ; she could tell to a nicety how long and how short the waists were of their gowns, what sort of sleeves, and what coloured trimmings were attached to each : she could exactly THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 247 jvuess by her eye of wliat materials their bonnets were njade, faithfully to transmit this important discovery ti) Miss Mury, the milliner, in order that at some stolen opportunity she might fashion her one of the same. In short, Olive, whose chief idol was the deco- ration of her pretty person, was delighted with the view she had obtained of the Marchioness and her lovely daughter, and rapturously exclaimed, — "How charmingly delightful, father ! I would not have missed the pleasure of this morning for the world !" " Yes, 1 cannot say but I am well pleased," cried the fisher, whose thoughts were alone fixed on Agatha. " And were you really pleased with the cut of the pelisse, and the make of the sleeves, father ?" rejoined Olive ; " to be sure the bonnets and the feathers in them were very expensive ; but then one need not have them of such a quality, and yet look vastly be- coming: now I think that Miss Mury, the milliner, might contrive to make Jessy and I " " What the devil is the wench talking of?" cried the fisher, with impatient curiosity ; " what has Miss Mury, the milliner, to do with the Cottage on the Cliff?" " Lord, father, I was not thinking of the Cottage, and the nasty frightful Cliff, I assure you !" answered Olive, scornfully. " Then pray what was you thinking of, miss ?" en- quired the fisher ; " you might have had worse thoughts in your head, for aught that I know." To which the disappointed Olive replied, — " Why, what could I be thinking of, but the beau- tiful dresses of the Marchioness and Lady Lavinia ?— 248 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. their sweet pretty bonnets, and their handsome scarfs, and their lovely watches and gold chains ? I could not take my eyes off them all the while they were here, and so I thought if Miss Mury, the milliner, and I could set our heads together, that " The fisher heard no more ; — up he bounced, and calling Olive a silly maukin for her pains, and bestow- ing an epithet on Miss Mury, the milliner, not of the politest kind, he made a precipitate retreat, to go in search of Agatha and Jessy, to inform them of the pleasing intelligence he had received. Jessy was busy with the maids, but Agatha was reading in her cham- ber, and the fisher approached her with a sun-beam in his countenance, which shed its influence over her's ; ever calm, ever beautiful, but not ever mirthful, she sweetly exclaimed, — " You are welcome, my dear sir, you are always welcome ; what need then of apology, to one, whom the sight of you always makes happy, and would make merry also, if this morning 1 were not disposed to be a little grave, perhaps a little pensive ; but you look so pleasant, so good humoured too, I will try to bor- row some of your smiles, to make me forget retrospec- tions so gloomy; but can I look at this saMe habit, and be unmindful of the day on which I put it on ? — can I feel that I am fatherless, without reflecting that I had once a father ? — oh ! no, no !" " My dear, 1 don't wish you to forget your father,'* exclaimed the fisher : " Heaven forbid ! yet I would also have you remember, that though fatherless, you are not friendless, and never shall be while Peter Blust has an anchor afloat ! now, in the first place, I am come with a budget of good news : I have got a THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 249 tenant for the Cottage on the Cliff, and an excel- lent bargain I have made for you, a lady of qua- lity, foreign, I suppose, for she is just come from foreign parts, — a friend of the Marchioness of Mon- tault, who is a melancholy sort of person mayhap, and wishes to live at the Cottage for a considerable length of time. She pays a handsome price ; so my dear Agatha Singleton will have some money in her pocket at last !" " But Agatha Singleton will not touch one penny of it, for all that," cried the grateful Agatha ; " would it were ten times as much ! I would give it all to my benefactor." "Shiver my top-sails, if ever I take one farthing from you !" exclaimed the fisher ; " perish the mercenary thought, or the friendship that is obtained by rubbing one shilling against the other ! tell me that again, Agatha Singleton, and I Zounds ! I should be sorry to say an angry word either, in my passion, that would hurt your dear, little, tender heart, but I shall be in a very great passion, if ever you tell me of this again — I shall, by all the little fishes that swim in the sea !" added the fisher, and laughed heartily, " I will not contend the point with you at present, my dear sir," smilingly answered Agatha ; " for I really don't like to see you in a passion, you are then out of your element : So you have seen the Mar- chioness respecting the Cottage then, have you, Sir ?" " Seen her, why, the Marchioness is only just gone, my dear," answered the fisher, " she came in her car- riage this morning to Herring Dale, along with her daughter, the Lady Lavinia ; there was another lady too, but she did not get out, so, you know, when the c. 2 K 250 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Marchioness had squatted herself down in the great chair, which she did without being invited, then she began to open the business, and we settled it in a crack. The money is to be paid down to-morrow morning, and the agreement signed and sealed, to make fast the contract on both sides ; after which the premises are to be entered upon, and the lady is to take possession of the cottage immediately. Now, my dear, it will be necessary for you to be present at this interview with the new tenant, who may possibly like to see you." Agatha coloured deeply, she was unaccustomed to see company in her father's time, he had not permit- ted her to mix in society, and she needed none while he was present ; but, she had never asked her father the reason why he wished her to live so secluded, he would not suffer interrogations, and knowing this, Agatha never assailed him with any. It was therefore with some embarrassment, that she exclaimed, — " Is it absolutely necessary, my dear Sir, that I should be present at your meeting with the lady, I would much rather decline it, if it be possible that you can arrange the business without me, — if not, 1 must yield to the necessity." Now there were more reasons than one, why the fisher was solicitous for Agatha to accompany him, and they were all too potent to be resisted. In the first place, he imagined, that no human being, whe- ther male or female, could behold Agatha Singleton without feeling deeply interested in her misfortunes, and more especially a female of exalted rank, to whom fortune had so liberally dispensed her gifts, and education had polished with every sensative feeling, THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 251 elegance and refinement ; — nature's eloquence, to this last, rarely ever pleads in vain. But what shall we say of the former ? why nothing-, positively nothing, since it is well known, and clearly authenticated, that all of these have failed, totally failed, in moving the heart to a tender and commiserating sympathy towards the truly meritorious and the truly unfortunate. A modest appeal, however humble, has rarely found its way to the hearts of the wealthy ; but the bold, bare-faced impostor, has opened their purse- strings, when to genius, to merit, to talent, to suffer- ing virtue it has been scornfully denied. And, oh, ye immortal gods, can this be true ? — sa- tirist, 'tis a tale beyond credibility ! Ah, would to heaven that it were so, my gentle reader, how gladly would I drop my pen, and leave you to the proof. But all this our fisher, who was neither a poet, nor a dependent, did not know, so he concluded, that all who were truly great, were truly greatly minded, and noble in soul, as they were exalted by birth, and rich in splendour. Mistaken man, he had seen but little on the rough seas, and heard naught, but the roaring winds ; he should have lived in the world, with vvorldly men, and with worldly women too, and he had known better. — But to return to our story, Agatha was most anxiously awaiting the fisher's reply, and the fisher was as anxiously contriving how he should make a plausi- ble pretext, for her being obliged to go, and at last he hit upon the following, — " You must go, my dear," uttered he, '' there is no doing without you, for there must be an inventory made of all the furniture, and every article you left 252 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. in the cottagej when you came to Herring Dale Now, you know, Shelty was left in charge of them, and though I have no doubt of the poor fellow's ho- nesty, yet that wont do ; I must see that every thing is quite right, before my lady takes possession of the premises, and I must have somebody to assist me, and that somebody must only be Agatha Singleton." Agatha could not, with any degree of propriety, offer now a dissenting voice, to this proposal. Meanwhile Olive had ran to Jessy, the very mo- ment that her father had quitted the room, with an account of the visit of the Marchioness, and her fair daughter ; and so much did Olive's head run upon the finery which was exhibited before her eyes, that she immediately began to give her sister a very accurate description of the dress of both the ladies, — the bon- nets and the pelisses, but perfectly forgot to mention the business which had brought them there, and Jessy, in some surprise, exclaimed, — " But, dear me, Olive, what could the Marchioness want with my father ?" " It was not my father that she wanted," answered Olive, " but the Cottage on the Cliff, for a lady of her acquaintance to live in ; lord help her silly head, she will be glad enough to run away from it ! when she has slept there a night or two, she will be so fright- ened with the screaming of the wild fowls, and the ghost that, folks certainly say, does walk there, when- ever the wind blows easterly ; — Miss Singleton may say what she likfes, but her maid Claribelle tells me, she has often heard strange noises, in the chamber that the captain used to sleep in." To which Jessy replied, — THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 253 " It was extremely silly and absurd then of Clari- belle to say any such thing, and I hope, Olive, you will not encourage her again to repeat so idle a tale ; who knows how such a report may tend to injure our Agatha ? for, in this supposition, very few would choose to become a tenant of the cottage, which, how- ever, thank Heaven, is at last disposed of! how I re- joice, for the sake of our dear friend !" " Dear me a fiddlestick's end !" cried Olive, dis- dainfully ; " how many dears are you going to make of her, pray ? she may be your dear, but she is none of mine." " The more shame for you, Olive !" answered Jessy, reproachfully. " I see no shame at all," replied Olive ; " unless it be in father for taking in another person's child, when he has got two daughters of his own, whom he ought to love so much better ; you may see, with half an eye, Jessy, that he don't love either of us, half so much as he does Agatha Singleton." *^ I cannot see any such thing," answered Jessy, much hurt at such an insinuation being thrown out against her dear father. " Well, but somebody can, and somebody has told me of it several times," repeated Olive, with an in- tolerably provoking smile ; pity that so lovely a lip should have engendered it, for it was the smile of envy ; and the artful girl continued, — " And some- body said, (I protest, I cannot help laughing, it was so amazingly droll,) that if father was not an old man, that he would "Olive stopped, and tittered again. " Would what ?" cried Jessy, highly nettled, though endeavouring to suppress her anger ; " would what, ^5i THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Olive ? why do you make half speeches, which have neither good sense nor good nature to recommend them?" " One must stop when one is going to laugh,'* ut- tered Olive; "well, somebody said, that if father was not so old that that he would marry Miss Singleton." Jessy reddened with resentment. " And how base must that somebody be," uttered Jessy, " who could breathe such an aspersion against a father in the ear of his child ! — against too, oh ! an angel of purity ! I blush for that somebody! and, oh, Olive ! how I blush for my sister ! for having listened to a wretch, who could inspire her with such senti- ments of her father !" " Vou had better mind, Miss Jessy, who you call wretches !" cried OliAe, her eyes flashing with the fury of passion, so that she was almost breathless ; "and as for your blushes, pray reserve them for your- self, if you please ; you have more occasion to blush than I have, for you are over head and ears in love with " " Hold, Olive !" uttered Jessy, almost overpowered to tears, yet still restraining them, while an involun- tary glow of crimson rested on her pure transparent cheek ; " hold, cruel girl ! spare this unnecessary, this tortured trial of my feelings, and know, that if I have loved, I love not now ! let that content you ; you have no rival in your sister, and be that hour far distant that you ever may ; and remember, that however weak, however miserable the heart of poor Jessy, it can never beat but with affection for my sister." Jessy's tears now flowed abundantly, and Olive, who had no apprehension that she would have taken THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 255 what she had uttered, in so serious a light, and now convinced, though she had once suspected it before, that the object of Jessy's unhappy passion had been her cousin Craftly, felt abashed and confounded by the ingenuous confession she had urged her to make ; and having now no jealous fears to combat with, either with respect to Jessy or Miss Singleton, endeavoured by the most insidious art that was possible, to restoie the fluttered Jessy to composure, before any one should surprise them in that situation, well knowing that from her father she would encounter the most furious displeasure, and from Miss Singleton the most spirited reproof;, for the fisher, since his conversation with Agatha on the subject of the deplorable change in his beloved child, had invariably adopted her ad- vice ; and, still more tender than ever over his droop- ing flower, never appeared either to notice that change, , or enquire into the cause. Thus, by slow and imperceptible degrees, aided too by the powerful influence which Agatha held over her mind, and the fortunate absence of her faithless lover, (for Craftly was again out on the herring fishery,) the sweet Jessy was gradually recovering from the deep wound her heart had received, when the hand of Olive opened it afresh, but it lasted only for a few moments ; Craftly was unworthy of a tear,— and when Olive conde- scended to stammer out a sort of apology for having said any thing to distress her feelings, when, with the softest smile she could assume — for it was only as- sumed — she exclaimed, — " Well, who would have thought now, Jessy, that you would have been so foolish as to cry, only because I happened to say that Miss Singleton might be our 256 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. mamma if she chose ? my gracious ! what a pretty little mamma we should have, only a bit too young ! Lord ! it was only a joke ; and as to our cousin Craftly saying any such thing, you are quite mistaken, for he never says a word about papa's darling ; he don't like her much, and that is the truth of it." " And she don't like him," replied Jessy ; " so their affection for each other is mutual." " Well, but you wont cry any more, Jess," cried Olive, sportively playing with the beautiful tresses of Jessy's light hair, that shaded, but did not conceal a forehead, white as the unspotted snow ; " you wont cry any more, Jess, will you ?" "Am I crying now ?" answered Jessy, in a tone of the most fascinating sweetness. " And you wont tell Miss Singleton a word of what has passed between us ?" enquired Olive, anxiously. To which Jessy replied, — "You cannot imagine that I would do any such thing; I have too much respect for the feelings of the amiable Agatha, intentionally to give her pain ; tell me only, who insinuated so false a construction on the blameless conduct of our father, towards an orphan whom his goodness has protected, from the purest mo- tives of benevolence, and I will never repeat the sub- ject again." Olive coloured deeply, and, as if some sudden thought had struck her, she exclaimed, — "You are sure, then, that you will never mention it?" " Never ! — my word is given ; did you ever find me break it to mortal, when it was once given ?" replied Jessy. THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 257 " Why, no, you are pretty well for that," answered Olive, " so I will e'en tell you, and have done with it; it was Margaret Craftly ; — Lord, how you colour, Jess ! and suppose she did say so out of a bit of fun, there was no great harm in it." " Margaret Craftly !" repeated Jessy, in the utmost astonishment, and without ever removing her eyes from Olive's blushing face ; " what ! our friendly, ho- nest, good-natured kinswoman, Margaret Craftly ! indeed, Olive, you surprise me ! I did not think that Margaret could be so funny, as you term it, on such serious subjects." " Hush ! I protest, here is Miss Singleton coming down stairs !" cried Olive ; and she may probably join us. Now, silence, Jessy, if you love me !" This was accompanied by a kiss, cordially returned by Jessy, who in a low whisper exclaimed, — " If 1 did not love you, Olive, I should not have promised secrecy, but I have, and that is sufficient." At the conclusion of these words the light step of Agatha was perfectly distinguishable, and shortly, the door of the housekeeper's room was gently unclosed, and, — " May I come in ?" sweetly pronounced, by a voice in which no one could be mistaken. Agatha, previous to the arrival of the fisher to her chamber, had that very morning been unpacking some part of the wardrobe, and rummaging a few trunks, which had never been opened since she came from the cliff, nor ever looked at since the death of her beloved father, and in which there were several gifts which had been presented to her during her long abode at the convent of the Holy Sisters ; some, however, she herself had purchased, out of the liberal allowance c 2l 258 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. which Captain Singleton had yearly remitted to the abbess for her pocket-money, a part of which Agatha had never neglected to distribute among the poor sis- ters ; for poverty is not shut out from a convent, any more than from a church ; — no matter ; Agatha freely dispensed her petite morceaus among the sisterhood, and received a shower of blessings on her beauteous head. It is no wonder then, in return, they delighted to present her with little offerings of their respect and gratitude, for gratitude, however scarce, is always an inherent quality in the heart of woman. Would that it were equally so in that of men ! but, dear souls, if they have any at all, it is always to be seen shining through self-interest ; they are interested in something before they part with one atom of it : but the soft heart of woman will make any sacrifices, rather than seem to forfeit her just claim to it. And so did the nuns in the convent of the Holy Sisters, for, somehow or other, they continued to repay the young and beau- tiful noviciate for tae kindness she had evinced to- wards them. Some wrought little baskets into various shapes and forms, while others netted purses of silk or beads ; some made flowers, which seemed nothing wanting but in fragrance; and others presented Aga- tha with curious rings, and some gave her necklaces of beautiful workmanship ; in short, there were none that did not give what they deemed an offering of gratitude to their lovely sister Agatha, and when she quitted the convent, many a bosom heaved a sigh, and many an eye dropped a tear, well assured that on this side the grave they would behold her no more ! — nor was Agatha less affected at parting with the friendly nuns,thesightofwhosegifts had this morning awakened THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 259 the most tender- recollections, — pleasina;, yet painful, — bitter, though sweet ; and it was these emotions which filled her heart when her protector entered her cham- ber, and she could not control them. After the departure of the fisher she recovered her cheerfulness, and turn- ing over her trunks, selected from her own little store, that she had privately purchased when in Denmark, some beautiful presents for Jessy and Olive, and in which Margaret Craftly was not forgotten ; (for Aga- tha had always liked Margaret, though she despised her brother) and placing them all in a basket of beau- tiful workmanship together, she hung it on her arm, and tript lightly down stairs, in order to present her offerings of fiiendship and sisterly affection. But neither Jessy nor Olive were in the oak par- lour, and she went in search of them to the house- keeper's room, where it is well known that she found them. In one moment she spread her little store on the table, and bade them take what they liked, save a rich crimson silk bag, which she intended as a gift for their honest kinswoman, ?*Iargaret Craftly. A candle might have been lighted in the face of Olive, and she dared not look at Jessy, who, softly murmuring a gentle sigh, deplored the ingratitude of the censorious Pflargaret to so pure and spotless a being as Agatha Singleton, believing her to be totally unworthy of her generous gift. But Jessy said nothing, neither did the too con- scious, but now abashed, Olive, who, having her first choice, save the bag which was intended for Margaret, and of which, had it been possible, she would very willingly have deprived her, took care to select the 260 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. most beautiful and costly of Agatha's presents ; then turning to Jessy, she exclaimed, — " There, Jessy, the rest are for you !" At this mo- ment, a beautiful little cornelian heart, set in delicate pearls, and which had escaped the greedy eye of Olive, most invitingly appeared at the bottom of the basket, and Olive wanted that too ; but Agatha gently laying her hand on her's, sportingly exclaimed, — " No, Olive, you must not expect to monopolize all hearts, and wear them in your chains ; let Jessy have one heart, and one heart, well preserved, and long re- tained, is worth a thousand that neither love nor con- stancy have charms sufficient to bind to our service ; be this heart, then, your own, sweet Jessy !" and, taking a small gold chain from her own bosom, Aga- tha affixed it to the heart, and tied it round the neck of Jessy, amidst the envious sneers of the half-pleased, yet certainly the frowning looks, of her discontented sister. THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 261 CHAPTER XVI. ■ Witness, Heaven, In all the cruel catalogue of pains Humanity turns o'er, if there be one So terrible to human tenderness, As an unnatural child." Trifling and inconstant minds will always attach themselves to objects of as trifling a nature, while those that merit the most serious attention pass neglected by. And this happened to be precisely the case with Miss Olive Blust, as she rapturously surveyed the shining ornaments which she had made choice of, in preference to the plain and simple ones, that were left, without any choice at all, for the acceptance of her sister Jessy ; and though she would have had no sort of objection to the little cornelian heart, and the gold chain, to which it was now suspended, yet, on viewing her own glittering treasures, she felt that the advan- tage was considerably on her side, and that she had better make a virtue of necessity on the present oc- casion, than be suspected of envy or jealousy towards her sister. There was also a probability that the trunks of Miss Singleton not being all unpacked, that they might yet contain something more valuable, which might one day or other fall to the share of her and Jessy ; for the jewels which still remained in 262 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Agatha's possession were unknown to any but the fisher, who had expressly desired Agatha that it might be kept a secret from his family ; nor did even Jessy know that her amiable friend was possessed of so much treasure : not that in such a heart as Jessy's it would have made any impression, save that of the most transporting joy, that Agatha was beyond the reach of pecuniary want ; but a knowledge of this would neither have diminished or encreased the senti- ment of almost veneration, with which she regarded the character of the beautiful and amiable orphan. But had Olive been in possession of this important secret, it is certain that every action of her life would have been guided by it, and that Miss Singleton would have been viewed in a far different light to what she now was. So much for worldly wisdom, and worldly prudence ! — adopted by older and wiser heads than Olive Blust's ; we will, therefore, not censure her, for following but the example of her betters : all Agatha's pretty gifts, however, were presently laid before the fisher. "And how do you like this, father ? — and is not this pretty, father ?" were questions repeatedly put to him by Olive ; and he answered, " yes" to all, till he chanced to spy the cornelian heart, which was just be- ginning to peep from the snowy bosom of Jessy ; and he exclaimed, in delighted accents, — " Shiver my topsails, if that be not the prettiest bauble of them all ! come here, Jess, and let thy old father give thee a hearty buss, and wish thee joy to wear it." The open arms which were extended to- wards Jessy were not suffered to remain long unoc- cupied, for the heart of an affectionate child leaped to THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 263 receive this proof of affection from a father, whom she adored ; and Jessy flew into those arms, that never could deceive her, — the best, the most secure, and safest for lovely woman, save those alone of an affec- tionate husband ! all other arms are the enemy of woman, however gilded and ^charmed with the in- sidious art of flattery, or soft deluding friendship ; — for " What is friendship but a name, — A charm, that lulls to sleep ; A shade that follows wealth and fame, — But leaves the wretch to weep ?" And whether Jessy thought this or no, as the arms of her doting old father were encircled round her slender waist, we cannot determine ; but certain it is that her spirits were revived, when she gently disengaged her- self from his arms, on the entrance of Miss Singleton and her kinswoman, Margaret Craftly, who, uninvited, had come to pass the day at Herring Dale ; and, at her approach, the fisher exclaimed, bestowing a look of the utmost complacency on the smiling Agatha, — " Well, Meg, and you have brought an olive branch in your hand, I see, to reconcile me to your company, whether I like it or not, so sit down and make yourself comfortable, my old lass. Jess, what have you got for dinner, my duckling ? now kinswoman is come, we must needs have something in addition to our fare." "If I had thought that any ceremony was necessary I should have sent you notice of my coming," cried Margaret, quietly disrobing herself of her large red mantle, and her close black bonnet, not however with- out the assistance of Miss Singleton, who, perceiving 264 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. a sort of coldness in the manner of Jessy towards her favourite kinswoman, could not account for this seem- ing indifference, and, fearful that Margaret had per- ceived it, redoubled her attentions ; but Olive never condescended to show her any, — she was too intent on her finery, and was carefully arranging them, one by one, into a work-box, when Margaret had entered the room ; not even the caresses which had been bestowed on Jessy by her father, had disturbed Olive in her pleasing occupation. Olive thought not much of a kiss from the lips of her poor old father, and, therefore, was not very soli- citous of obtaining one ; it was other kisses that Olive coveted, and other lips that pressed Olive's, than those of the fisher ; and the too-highly pleased and gratified girl, and, it may be added, too fatally pleased with these, valued nought besides. Meanwhile Margaret had not been insensible to the cold looks of her favourite Jessy, nor to a peculiar expression which was evidently displayed on the coun- tenance of her kinsman at her approach. He was civil, — too civil by half; but the warm, affectionate, and cordial glow, with which he had always welcomed her at Herring Dale, was on this morning flown. There was an air of chilling reserve, mixed even with his good-humoured pleasantry, which cut the ge- nerous Margaret to the soul, the more, as she was perfectly unconscious of having merited it ; but that her brother might, was a thought uppermost in the mind of Margaret ; no doubt the silly youth had been making love to one of his pretty kinswomen, perhaps to Jessy, whom she suspected that he really loved ; — perhaps to Olive, whom she suspected that he only THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 265 pretendea to love, and had always blamed him for ; — but admitting that it were so, and that her kinsman had discovered it, why should she be blamed ? the conduct of her young- brother was not in her keeping, neither were the hearts of his daughters ; if they acted imprudently, why should he feel any resentment to- wards her ? Besides, Margaret had a small touch of family pride in her composition, as well as Peter : she did not see why her brother Leontine was not a fit match for either of the daughters of her kinsman ; they were nothing more than the daughters of a fisher, and though he had acquired a considerable property by his successful voyages and trading on the coast, yet her brother was treading fast in his shoes, and had been equally a sharer of the good gifts of fortune ; — her cousin Jessy too, when she gave her hand to Peter, was by no means destitute of the shining ore ; she had been the only child of a wealthy fisher, and Peter had not been a loser by intermarrying with her pretty cousin. Thus, armed at all points, Margaret was by no means disposed to receive in silence the cold looks of her kinsman, nor the changed manners of Jessy, who, though she showed no apparent dis- pleasure, or conducted herself with rudeness, yet avoided that familiar tone of kindness in which she had always been accustomed to address her. Meanwhile Agatha, who had with pain remarked the change towards the good-natured Margaret, both in the fisher and Jessy, endeavoured by every pal- liative in her power to sweeten the sour, and, present- ing the little present she had preserved for her, begged that she would receive it as a small token of her respect. c. 2 m 266 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " Indeed, 1 wish it were better, Miss Craftly," ut- tered Agatha, " but I well know that you will not re- gard the value of a gift so offered the less because it springs from the heart." To which Margaret gravely replied, — "No, my dear, not were it twenty times of more value from any one else ; and would to God that there were more hearts like yours ! how inestimable would be the gift, however small, if given by such as yours ! but alas ! my dear Miss Singleton, there is a plentiful lack of such hearts now a-days ! the world's turned topsy-turvy, and, in my belief, there is no true honest hearted soul in existence !" " Heaven forbid, my dear madam !" uttered Agatha, smiling ; " the world would be little worth living in, were that the case." Margaret cast down her head in silence, but as she did so she caught the eyes of the fisher examining her countenance with the minutest attention, and, as if unwilling to detect a fault there ; but Margaret, per- fectly collected, looked at her watch, and olbserving that the hour was growing late, arose to depart. " Why, heyday, kinswoman ! in what quarter blows the wind now ?" cried the fisher. "You may e'en ask that yourself, Peter," dryly re- plied Margaret, " seeing that you are a much better judge of the wind than myself, though, if I may speak my mind, I will not let it blow so coldly on me again in this quarter for one while to come." "How so, kinswoman ?" cried the fisher, attempting to recover the usual jocularity of his humour; "what has been foul of thee, Meg, that makes thee so glumpy ?" THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 267 " You may just e'en ask that of yourself too," cried Margaret, " for I neither know nor care why I have been this day treated so slightingly by you and all your family ; but you shall tell me the reason why, when I place another foot over your threshold, Peter Blust, you shall tell me then, kinsman, I promise you, and so good even to you all ; you will find my room better than my company." And Margaret huddled her cloak about her without further ceremony, without one attempt being made by the fisher to stop her, and Agatha, feeling that she had no right to interfere in a point so delicate in the house of her protector, as to persuade her to relinquish her intention of immediately departing, sat an unwilling spectator of a scene which was extremely unpleasant to her feelings, during which Margaret had proceeded as far as the door without being intercepted in her progress ; she then turned to Agatha, and, in a voice which plainly bespoke the nature of her feelings, ex- claimed, — " God bless you, my dear girl, — God bless you ! you have done all you can to make me comfortable, but the wind blows contrary, you see, my dear, in spite of all your kindness, so I must bid you farewell." Margaret was now trotting oif, when the fisher started up, and, placing himself between his kins- woman and the door, protested that she should not go till he had made his peace with her. " And why have you broken it, Peter," demanded Margaret, "• tell me that ? — why am I looked on so coldly by you and your daughter Jessy, tell me that ? and your answer shall suffice me. — As to Olive, I will not charge her with present neglect, I am accustomed 268 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. to bear with the waywardness of Olive's temper, but for Jessy's, it is wholly new to me, there must be a reason, and I would know it ere I depart, not willingly to trouble you again." The fisher was hurt, for Margaret uttered these words decidedly, and without betraying the slightest inclination to remain, and Jessy looked a little embar- rassed ; as to Olive, glad of making a pretext of throwing all the reproach on her father and her sister, she turned to Jessy, and exclaimed, — " It is all along of you. Miss Jessy, you are always doing something or other to make people uncomfort- able, for my own part I never had a thought of vexing cousin Craftly, father and you must bear the blame, not me." " And who is blaming you, you saucy minx ?" cried the fisher ; " zounds, and fury, who told you to put in your oar. Shiver my top-sails, if 1 hear you say ano- ther sentence on the subject I'll Cousin Craftly, do you choose to sit down and hear reason, or not ?" " That is what I have been staying to hear, for these last ten minutes that I have been kept standing at the door," cried Margaret, now smiling, and very calmly resuming her seat next to Agatha ; " now kinsman, I wait your pleasure, I only want to know in what manner I have offended you and Jessy ?" " Then you will wait till the first cock crows, for curse me if I can tell you," answered the fisher, " who the devil told you that you had ?" " My own occular demonstration, kinsman," replied Margaret, gravely. " Your own occular fiddle-stick's end," cried the fisher, "and if it was not for that prating hussy THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 269 there, I should have told you long ago to sit down and make yourself comfortable ; but just to pacify you a bit, I will ask Jess one question, — Jess, has Mar- garet Craftly done any thing to offend you ?" Olive bit her lips and coloured up to the ears, not unobserved by Agatha or Margaret, while Jessy meekly replied, though with great hesitation, — " Where no offence is given, surely, father, none ought to be taken. Margaret has declared she is un- conscious of having given any, and Margaret is a lover of truth ; 1 never once found her to deviate from it, therefore I believe her." Margaret's eyes sparkled with triumph, and the fisher seemed struck with the manner of Jessy's reply ; and the effect of this speech on the feelings of the whole party, one alone excepted, very soon restored the most perfect harmony between the kinsfolks. Margaret pulled off her red cloak, and her large poke bonnet, and in spite of all her former resolu- tions, quietly staid to supper. — The fisher was good- humoured, and Jessy attentive; some sly glances were exchanged between her and her sister, the mean- ing of which nobody knew better than themselves, and which nobody thought proper to enquire into. Meanwhile Margaret enjoyed her kinsman's excel- lent supper, and congratulated Agatha on having disposed of her cottage to so advantageous a tenant. " For only think, my dear," cried Margaret, " how charming it will be for you to receive your rent, from such hands, a lady of quality too,— they always pay quality prices, — you will always be sure of your money." " Avast there, cousin Meg," cried the fisher, " some 270 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF of the quality, as you call them, pay devilish bad ; — don't you remember a certain lord that came here to bathe for a whole season, and sent his groom to bor- row oats for his horses, devil a half-penny he paid for them though, he took care of that. Shiver my top- sails, if ever I trust a lord again, while I have got a horse left in the stable. Then there was my Lady Cockletop, — but no matter, we have hit the nail on the right head now, I believe, for this lady of quality, who is going to take the Cottage on the Cliff so nicely oft our hands, is no less than a friend of the Mar- chioness's, and if the lady don't pay, why she must, that is all, there's no danger there, the Marquiss is as rich as a jew." " And as generous as a prince, I have heard folks say," cried Margaret ; " he gave a hundred pounds away to the poor fishers of Cromer the last time he was here." " And Lord Montague is such a sweet young man too," exclaimed Olive, "I protest I think I see him now, making me a low bow, when he gave me the parasol, with his lily white hands, on the night of the raffle. Cousin Margaret, Lord Montague's hands are as white as a cauliflower, it would do your heart good to see them." "Tush, child," answered Margaret, " it would do no such thing what has one's heart to do with a man's hands ?" Now whether it was the manner of Margaret's ut- tering this, or from some whim of the fisher's, we cannot tell, but he burst into so violent a fit of laughter as nearly disconcerted the gravity of his kinswoman, in which it was morally impossible not to join ; and Tlin COTTACR ON THE CLIFF. 271 Agatha then talked of the visit she had to make the ensuing- morning- to the great lady. " I wish one of you Avould go with me, it will be a charity," exclaimed she. " Why, am not 1 going with you, my dear," cried the fisher, " shiver my top-sails, what have you got to be afraid of?" " Oh, Sir, it is not fear," uttered Agatha, " but a female companion also will be much pleasanter." " Especially an elder one," observed Margaret, longing to be of the party; but this the fisher thought proper to put a negative on, and, well knowing that Jessy would not, even if she were asked, he fixed on Olive as being the most proper to accompany Miss Singleton to the Cottage on the Cliff; of course Agatha could not start one reasonable objection to such a proposal, and she replied, — « Thank you. Sir." " Because," resumed the fisher, " there's Jessy would be quite dashed in the presence of such grand folks, but that bold-faced minx don't mind who she comes before, and will talk to them with as much ease and affability as if they were her equals ; if you had seen her the other morning, at Adams's library, you would have thought she had been the mistress of the vj'hole shop, for she plainly told Adams that he made a market of every body who came into it, and that he should not make a market of her, for she would buy her thread and needles elsewhere, what think you of that, cousin Craftly ?" " Well, I positively cannot blame her for that," ex- claimed Margaret, " for, to say truth, that is the very worst fault of Adams ; he will impose, even on the 272 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. inhabitants, who support him when no sea-hathers are here to feather his nest, and that is very ungrateful ; for if any favour ought to be shewn to his customers, it should be to those who butter his bread all the winter, — so I don't blame Olive in the least for telling him of it ; some people require it, kinsman, when they happen to forget themselves." On these words Margaret departed from the house of the fisher in perfect amity with her pretty kinswomen, and cordi- ally shaking hands with honest Peter, hoped that while Leontine was absent on his fishery, that he would be no stranger to the Red House, for so was the residence of Craftly called ; before which Margaret had not neglected to include Miss Singleton in the invitation. " I shall be quite offended if you don't shortly favor me with a visit, Miss Singleton," rejoined Margaret, as Agatha kindly assisted her in adjusting her red cloak and poke bonnet ; " you are always so chatty and agreeable, that, as my brother says, it is a plea- sure to sit in your company." Margaret had popt this out quite unawares, and she coloured deeply on the vermilion also lighting up the cheeks of Olive, while Agatha, who felt that whatever Craftly had said of her was a matter of the greatest inditFerence, and that she wished it to be consi- dered in that light by the whole party, gravely replied, — " Your brother, madam, has been very little in qiy company to be able to form a conclusion on the merits or demerits of my conversation, to which he has fre- quently listened with the most perfect apathy, and I have often thought with displeasure, but that 1 must freely own has never given me a moment's uneasiness; THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 273 because it is utterly and morally impossible that my sentiments and Mr. Craftly's can ever accord, — they are as decidedly opposite as light from darkness, and opposites rarely agree, you know ; yet I thank you for your kind invitation, madam, and will certainly avail myself of it, the very first opportunity, with the Miss Blusts." Margaret now speedily made her exit from Herring Dale, not choosing to make any reply to a speech which Agatha had taken good care to render quite un- answerable, though perfectly intelligible, and which now appeared to strike the fisher in a very forcible manner, which, with many other secret observations he had lately made on the conduct which the lovely orphan had adopted towards his young kinsman, made it very natural to conclude that Leontine Craftly did not stand very high in her good graces ; and that was very strange, for Leontine was an avowed favourite of every body else, and why not of Agatha Singleton? there was, doubtless, a reason why he was not so, but that reason the fisher was unable to guess. — Had his kinsman offended her ? perhaps he had ; and Agatha was a girl of too much discretion to prate about it : — he had observed too a coolness in Jessy lately in her manner towards Craftly, which had never been njore perceptible that when he had last called to bid them farewell, on his going to the herring fishery. Jessy had coldly wished that his voyage might be successful, and that he might return once more in safety from the perilous ocean, but as she did so, she neither extended her hand, as usual, towards her kinsman, nor were her eyes moistened with a tear of sensibility ; for the fisher had beheld Jessy frequently in tears at the long c. 2n 274 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. and perilous voyages which Leontine had made; and sometimes even Olive had wept when she beheld her cousin depart, all which the fisher attributed to emo- tions produced by friendship only ; but now, Jessy had exhibited a very different conduct, for she neither be- trayed any outward sign of regret in the absence of her kinsman, or appeared conscious that he was departed on a hazardous and perilous undertaking, and well did the fisher know, that Jessy's heart was not insensi- ble, — to what then was owing this most extraordinary change in her disposition towards Craftly ? — to whom could he apply for information on so mysterious a subject ? — not to Jessy herself, for he had faithfully pledged his word to Agatha Singleton, never to urge her on the cause of her depression. — But could Craftly be the cause of that depression in his adored child ? — could Craftly be that designing insidious serpent, who had crept beneath his friendly, hospitable roof only to despoil him of his dearest treasure ? — Fire and furies ! had he been all this while cherish- ing a viper in his too confiding bosom, only to sting the heart of his innocent child. Perdition overtake him, if ever he should enter his doors again. Up rose the fisher, with clenched hands, and fury darting from his eyes, to wreak his vengeance — where ? Craftly was not there, he was gone to the herring fishery, from which he might never return, or return only a stiffened corpse. How useless, how absurd then, was this stormy gust of passion. Perhaps he was not guilty, — he had no proof that he was ; — Aga- tha Singleton had never breathed a sentence that could make him accuse his kinsman of such a crime; — Jessy had never betrayed a sign that Craftly was an object THE COTTAGIi ON THE CLIFF. 275 of her affection, nor had Craftly shewn Jessy any attention other than friendship warranted : — if there was any to suspect it was Olive. — How foolish then, and at the same moment how unkind, and how unjust, to harbour such a thought against the honour of his worthy kinsman ; and, fortunately for the absent Leontine, there was a full length portrait of him drawn when a boy of five years old, and which had been presented by his mother, on his birth-day, to Mrs. Blust, and which now hung directly over the fire-place, and, on this portrait the fisher strained his eyes till he could see no longer, for an almost involuntary gush of tears prevented him, and with which the fury of his violent passion abated, — nay, it was completely dissolved in the tender effusion. There is a resistless pleader in the loveliness of in- fantine beauty, even to disarm the fiercest of human passions ; however inflamed by anger or tortured by anguish, we cannot behold it without being softened and subdued by its bewitching influence, and never was there a fitter time for its operation on the heart of the fisher. The blue laughing eyes of the little innocent seemed to reproach him, — the hands, pure as alabaster, seemed too raised in supplication towards the inflexible judge who had condemned him, — and the countenance was angelic. The fisher gazed intently on the smiling dimpled cheek, and the infant lips, that seemed to say, if not for me, for my mother's sake, oh ! spare me. Confounded, ashamed, half-convinced of his cruel and unjust sus- picion, the fisher, as he continued to gaze on the portrait of the lovely child, gradually dismissed from 276 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. his mind his jealous fears of his favorite kinsman ;— thought of all the amiable qualifications that Leon- tine possessed, how faithfully he was attached to his service, and determined never more to let such a thought disturb his pillow or invade his peace ; be- sides he was ashamed of it, though it was a thought not revealed to mortal, the searcher of hearts knew that he had cherished it, and the fisher felt compunc- tion and remorse, which are always followed by re- pentence ; he would not do so again, " Shiver my top-sails, if ever I do," uttered the fisher, and swal- lowing a glass of brandy, he murmured a blessing on the head of Craftly, — that he might return in safety to his native shore, that his voyage might be pros- perous and happy ; and looking at the portrait, once more muttered to himself, — " God bless thee, boy, god bless thee ! — would not hurt a hair of thy head to be made an admiral of a seventy-four — no, shiver my top-sails, if I would." And the fisher felt his conscience greatly relieved, and all the animosity which he had momentarily con- ceived against his kinsman had completely evaporated, with the ebullition of his passion. The fisher had before this entertained some doubts of Craftly, and the sight of poor Margaret on this morning, rekindled a spark which was not yet wholly extinct in the breast of the fisher ; — hence arose that cool, yet civil, that doubtful, yet cheerful smile, with which he received her on her first entrance. Perhaps Margaret was in the bosom secrets of her brother ; perhaps she knew of knew of what ? the fisher could not tell ; — still for the soul of him he could not, just as this thought crept over his heart, THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 277 bestow a cordial welcome on his kinswoman ; but when Margaret perceived it, he was again confounded and ashamed, as a proof of which, he instantly made atonement. He could not think poor Margaret to blame, and the speech of Jessy greatly contributing to ease him of his doubts of his honest kinswoman, she was speedily restored to his favor. But how were the words of Agatha Singleton to be accounted for ; — she had expressly said that the senti- ments of Craftly and hers would never assimulate ; — what sentiments then had he uttered so unpleasing to her ? — Again poor Peter was puzzled and perplexed, and at the final departure of Margaret, called for a glass of brandy to dissipate the vapours from his mind. " Confound suspicion !" exclaimed he, " 'tis a foul reptile, and should always be drowned in some- thing, and I don't know but a glass of brandy is the best remedy after all." " Ah ! no. Sir, say rather that generous confidence will dispel its force, if not entirely deface its impres- sion," cried Agatha, " and heaven ever keep so foul a fiend from your mind, it should inhabit none but the guilty breast." " True, my dear," answered the fisher, evidently hurt by an observation so pointed, but which he felt that he had merited from so lovely a monitor, " you say right, — suspicion is a bad thing, especially when we suspect one whom we have cherished as our dear- est and most attached friend. 'Tis a sad reflection that we cannot trust those whom we have so truly loved." Agatha with pain beheld the conflicts which were 278 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. now rising in the breast of her protector, but, feeling well assured that his allusions pointed not to her, re- mained quite silent. But the lynx-eye of Olive had impatiently watched the doubtful looks which her father had sometimes cast at her kinswoman, and afterwards threw at her sister Jessy, and felt no small symptoms of curiosity to be informed from whence they arose, or whether Miss Singleton had any thing to do with it, and, taking ad- vantage of the long pause which was made, she made use of the following exclamation : — " Lord, father, what can you have to suspect in Margaret Craftly ?" " Margaret Craftly, you pert Jezabel," cried the fisher, " who told you that I suspected Margaret Craftly, you abominable slanderous jade ? — have I any right to suspect Margaret Craftly more than I have Leontine Craftly, hey ? nay, of the two, I don't know but I might fix on him as the principal transgressor, were I inclined to be suspicious of any- evil from that quarter. — Now, Miss Olive, what do you think of that ?" With cheeks that would now have moeked the deeply blushing carnation in its full bloom, and with eyes darting all their fiery beams on the angelic, dove- like countenance of Agatha, Olive replied, — " You may go and ask those who have set you against Leontine Craftly, and Margaret too, I suppose, though they are so double-faced before them, and you may guess who that is, if you please, father ; — when people don't like people, they are always trying to pick a hole in people's jackets." " Hold your tongue, you saucy hussy," cried the THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 279 fisher, whose anger was now beginning to wax apace, " hold your tongue, you termagant, or, shiver my top- sails, I will soon let you see the difference there is between a fond foolish father and an angry one, you firebrand, I will ; — curse me if your mother had been such a vixen I would have sent her packing before you was born. How dare you insult Miss Singleton, with whom you are no more to be compared, (though you are my own child,) than a herring skiff is to a man of war. — Bat, zounds and fury ! don't provoke me again, or I'll " ''Pray, Olive, don't say another word to poor fa- ther, pray don't," cried Jessy, who, pale and trem- bling, drew the arm of her sister within her own, and led her to a distance from her enraged father, whose lips absolutely quivered with passion ; " dear Agatha, pardon Olive, she is a very passionate girl, but she don't mean half what she says, — pray, pray intercede with my father, to forgive my sister, she will never anger him again." " No, shiver my top-sails, if I do," cried the fisher, breaking a pipe which he held in his hand on the floor to atoms, " till she has made a proper concession to Miss Singleton." " Hear me, my dear Sir, I beseech you to hear me quietly, and then act as you please," cried Agatha, " I came not to your protecting, hospitable roof, to be a peace breaker, heaven and my own conscience ac- quit me of such a charge, and that to me is sufficient; -—I wont, I will not receive any concession from your daughter, she is sufficiently humbled by having of- fended you, to me there is no apology required, for Olive knows that she has erred in pronouncing me to 280 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. be the defamer of Mr. Leontine Craftly, against whom I have never breathed a sentence that could in any degree tend to lessen your regard for him, much less have I ever prejudiced you against his truly wor- thy and amiable sister. Still, Sir, I would have your daughter know, that I am above disguise, and now plainly tell her and you, that I do not admire Mr. Leontine Craftly ; my reasons for which I am not obliged to explain ; — but though I do not admire him, far be it from me to prejudice him in the eyes of any other person, or to bear him any enmity, — why should I ? — he has done me no wrong, and I would not wil- lingly do him any. Now, Sir, let me persuade you to think no more of this little dissention, and to pardon the ill-judging passion of your daughter ; for you too have displayed more passion that was necessary, — you were too violent, and — and we naughty women can- not bear it, can we, Olive ? — Come, unbend that brow and smile on your father, — ah, where will you find a better friend than your father ?" Jessy pushed Olive gently before her, and Agatha taking her hand drew her close to the fisher's arm- chair. " Go and kiss father, Olive," cried Jessy, in a low and faltering voice. " He will turn me away from him," sobbed out Olive, for her passion had dissolved into a shower of tears, which the fisher no sooner perceived, than he stretched out his arms towards her, and Olive was strained to his heart for a few moments in silence, far, far more eloquent than words. " Turn you away," cried the fisher, " no, shiver my top-sails, if ever 1 turn a repentant child away that THE COTTAOE ON THE CLIFF. 281 clings to the bosom of a father ; — but, where is that angel ? — that peace-making angel, that Agatha Sin- gleton ? Zounds, I must kiss her too." " And, Jessy," cried a soft plaintive voice, who was leaning over the back of his chair. " What, my darling Jess," uttered the fisher, " why so I will ;" and Jessy, and Agatha too, received the proJBTered kiss. After which, the fisher recovered his vivacity, smoked an additional pipe, and drank too an addi- tional glass of brandy and water, for which not even the soberest philosopher must blame him, — for philo- sophers are but men, and require their spirits to be enlivened as well as other folks. As to Olive, her gratitude to Agatha was boundless, or appeared to be so, when on retiring for the night she followed her to her little chamber, and poured forth an effusion of thanks too fulsome to mention ; for well did Agatha know that it proceeded from a heart as light and inconstant as the breeze that blows over the ocean. But our heroine had learned patiently to bear, and as patiently to forbear, and to feel an//.f human misery, whose wants he cheerfully relieved 308 THE COTTAGE DM THE CLIFF. with acts of the most exalted benevolence ; he re- warded merit wherever he found it, and befriendea genius though clothed in rags, in short he was the complete philanthropist : yet it was in deeds of the most private charity that he chose to render himself so, neither known to or enquired into by his fashion- able wife : yet they lived on the most peaceable terms with each other, and were never known to quarrel, not even on the subject of expences, because it so hap- pened, that the Marchioness was penurious to a fault; she loved to shine, but wished to borrow a light from others, rather than use the means to extinguish her own, and, as the Marquis was liberal, she felt that she had little reason to complain. The birth of a son and heir, however, changed the cold and listless manner of the Marquis towards his lady, to whom he grew more attached as Montague ripened into manly grace and beauty, and, if he did not positively love the mother of his son, he perfectly adored him the more, as the beauteous boy gave so fair a promise of inheriting the most virtuous qualities of disposition, and, in contenjplating his young son, the Marquis insensibly grew more relaxed of his se- cluded habits, and less gloomy in his disposition ; he now mixed with society for the sake of his beloved son ; he had some spur, — some incentive to cause him to action, and forming the mind of Montague became his principle delight and study ; when, however. Lady Lavinia was born, the Marchioness had something to form after her fashion, and positively insisted on the privileges that were due to a mother, — that of super- intending the education of her daughter herself, a proposition which the 3Iarquis could not reasonably THE COTTAGL ON THE CLIFI'. 309 deny ; and the young Lavinia soon became the very model of that mother in her habit and disposition, o. which she was the very counterpart in form and fea- tures. The Marquis beheld the glaring imperfections of his daughter with unavailing regret ; unavailing, because he was well aware that no interference on his part would tend to lessen them, he, therefore, silently ac- quiesced in all the plans that were adopted by the Marchioness for her system of education, exerting his authority only when they seemed ridiculous or absurd ; nor was Lady Lavinia very much attached either to her father or brother, for they were both too grave and too studious for her ; besides, she often felt the partiality of the Marquis to Montague, and the pre- ference given to him on every occasion, with a senti- ment of something like ill-nature and envy towards him, not exhibited indeed in any external signs, but secretly suffered it to creep into her bosom, like a rep- tile, only to destroy the bloom of every generous, — every open, — every ingenuous impression. Meanwhile Montague employed every means in his power to gratify and please the whims of his young and fantastic sister ; if ever she frowned, he gave her additional smiles, and if ever she reproached him with neglecting to procure for her any trifling ornament that she wanted, he took care to provide her with one of more intrinsic value at another opportunity. Such was Lord Montague and such was Lady Lavinia ! And Agatha had onl) just time to smuggle the myrtle into her bosom, before the fisher and Olive, who had officiously planted herself at the door of the Cottage to see the illustrious visitors depart, returned. SIO THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. "My gracious, Miss Singleton!" exclaimed Olive, " had you no curiosity to see the beautiful carriage, which belongs to the outlandish lady, drive away from the door ? and then Lord Montague, what a charm- ing bow he made to father and I, as he bade us good morning ! what a shape, — what an air, — and what a beautiful diamond pin he had in his bosom ! — how it glittered and spangled ! didn't it, father ?" "Shiver ray top-sails, if thee beest not the silliest toad that ever lived. Oily !" cried the fisher, perceiv- ing that an unusual pensive expression had stole over the beautiful countenance of Agatha, in spite of her utmost efforts to conceal it ; and turning on her a look of impatient enquiry, he added, in his accustomed tone of kindness ; " well, my dear, and how dost thee find thyself, after the visit of these great folks ? — The out- landish lady, as Oily calls her, be a devilish queer one, though, after all ! — Shiver my top-sails, but she's a bouncer! — a seventy-four gun ship under full sail." " But not with flying colours. Sir," cried Agatha, and smiled. ^' Colours !" replied the fisher, " curse me if she would let us see what colour she was made of, — whe- ther black, brown, or fair ! if ever I saw the like of her in all my born days !' " There is certainly something very mysterious in her appearance," answered Agatha, " and, notwith- standing she is so robust and large in stature, evi- dently appears to be under the influence of great indisposition." " But it was very comical that she did not speak all the while she was sitting here," cried Olive ; " nor yet let us see one glimpse of her face^ which I dare say is THE COTTAGE ON THE CMFF. 311 no great matters, for 1 saw her foot and part of her ieg, as Lord Montague helped her into (he carriag-e, and, my gracious ! — what a size ! she has a leg almost as large as father's, though not quite so clumsy !" It was morally impossible to resist laughing at Olive's blunt and curious observation, and the fisher indulged himself heartily with ^involuntary peals, at the outlandish lady's €xpence ; at length, growing more serious, he suddenly enquired of Agatha why she appeared so agitated when she signed her name to the paper. " Do you know, my dear," uttered he, " that I quite felt for you ? and could not tell what the dickens there was in it to frighten you so; for first you turned white, and then you turned red, and then you shi- vered, and my lord, he looked at you, and my lady, she looked at you, and I stood gaping at you like a stuck pig !" " I will tell you, my dear Sir," answered Agatha, " after which you will not wonder at my feeling a little suddenly surprised by an incident so strange, and which, I own, is somewhat mysterious to me even at the present moment : — there was the name of Ellen JLa Roche, which I imagine to be the real name which belongs to this foreign lady." "Certainly there was, my dear," cried the fisher, it was her signature ; " and though the Marchioness calls her a duchess, or belle amie, and all that, curse me if I think she is a duchess, or a belle amie, any more than I am. Well, my dear, you saw this name of Ellen, what-d'ye-call-it, on the paper." "Yes, Sir," answered Agatha, " Ellen La Roche, and I can scarcely forget it, when I inform you by S12 THE COTTAGK ON THE CLIFF. what means I first became acquainted with the sound and the virtues of this extraordinary name, so famrliar to my ears during my long abode in the convent of the Holy Sisters ; since there is not only a chapel de- dicated to the name of Ellen La Roche in this holy sanctuary, but an image of her placed there, to com- memorate her spotless memory, which is, indeed, beautiful beyond description ; and a grand mass is performed on particular days, for the repose of the martyred Ellen La Roche, who has been deceased for nearly half a century." "Shiver my top-sails! — and not quiet yet!" cried the fisher, and smiled incredulously, while Agatha re- sumed the thread of her story. " To account for the superstition of other countries. Sir," added she, " we must look back to the history of former times, before we condemn them : I can only say, that the name of this Ellen La Roche was so be- loved, and so universally held sacred by the holy sis- terhood, that T could not resist my impatient curiosity to be informed of her history, and why a chapel should be dedicated to her memory ; and the Abbess related it to me in the following manner : — " ' She was the daughter of a Danish corsair, who had acquired an immensity of riches by his dangerous and nefarious profession ; a sordid, mercenary, and cruel monster, who, for the sake of his blood-thirsty avarice, would have sacrificed the peace and honour of his only child, and trampled on all laws, both hu- man and divine. " ' The uncommon beauty of Ellen La Roche had captivated many a Danish youth, but to one only was her heart inclined, — to him she pledged her virgin THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 313 faitli : ho was wealthy, and the corsair promised that Ellen should be Atalbi's bride. But, scarce was the day appointed for their espousals, when suddenly the corsair changed his mind. " ' In vain did the unfortunate lovers plead to know the cause, — he was stern, obdurate, and inflexible ; and placed Ellen within the walls of this convent, in order that slie might behold Atalba no more. In a few days the reasons of the cruel father became ob- vious, for he had sold his child to a wealthy jew, — miserably old and decrepid " ' Ellen was dragged forth from the walls of the cloister, and arrayed in rich and bridal ornaments, for the nuptial ceremony : she murmured not, and her bosom scarcely heaved a sigh, when the corsair pointed to the old decrepid jew as the husband of his choice. " ' Pale was the cheek of Ellen La Roche, — but her eye was uplifted to Heaven, and she moved with steady pace towards the altar : already was the priest waiting to join their hands ; — the decrepid jew extended his to clasp that of his lovely bride. " ' Begin,' uttered the corsair. " ' 'Tis finished !' emphatically pronounced Ellen ; * I am the bride of Heaven !' and heroically taking a dagger from beneath her snowy vest, plunged it in- stantly to her heart, sighed gently, and expired in the arms of the corsair. " ' The miserable wretch repented then, too late, of his cruelty to his martyred child : he lived, ii^deed, but it was only to curse the day by which he was tempted by the demon of insatiate avarice to sacrifice his vir- tuous child, whose lovely remains he solicited to have c. 2 6 314 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFI-. interred in the walls of this convent, to which, as atonement for the crime he had committed, he be- queathed the whole of his immense riches at his de- mise ; and in memory of the beauteous martyred Ellen, the holy sisters erected the magnificent chapel which you now see, and the statue of Ellen, which is placed on the centre of the aisle of the cloisters, marks the spot, beneath which her now mouldering ashes are deposited ; twice in the week a grand mass is per- formed there, and, during the solemn ceremony, many a heart heaves with a sigh, and many an eye glistens with a tear, over the untimely fate of Ellen La Roche!' " ' And what became of the unfortunate youth, who was destined to bewail the loss of her whom he so passionately adored !' demanded I. "'It is extraordinarv.' uttered the abbess, ^that Atalba was never afterwards seen or heard of, since the fatal day that terminated the existence of his adored Ellen La Hoche, and strange conjectures were surmised with his so sudden disappearance from Den- mark, and strong suspicion fell on the corsair ; but being urged to confessiou on his death-bed, he most solemnly declared, in his last will and testament, that he knew not aught of the flight of Atalba, nor ever had beheld him since he had been separated from his beauteous child. It was imagined, that the frantic and despairing youth had plunged himself into the bosom of the lake, and had never rose again.' "In these words, my dear Sir, the abbess concluded .he history of Ellen La Roche," continued Agatha ; "imagine, then, my surprise and astonishment, when this name met my eye in the signature signed on the Tllli COTTAGE ON TlIK CLIFI-. S]5 paper, as beint»' that of the foreign lady. Names are certainly not confined to any particular objects, but I own that it is an incident which strikes nie as being* soniethino" singular. This lady being- of such exalted rank, can never be a descendant of the family of the corsair; and the distance of time too, is so great, that it is scarcely probable to form an idea so wild and erro- neous, as to suppose that she should have any connec- tion with a personage of so nefarious a character as La Roche, and it was well known in Denmark that at the time he lived, he had but one child, and that was the martyred Ellen, whom we are pretty certain is no longer an inhabitant in earth's abode : how often have I lingered in the chapel, after mass has been over, to contemplate her lovely statue, and lamented her un- timely fate !" "My gracious, Miss Singleton!" exclaimed Olive, who had listened very attentively to the recital of the story so sweetly and so expressively told by Agatha ; " and was you never afraid of seeing the ghost of poor Ellen ? I have no doubt of her haunting the chapel every evening after dark, with the dagger in her hand that she killed herself with : I declare, the very thought of it makes me tremble !" " Makes you a fiddlestick's-end, you silly wench, you !" cried the fisher, who certainly seemed struck with this affecting account of Ellen La Roche, while he bestowed a hearty execration on the barbarity of the cruel corsair ; acknowledging that he did not wonder at the emotion which Agatha had so involun- tarily betrayed at the signature of a name, which had so affecting a circumstance to recal it to her memory, and which 1 no more believe to be the name of that queer woman, than it is mine," added the fisher. 316 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. "Why then. Sir, did she give it as her signature?" enquired Agatha. " Oh, curse me, my dear^ if I can tell !" replied the fisher, " there is always something in great folks that one can never get to the bottom of, try which way you will ; but as for Ellen La Roche being her real name, shiver my top-sails, if I believe a word of it, so there is an end of the business ; but what does it matter ? you have got a good tenant for the Cottage, who will pay you an excellent rent for the term of two years, on the strength of which we will go home and drink her health in a bumper." Agatha declared she was perfectly satisfied with the arrangements which had been made respecting the Cottage, and that she was ready to accompany him to Herring Dale whenever he pleased. It was now agreed that Shelty should remain in the Cottage till the lady sent someof her domestics to take possession of the premises, as proposed by the Marchioness when they went away, and to whom the keys would be immediately delivered. Olive was exceedingly anxious to call on her friend Miss Mury, the milliner, to arrange materials for the new bonnet, after the manner of Lady Lavi- nia's ; but there was no time, and was, therefore, obliged to postpone this important affair till a more convenient opportunity. On their vtay home she was particularly solicitous, however, to know what were the sentiments of Agatha, of the person and conver- sation of Lord Montague Montault, and of the Mar- chioness herself. " She is certainly a fine woman," cried Agatha, " but I do not think her ladyship remarkably handsome, or ■yet remarkably pleasing ; her manner is often repel- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 317 lent and unnecessarily sarcastic, from being too con- scious of her exalted station, she imagines all who are not so, considerably beneath her ; but her ladyship forgets, while she does so, that she loses the respect which is due to exalted rank, for that never shines with such lustre as when it condescends to bestow its smiles upon its inferiors." " Well, but what do you think of Lord Montague ?" cried Olive, with arch and impatient curiosity ; " I hope you wont pretend to say. Miss Singleton, that he is not handsome, because, if you do, there's nobody will believe you." " I really am no judge, Olive, and therefore will not pretend to say any thing at all about it," cried Agatha, with some little hesitation in her manner, and a slight suffusion of colour passing over her intel- ligent countenance, but Olive was by no means satisfied with this reply, and added, — " What, cannot you tell whether you like a person or not, Miss Singleton ? that is very strange !" "Not at all, Olive, if you felt as I do now," cried Agatha. " And how is that ?" enquired the curious Olive. This was certainly a most unfortunate question which Olive put to her blushing companion ; for Agatha blushed deeply, without exactly knowing why she did so, in answering, — " Why, 1 feel that I have seen and known so little of Lord Montague that 1 ought not to give an opinion of him, good, bad, or indifferent, and 1 beg you will not again importune me on the subject." " My gracious. Miss Singleton ! and where is th.' harm of it ?" retorted Olive, " that you need colour 318 THE COTTAGE ON THE CtAFV. up to the eyes about it? he's no match for you, nor me, lo be sure, so you need not be so much alarmed about him ; he wont fall in love with you, 1 will an- swer for it !" " I should be exceedingly sorry if he did," replied Agatha; "for, were that the case, he would certainly bf? disappointed in the expectation of meeting witli any encouragement ; but pray, Olive, cease this silly non- sense on a subject so extremely ridiculous : it is riot likely that the splendid heir of the Marquis of Mon- tault, if he knows himself rightly, would bestow a thought on an object so insignificant as me. Gentle- men of his exalted rank, Olive, have higher views, more suited to the dignified station which they sup- port, and poverty is not the channel to which they di- rect their attentions." There never was a speech more likely to check, and, at the same time, to silence the encreasing imperti- nence of Olive, nor one so humble and humiliating on the part of Agatha, yet it was the only extinguisher she could put on Olive's tongue ; and the fisher, who had tarried behind, in order to give some further instructions before he quitted the Cottage, liaving now overtaken them on the beach, the subject of Lord Montague was finally dropped, to the very great re- lief and satisfaction of Agatha, who soon perceived that the vain and very weak-minded girl would easily have been talked into a supposition that there was a chance of her actually being likely to succeed in cap- tivating the affections even of Lord Montague, in re- peating whose name, Agatha resolved to be particu- larly cautious and delicate, as, should any thing transpire of the myrtle, which she was now fully con- THE COTTAGE ON THE Cl.ilF. 3i9 viticed was his lordship's mysterious gift, she might be brought into some unpleasant dilemma, with respect to her being under the necessity of giving an elucida- tion on so mysterious a part of his lordship's conduct, ill having made her the subject of his poetical effu- sions, the nature of which she herself could not per- fectly understand, never, as she imagined, having be- held Liord Montague but that once at the Cottage on the Cliff. Agatha called to her mind, also, the voice she had so mysteriously heard one night, while sitting in her chamber, beneath her window, but the tones of that voice were not like those of Lord Montague, — she felt convinced that they were not ; and if it was not the voice of Lord Montague, whose else could it be ? — that it was utterly impossible for her to tell ; but it might be possible that Lord Montague might have some connection with it. If her fate, in which it appears he had taken so singular and extraordinary an interest, was really of such consequence to him, as his poetical effusions addressed to her had insinuated, he had adopted a most imprudent and improper method of showing it, and one that was far more likely to expose her to censure and even ridicule, than to gain the ap- probation of her protector; for were the mysterious conduct of his lordship once known to the fisher, he would not only highly disapprove of such overtures of friendship being made to her, but, possibly, in the mo- ment of his displeasure, acquaint the Marchioness with the clandestine proceedings of her son, with an object, over whose actions he felt it was his duty, as her protector, to watch with an anxious and careful eve ; and, in such a case, Lord Montague would in- 320 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. evitably be exposed to the severe reproaches of his jealous mother, and she herself become the object of her ladyship's contempt and aversion, — and for what ? merely because that son had chose to address a parcel of idle and unnecessary compliments to her, under the disguise of a mysterious friend. But Agatha felt too conscious of the respect which she exclusively owed to herself, to lose it for the sake of youthful vanity, or to encourage the overtures of friendship, when under a masked and mysterious disguise ; for Agatha was not of a romantic or amorous turn ; she had been accustomed to receive the worst impressions of man- kind in the convent of the Holy Sisters, and taught to know by her father, that men do not offer friendship to women, without a strong and powerful motive of self-interest being always attached to it; in some shape or other, and it generally ends in professions of a softer but more treacherous kind. Determined, therefore, in concealing the knowledge both of the myrtle and the poetry, which was addressed to her by Lord Montague, from the fisher, and to ap- pear herself unconscious of ever having received it, she desired Claribelle once again to remove the tree into another apartment, as she had no reason to sup- pose that it belonged to her, more than to any other part of the family ; on'which Claribelle uttered an exclamation of involuntary surprise ; for it was pro- bable that the cheeks of her lovely mistress were suf- fused with the brightest vermilion as she gave this peremptory order. " Lord, Miss Agatha !" uttered she, " what can you dislike that beautiful myrtle-tree for ? and, if ft was not intended for you, why was it placed just di- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 321 rectly under your chamber window, with the pretty verses too into the bari»ain, written too, i dare say, by a handsome young man. Well, t n)ust needs own, Miss Agatha, that you are very cruel to slight him so ; but if you will have it so, why, it must be so, and I will carry the pretty myrtle into Miss Olive's cham- ber, where 1 have no doubt but it will soon wither and perish : she has no taste for things of this sort, and it must needs die for want of care." " And why cannot you take care of it in another apartment, as well as in this ?" cried Agatha. " And why cannot it remain here ?" demanded Cla- ribelle, with more displeasure marked in her coun- tenance than she dared to express by her words. " Claribelle," cried Agatha, in a calm and placid tone, though with a look which instantly checked the freedom of her attendant, "you know that I am not accustomed to be so interrogated : I should be unwil- ling to remind you of that duty which you never for- got when I had a father to protect me, and you a kind and indulgent master, which you were always ready to obey, without enquiry into his motives, remember that I will not again have mine called to account by you. I desire you to remove that myrtle-tree out of my chamber : I have urgent reasons for so doing, and if satisfactory to me, they can be of no consequence to you." With these words, Agatha, having put on her usual attire, quitted her chamber to go down stairs to din- ner, well knowing that this hint to Claribelle would answer the desired effect, and that it would not be ne- cessary to repeat her commands. Still, by mere chance, her eyes were directed to the myrtle- tree, as c. 2t 322 THE COTTAGE ON THF CI, IFF. she advanced towards the door, and, as she be- stowed on it a last look, she fancied that her heart reproached her with soiisething like ingratitude to- wards its donor. He had reproached her too, with neglecting", and even despising, this gift of a sincere friend. But what proofs had he given her of his friendship, than merely the presentation of a flower? and friend- ship and love are perishable, thought Agatha, even as the blossom on that tree ; nor will 1 suffer my heart to be caught by the illusion, however flattering and pleasing to the eye. Finding, therefore, that she had done nothing to reproach her conduct w ith, in respect to Lord Mon- tague, she tripped down the stairs with a lighter step even than usual, and on her entrance to the oak par- lour, where the table was spread for dinner, the first object who arose, and respectfully enquired after her health, was Sam Russel, who had been invited to stay to dinner by the fisher, and with whom he was in deep and earnest conversation, when Agatha suddenly broke in upon theui ; previous to which, however, she heard the fisher in answer to something that Sam Russel had addressed to him, distinctly pronounce the following sentence : — " Shiver my top-sails, if I know what to say to thee, lad, in such a ticklish business ! 1 know thee beest as good a lad as ever breathed the breath of life, and thee be as comely and as fresh as a rose, Sam ; but Lord love thee, thee wont do for a husband for Agatha Singleton. Wounds! she will look up to higher than thee, Sam, though she be a poor orphan girl. — Her father was a gentleman, and she be a lady." THE COTTAGE ON THR CLITF. 3^3 Agatha could scarcely give credit to the actual evi- dence of her senses, on hearing these words pro- nounced by the fisher, which must certainly have arisen on a declaration being made by Ham Russel, whose favourable impressions towards her she had long been conscious of, but had ever kept at the most profound distance; feeling indeed but too sensible of what her protector had bluntly observed, that Sam Russel, although certainly a very good young mc^n, was yet no husbuid for Agatha Singleton, and confounded, abashed, and even embarrassed, she would instantly have retreated up stairs again, had not the dinner at that precise moment come upon the table, Jessy and Olive following, the latter having found sufficient employment on her hands since she had returned home, in retailing to Jessy ail the inci- dents that had passed at the Cottage on the Cliff, in which the very particular attentions which Lord Montague had paid her, were not forgotten to be twice or thrice enumerated, "And did he pay no attentions to Miss Singleton ?" enquired Jessy. " My gracious ! — no;" answered Olive, somewhat pettishly ; " have I not told you over and over again, that he did not so much as think it worth his while once to look at her, though she had got on such a beautiful worked muslin robe? — and. Lord, how she coloured ! she was finely mortified in seeing his lordship sit himself down close beside me. and chat away as if we had been old acquaintances; — my gracious ! how 1 enjoyed it!" "Not look once at Agatha Singleton?' repeated Jessy, in the utmost astonishment; "indeed, Olive, 1 can scarcely credit your assertion, for never did 1 see 324 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Agatha look so beautiful ; and if Lord Montague had eyes at all, he must have admired so lovely a creature." " But, mayhap, he had only eyes for somebody else who was sitting close beside him," cried Olive, with an envious sneer ; and mayhap, Miss Jessy, he admired somebody else a great deal better : a pretty thing, in- deed, that nobody is to be thought handsome but Miss Singleton ! but I would have you to know, Miss Jessy, that 1 think myself quite as much of a beauty as she, and, when father dies, I shall have a fortune." " Miss Olive, the dinner is waiting," cried David, popping his head rather unopportunely in at the door. *' Coming this moment," cried Olive, but not making the least advance towards the door ; " so, Miss Jessy, as I was saying, that Agatha Singleton is " "As much your superior without a fortune," ex- claimed Jessy, " as you would be her inferior, Olive, let your fortune be what it will." — And left Olive to follow her into the parlour, as soon as she could suflSi- ciently digest the bitterness of this remark. THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 325 CHAPTER XIX. " Oh, what a weak inconstant world is this! Where every moment savours of despair ; Where sorrow creeps in every cup of bliss, And every joy is sicklied o'er with care. When first we enter life's bewilder'd plain, Each varying" pleasure seems to mark the way ; But ah, how soon the lesson do we gain ; And curse the short experience of a day !'' During dinner, very little conversation was kept up by the parties, for not one of them appeared to be in their usual temperature of disposition. Poor Sam Russel, in consequence of the disclosure he had made of his passion for Agatha Singleton, and the little en- couragement he had met with from the fisher to ima- gine that his addresses would ever be favourably re- ceived by the lovely object of his affections, looked the very image of despair ; while Agatha, knowing herself to be the cause of it, and feeling deeply hurt, as well as deeply mortified, at Sam Russel conceiving that she was a proper or an equal object for liim to offer any overtures of a tender kind, was more re- served than t^ver in her manners towards him, though neither scornful, or affecting a consequence that did not belong to her. Olive, ^oo, pouted, and was sullen, 326 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. because her sister Jessy had put her out of humour by making comparisons between her and Miss Sin- gleton ; and Jessy herself was out of spirits, because she perceived that those of her lovely friend were tem- pered with more sadness than usual ; and, no stranger to the partiality that Sam Russel had for Agatha, actually imagined that he had been disclosing it to her, and that he had met not only with a severe repulse from Miss Singleton, but a reproof from her father ; for the fisher did not look pleased, though he invited Sam very freely to partake of the repast which was set before him. " Why don't you eat, Sam ?" exclaimed he ; " but, mayhap, you cannot; shiver my top-sails ! what is the use of being down-hearted, man ? why don't you talk a bit to the girls, and see if they won't raise your spirits ? though, there's Oily looking as black as a thunder-storm after a gale of wind, and Jess don't seem to be quite in sorts to-day ; and my dear little Agatha Singleton, she is a bit rummish too ; so, what between the one and the other, you and I, Sam, will get on the lee-shore, if we don't look out for squalls : shall us get groggy, or what ?-— and leave the lasses by themselves, till they get into a better humour. Jess, go and tell Davy to set the old round oak table in t'other parlour, and a bottle of brandy, and plenty of pipes and tobacco ; and let you and I, Sam, sheer off, till we can find pleasanter weather, and smiling faces." " I am willing to do whatever you please. Sir," ut- tered Sam, in a very desponding tone ; " I own I am somewhat flat to-day, and that is the truth of it." " Flat as a flounder !" cried the fisher, and laughed. " But I am by no means willing to make others so,'* e THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. S!S7 rejoined Sam, " by intrudins; my company where it is not agreeable," added he, giving a side-ghxnce towards Agatha, with increased spirit, while she blushingly cast her eyes down in silence, hardly knowing what to say, and not wishing to say any thing- at all, if she could possibly avoid it. But Olive, imagining that Sam had directed this speech entirely to her, conscious of the ill-humour she had betrayed during the whole time she had sat at dinner, and tired of having nobody to talk to, burst into an immoderate fit of laughter, while she ex- claimed, — "Well, Sam, you need not show your airs olt to me ; tis not I alone that am to blame for not conver- sing with you, and if your company is not agreeable to me, it don't seem to be any more so with other folks ; but Miss Jessy always finds a hole to creep out at, and so does some other people, who shall be name- less." Agatha now coloured deeply, and, perhaps, feeling that, in this particular instance, she had certainly been equally blameable as Olive ; for she had scarcely ad- dressed a word to Sam Russel, though he had several times made an effort to enter into conversation with her, mildly answered, — " But 1 have a name, Olive, and will willingly an- swer to any charge which is made against it, if, in- deed, I am really in fault with respect to my not con- versing so freely as 1 was wont to do with one of your father's guests, to whom it is my duty to pay every proper and prudent attention, and my not doing so is neither because 1 dislike his company, or wish to ima- gine that mine has any particular attraction for him. S'^8 THE COTTAGE ON THE CI.IFF, I would not willingly oft'end any one, much less one whom I behold under the roof of my protector ; but I have really this morning- been strangely fluttered with one thing or another at the Cottage on the Cliff. 1 am unaccustomed to the sight of strangers, much less to the transaction of matters of business with them ; and, however ridiculous it may seem, as 1 dare say it is so, it has totally unhinged my spirits for further conversation. 1 think this apology necessary, in some measure, to explain the nature of my present feelings, when they are not sufficiently understood or misinter- preted by others ; and I hope it is not requisite to offer any more on this occasion to Mr. Russel, if he ima- gines that 1 would willingly show him any neglect." The manner and the tone of voice in which this was uttered, would have disarmed anger in the fiercest breast ; how, then, did it operate on the feelings of one, naturally open-hearted and benevolent, and ac- tually adoring the object by whom it was spoken, and, while the ill-natured Olive looked perfectly abashed and confounded by the modest and frank ingenuous- ness of the charming speaker, Sam Russel rapturously exclaimed, and vainly cherishing a hope that his ad- dresses would, when known, not be utterly rejected by so sweet, kind, and generous a creature : " Offend me. Miss Singleton ! I am sure you cannot do that very easily ; unless I was certain that I was the object of your hatred and aversion, for to be despised by such a young lady as you, 1 should think the greatest misfortune that could ever happen to me." " Shiver my top-sails !" cried the fisher, " and 1 do believe, Sam, that be the truest word thee ever spoke in all thy born days ! thee be an honest heart of oak ; THE COTTAGE ON THE CI.IFF. 3^9 SO bear away, my lad, and let hope bo thy sheet an- chor." " The pipes and tobacco are all ready, Sir, and 1 have put the bottle of brandy on the oak table in tlie little parlour," cried David, whose appearance at this moment was the most seasonable relief to Agatha that she ever experienced, for it was too apparent in what li<^ht the sentiments of Sam llussel towards her would be henceforth received by the fisher and his family, and it was also as apparent, that the declara- tion he had made of his regard for her to her protector was not by any means unpleasing to him, and that he would probably find in him an advocate to plead in his behalf; but this Agatha determined she would reso- lutely oppose, and only waited for an opportunity of decidedly rejecting all overtures of this kind from Sam Russel, whenever they were decidedly proposed to her, for he was certainly no object of attention to her, though she was unfortunately so to him, yet that was no reason why she should be compelled to accept of his addresses : her obligations to her protector Avere un- doubtedly great, and she would ever gratefully ac- knowledge them, as far as the ties of gratitude bound her ; but over her affections he had no control, and, in the disposal of her hand, no authority. Had her dear father been living, he would have left her wholly free in this respect, neither would such an ob- ject as Sam Russel have been selected by her father as the husband of his choice for her. There were certainly traits of an uncommon good disposition in the young- man, and his person was by no means the objection- able part of him ; but was he in mind, in education, or in taste and sentiment, correspondent w ith her own ? c 2u 550 THL COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. could she look up to such a man for the dear partner of her heart, and feel proud of the conquest she had made orer his affections : No. she could not : besides, there were some comparisons, unhappily drawn by Agatha at this moment of serious reflection, not much in favour of the young; fisher: for she had that morn- ing seen Lord Montague, with whose personal graces, and elesant manliness of figure and deportment, and that of the voun^ fisher's, certainly no comparison could be made but one. considerably preponderating to the disadvantage of honest Samuel. But Agatha did not know how it happened, that, at this very pre- cise moment, Lord Montague should come into her head, and was extremely ansrrv at askins: herself that question : for what were the attractions of Lord Montague Montault to her ? Ah, what a puzzling and tormenting question ! and teeling that it was so. it brought deeper tints of the rose on the face and bosom of our lovely heroine, than she was at all conscious the name of Lord INIon- tague had the power of impressing there : he was no- thing to her. — and what was the vouns; fisher : — whv, nothing to yet she felt no blush burn upon her cheek, and gently infuse itself into her bosom, in re- peating the name of Sam. He might be a fine young fellow, but she had never caught her eyes once glan- cing at the expression of his countenance, and actually did not know whether Sam Russel's eyes were black, or blue, or brown, or gray : but what eyes had Lord Montague Montault : why. they were certainly blue, and of the brightest blue, for they had beamed on her with an expression of a peculiar kind, so she was po- sitively certain that his eyes were blue, and not black ; THE COTTAGE OS THE CLIFF. 331 —but wiiat were his eyes to her? Ah. my gentle he- roine ! another, and a deeper blush, in again asking yourself such a question : you had better not be so inquisitive, lest you provoke a little blind boy. to give thee an answer that may puzzle thee. Be quiet, my pretty Agatha, while 1 proceed to matters of more importance than the eyes of Lord ]\[onta^ue. No sooner had the fisher and Sam made their exit into the little parlour, to regale over a pipe of tobacco, and the young ladies were left to them- selves, than the following conversation immediately took place between them, began on the part of the curious Olive, who, suspecting the real cause of poor Sam's evident dejection of spirits by the speech which he had addressed to Agatha, was exceedingly anxious to know whether it was likely that he would ever be a favoured lover, and, without considering a moment on the indelicacy or impropriety of interrogating Aga- tha on such a subject, exclaimed, — "So, the cat is out of the bag, now, sister Jessy: I always told you what Sam Russel came so often for to Herring Dale, whether he was invited or not ; it was not for your company or mine, Jessy, it was for the pleasure of seeing you, Miss Singleton, whom, it is plain enough, he wants to marry : will you have him. Miss Singleton : he is a very good young man, and has got a good bit of money : and folks say, when his old grandmother dies, that he will have a great deal more : you had better have him, — vou wont have such an offer again." Agatha, for a few moments, chose to remain indig- nantly silent to so rude and insolent an observation ; 332 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. but Jessy, highly provoked with her sister's imperti- nence to an object every way her superior, resentfully replied, — " I much wonder, Olive, that you are not ashamed of such a want of decency and good manners to Miss Singleton, who, though she is kind enough not to re- taliate on you for such conduct, cannot but feel herself deeply hurt at your behaviour." " Dear Jessy, you are yourself too much concerned at what I actually would not give myself the smallest trouble to resent," cried Agatha, with considerable warmth and spirit ; " there is nothing that Miss Blust chooses to sav that can occasion me the slightest unea- siness, and I am never deeply hurt at any thing she utters ; she may try to shoot her arrows, but she will always miss her aim, in supposing that they will ever wound my heart, much less rankle there ; she amuses me, indeed, but she can never provoke me to anger : I am above such paltry, such insignificant remarks." " I know you are, my dear and amiable friend," cried Jessy, hardly able to suppress her tears, on the recollection of how much rudeness she had patiently endured from Olive on various occasions ; " yet, still 1 lament that any relative of jnine should so far forget themselves." Olive, now affecting the utmost surprise that she could have uttered any thing half so offensive to the feelings of Miss Singleton as Jessy had so severely taxed her with, exclaimed, — " My gracious, Jessy ! what a piece of work you are making about what I said to Miss Singleton only out of a bit of fun ! 1 protest I only meant to make THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 333 g;anie of Sam, and to give Miss Singleton some good advice, that was all I am sure, and if she is angry about it, 1 cannot help it." " I thought 1 had told you that it was not in your power to make me angry, and why will you urge me to repeat it to you, Olive, that you cannot do so from any observations you have made on Mr. Samuel Rus- sel, and, as to any advice you may think it necessary to give me, pray reserve it, my dear girl, for yourself, — you will have plenty of occasion for it hereafter ; — be not so liberal of it at the present moment, nor fool- ishly waste it on one who does not require your assist- ance ; for, if I mistake not, Olive, you will one day sadly stand in need of advice from the lips of real and undisguised friendship : Heaven grant you may not at the same moment stand in need of protection ! There are false lovers, as well as false friends, — of both be- ware ; and think, if you can reflect at all, of the warning given you now by the despised Agatha Sin- gleton !" The face and neck of Olive were both coloured with the deepest crimson ; she could not be insensible to where the allusion pointed in this warning, so affect- ingly given her by Agatha Singleton, and she had some consciousness about her that her cousin Craftly's conduct had not of late been quite so honourable or sincere, as from his professions of impassioned fond- ness she had expected ; yet the vanity, and, alas ! the weakness of this too credulous girl was easily re- conciled to this seeming want of sincerity in her lover, by the fond idea that she was the only woman in the world whom he passionately adored, and that he con- sidered her the most beautiful of her sex, — and was not this sufficient, oh! more than sufficient, to atone for 334 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. the little omissions thatLeontine had lately been guilty of towards her ? and would he not shortly return from the herring fishery, and breathe anew his professions of ardent love and adoration in her ear; and was not the voice of Leontine sweeter and more melodious than the music of the spheres ? and, perhaps, Leontine would lay all his fortune at her feet, and marry her ! — per- haps ? there was no perhaps in the case, for he had told her that he would, — and who could doubt so sweet, so fond, so passionate a lover ? In short, the silly Olive had so many reasons to adduce for Leon- tine being faithful and honourable towards her, when he came back from the herring fishery, that the warn- ing just given her by Agatha Singleton rested as lightly on her mind as the dew on opening flowers when the leaves are shaken ; and the deep crimson blush which had at first betrayed her consciousness that Leontine might prove unworthy of her afi^ections, notwithstanding all his violent declarations of regard and fondness, quickly faded from her countenance, which she artfully contrived to dress in smiles ; by no means willing to let her sister Jessy see that the warning given by Agatha so impressively, was either dreaded by her, or a subject she thought of the slight- est consequence : with affected playfulness, therefore, she exclaimed, — " Lord ! I am sure I have no lovers that 1 need be afraid of. Miss Singleton, so you have no occasion to alarm yourself on my account ; I am not such a fool as you and my sister Jessy take me for, I assure you ; I know when a man means fairly and honourably by me, as well as most folks, though they pretend to be so wise and so cunning." " To be cunning, Olive, is do proof of wisdom," an* THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 335 swered Agatha, smiling, " but I have sometimes heard of cunning- tools, too wise even for themselves : but a truce to arguments so futile. Since you will not un- derstand me, you must use your own discretion to guide you through the mazes of a labyrinth, from which may you ever escape from the dangers of your own credulity and inexperience ! Let us, then, no longer converse on a subject so unpleasing." " Aye, do let us talk of something else, pray. Miss Singleton," cried Olive, " for 1 protest, Jessy's long face, and your grave conversation, has somehow or other made me serious ; and I hate any thing that is serious ; now, I was thinking, that while father and Sam Russel are settling the affairs of the nation over their pipes and tobacco, how nicely we might just step over to Margaret Craftly, and take a dish of tea with her ; — Have you any objection. Miss Singleton ? ' Agatha, whose beautiful countenance had resumed its natural soft and celestial expression, without re- taining an atom of resentment against Olive, now re- plied with the most good-humoured sweetness, — " Not in the least, Olive, provided it is agreeable to Jessy, and your father is apprised of our intentions; but certainly 1 would not choose to go there without his permission." "Lord, Miss Singleton!" cried Olive, laughing, " what signifies as-king father, who will be three hours or more over his pipe and tobacco, and would be quite angry if any one was to go and disturb hint from it : cannot you go outside the door without his knowing of it?" " No, Olive, 1 don't think it at all proper, that any of ub should be where he does not know," answerec 336 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Agatha, with grave and serious expression ; a father has a right to know in what company his children are at all times." "Lord, how formal and precise!" cried Olive; " but, since you choose to be so very particular, Miss Singleton, had you not better go and tell him your- self, that we are going over to Margaret Craftly's ? for I don't intend to take that trouble, I promise you ; I never think of asking father where I choose to go, whenever 1 have a mind, — do I, Jessy ? besides, poor Sam will be so happy to obtain a sight of you, if it be only for a moment, — he will be ready to jump out of his skin." "Then I certainly do not intend to procure him that gratification, you saucy girl," cried Agatha, play- fully, "and must choose Jessy for my ambassadress on this occasion. Jessy, ray darling, will you go and tell your father that we are going to Miss Craftly's ? and I will go and get my bonnet and shawl." " And so will I," exclaimed Olive ; " and Jess, 1 will bring down yours, — shall I, darling ?" There was a peculiar expression of irony, half jest, half earnest, that hung upon Olive's lip, as she be- stowed this last epithet upon her sister, who had flown on the instant to obey Agatha's command, and Jessy did not hear it ; but it was far from being no- ticed by our lovely heroine, who rather pitied than condemned the uncomfortable feelings that must lodge in a bosom so prone to jealousy and envy as was that of Olive Blust, and excited against so gentle and unoffending a being as the mild and sweet Jessy ; and Agatha felt rejoiced that the sarcastic tone in whirh her sister had spoken to her, had not reached THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 337 tlie ear of this affectionate girl, who returned in less* than ten minutes from the mission which she had un- dertaken, exchiiming-, — " Dear Miss Singleton ! I have succeeded, — father will let us go to our kinswoman's to tea, but has laid positive commands on us to return home to supper ; he says he leaves it all to you, dearest Agatha, for he knows that you would not willingly depart from his requests." "Lord, do put on your bonnet and scarf, Jessy!" cried Olive, who was impatient to be gone ; " and don't keep Miss Singleton and 1 waiting- here all night, to hear all the ridiculous nonsense of what father says, just as if we were not old enough to take care of ourselves." And away Olive scampered, leaving her sister and Agatha to follow her when they pleased ; and our he- roine, taking the arm of Jessy, began to overtake her at the declivity of the hill, which was yet at a consider- able distance from the habitation of Margaret Craftly ; and Olive not being in hearing, Jessy addressed the following sentence, in a low and tremulous voice, to her companion : — " How impatient is Olive to get to Margaret's this evening! do you not observe her exceeding anxiety, my dear Miss Singleton ?" to which Agatha replied, in as low a whisper, — " I do, Jessy, and I fear she has other motives than merely the seeing Margaret, in going there this even- ing." "Yet Leontine is not returned from the fishery, at least, I have not heard of his arrival from Sam, with whom he is so intimately acquainted," cried Jessy ; c. 2 X SS8 THK COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " There was a time when I was accustomed to watch this period with the most unceasing anxiety, and to hail it as the welcome harbinger of joy, peace, and happiness." " Be thankful that this period is past, and that you no longer hail it with rapture or delight !" exclaimed Agatha, in the most energetic tone, and gently pres- sing the hand that was linked within her own. " I do, I am thankful," uttered Jessy ; " do not ima- gine that I am so weak as to regret it, or wish that period to return again to Jessy." " Heaven forbid that it were so, my dear girl," cried Agatha, "and already do I fear the apostacy of that licentious being, Craftly, to your sister, as well as to yourself. Imprudent Olive ! how speedily will she repent of having bestowed her affections on a liber- tine, who never yet was true or faithful to mortal woman. Leontine is false to her, believe me, Jessy, as he has been to you. The heart of a libertine knows not what it is to love. How can that man love one woman, who seeks to betray all ! Impossible, my dear girl ; he may talk of love indeed, but his heart has never glowed with half so pure and tender a pas- sion, for his passions resemble those of a demon, cal- culated only to destroy the happiness of the being who looks up to him for protection : surely, surely Olive will be convinced in time of the deception of Craftly, whom I strongly suspect is even now forming some stratagem for obtaining a clandestine correspondence with her, through the medium of some unknown and mysterious visitor at Herring Dale." — And Agatha for the first time imparted to Jessy the incident she had met with one night at her chamber-window : — " Since THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIIF. 339 whichj Jessy," added Agatha,"! have always sus- pected that Leontine daftly has some secret intelli- gence of whatever is passing beneath your father's roof. The voice was indeed familiar to my ear, but •t was not the voice of your kinsman, Craftly, nor that of Russell." " But it might be the voice of the invisible poet who presented you with the myrtle-tree, dear Agatha," said Jessy, with a smile. " Oh, no, I am very sure that it was not him," cned Agatha, blushing deeply at Jessy's observation. " Why, do you know who it was that gave you that myrtle-tree ?" enquired Jessy artlessly. To which Agatha with modest hesitation replied, " I will not say that I do not, because I do not see the necessity of concealing this circumstance from one in whose breast I can place the most implicit confi- dence. It was by mere accident, Jessy, that I disco- rered the giver of that myrtle to be — Lord Montague." " Lord Montague," repeated Jessy, with astonish- ment, " how you suprise me, dearest Agatha, and yet you never beheld Lord Montague but once, — this morning at the Cottage on the Cliff." " Never, to my recollection," answered Agatha ; " but it is very evident that he has seen me some- where." " And seeing you, Agatha, it was not easy to forget you," uttered Jessy, with somewhat of an arch smile, which could not be mistaken by her lovely friend. But what was Jessy's surprise, when she answered her in the following manner : " Not another sentence of Lord Montague, if you love me, Je^sy ; never to me again let the name of 340 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. Lord Montague escape your lips : Jessy, I have the most urgent reasons for repeating this request." To which Jessy almost immediately replied, (ob- serving with still greater astonishment the deep ex- pression of serious concern which was imprinted on every feature of Agatha,) — " And if you had not urgent reasons for repeating this request, dearest Miss Singleton, do not imagine that I would be so un- guarded, so ungrateful, as to mention it to a living soul ; every word you utter to me is sacred as holy records from above." " 1 believe it, dear Jessy," cried Agatha, " and will converse with you more freely on this subject at a fitter opportunity ; at present, there is danger of be- ing overheard, at least by Olive, who is now coming towards us." Olive now approached them within a very few steps, and seemed panting for breath ; at length, having re- covered, she exclaimed, — " Have you seen the old gypsy woman, with a red cloak and a grey beard, that was gathering up cockles just now on the sands. I protest 1 would have had my fortune told, only I was so much frightened at her ap- pearance, for she looked more like an old hermit than a woman, though she had red petticoats on." "We have seen nothing of her as yet," cried Aga- tha, "but surely, Olive, you would not be so ridicu- lous as to be iaiposed on by such creatures, or seek to search for mysteries which they have no power to unfold." " Oh ! but I am sure they have, though," cried Olive, " for 1 have had my fortune told by a gypsy before now, and every word came true ; did it not, Jessy ?" THE COTTAGi: ON THE CLIFF. 341 "Yes, when you told her what to say," said Jessy, laughing; "it was not likely she would miss her mark." " Well, I protest I wish the old woman would over- take us before we get to Margaret's," cried Olive, " she should tell my fortune immediately : I should like to know v/hether" — Olive, now colouring deeply, thought proper to make a full stop ; but her meaning was perfectly un- derstood : and they were proceeding at a very rapid pace towards the habitation of Margaret Craftly, when Olive happening to look behind her in the same direction where she had seen the old gypsy, suddenly exclaimed, — Oh, my gracious ! look, Jessy ; look, Miss Single- ton ; there is the old woman trotting behiiid us, with her basket and her staff. Let us stop, and see if she Avill say any thing to us.^ " Nonsense, Olive ! it is exceedingly improper," cried Agatha ; " what can you suppose she will have to say to us, except imposing a parcel of idle tales upon us, in order to draw some money from us." " Well, and where is the harm of giving the poor old woman a few pence," rejoined Olive. " There is certainly no harm attached to that part of the business, if you wish it," cried Agatha, " and I have no objection to give the old woman my mite too into the bargain, but not on the score of her having any knowledge of the mystic art." By this time the old woman, (certainly a gypsy in her appearance, and one ©f the most extraordinary stature,) had come close up to them, and surveyed them with no very pleasing aspect ; which indeed Olive, 342 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. who clung fast to Agatha's arm, partly from fear, and partly from anxiety to address her in the following terms '. — - " Good-day to you mother !" — on which the old woman, scowling from beneath a pair of large grey and bushy eyebrows, uttered in a surly tone, — " Mother to ?/ou, daughter ! I am no mother, thank the Fates — you maj/ he— will be,— there's naught on earth will prevent it." Olive now suddenly quitted the arm of her lovely protectress, and springing to the side of the old gypsy, eagerly demanded to know if she would tell her for- tune : " and here's money for you," cried the impatient Olive, flinging into her basket of cockles some silver, which the old woman deliberately took out again and returned with scorn, while she uttered the following sentence in the most discordant tones, — "Money!" exclaimed she, "and think'st thou I deal in money, that pander to knaves and fools ; that demon's curse, to tempt the wicked to betray the inno- cent ; that devil which rides uppermost in man's insa- tiate heart, nor rests till the hand of death has shut it out. Money ! no, daughter, I will have naught to do with money." " What shall I give thee, then, mother, to tell me my fortune ?" cried Olive, yet more impatiently than before ; while Agatha, struck by her extraordinary ap- pearance as well as by the singularity of her manner and language, was observing h^r with the most pro- found attention : when she replied in a more softened accent, — " Thou can'st not give me what I want, child ;— poor chick, thou dost not know what is good for thy- Tlin COTTAGK ON THE CT-IFF. S4S Keif, or thou vvouldst not seek to know thy fortune. Wait till it comes; it wont tarry long, I promise thee; 'tis in the web of time, and time is on the wing. Art thou satisfied ?" "My gracious!" cried Olive, laughing, " what have you said to satisfy me, I should be glad to know ?" " Enough, if thou art wise," cried the old woman, with a horrible grin ; and Agatha now began to be seriously alarmed that they had encountered a ma- niac or something worse, from the rganner of so strange and singular a being, and entreated Olive to let her alone, if she did not wish to accept of any tri- lling presents from them, and to proceed on their walk. But Olive, ever perverse and contradictory, persisted in tormenting the old gypsy with asking a variety of questions, till, highly provoked, and out of all patience with the silly and weak-minded girl, Aga- tha exclaimed, — " Olive ! why will you persist in such ridiculous be- haviour, at the same time that you annoy this good old woman with questions, which, if she did know, she is too wise to answer ? Come, let us begone to your cou- sin Marg-aret's before the shades of evening come on ; see, the sun is setting fast." In a moment the old woman fixed her eyes full on the face of Agatha, but she no longer looked with a scowling aspect; and, softening her voice to a tone of peculiar sadness, she sighed deeply while she mur- mured forth, — " Beauteous maiden, may the sun that lights the youthful spring of thy happiness never set in sadness, as it dawned on thy infant birth ! Alas, sweet maid ! in the fairest flowers too oft we see the canker-worm 314 THE COTTAGE ON THE OLTFF. invade the blossom 'ere the fruit be blown ! — yet will the guardian of thy innocence and virtue avert a rep- tile's curse ! An angel's prayers shall save thee, love- liest, from the hand of harm!" — Surprise, and astonish- ment not unmixed with fear, now assailed the feelings of the wonder-struck Agatha, on hearing the old gypsy pronounce such mysterious words, which were accompanied with so much energy and peculiarity of manner towards her alone : How could she tell what misery had pawned on her infant birth, or what hap- piness might yet be in store for her ? and, though slie could not treat the subject with youthful levity, she was very far from believing that the old gypsy had, or could have, any prescience of her future destiny, or could avert the evils of her fate. Agatha had been taught by her father never to imbibe principles of a superstitious nature, or that inclined to the least co- louring of doubt of the unerring power of one Su- preme Being alone mighty and infinite, but absolute and unchangeable in his dispensations to the creatures formed by his own hand, the destination of whom be- longs, and is known only to Himself: it cannot be a prescience given to mortals, who, like ourselves, are formed only out of the self-same clay, and do not know the peculiar misery or happiness of their own fate How, then, can they tell it toothers ? it would puzzle the wisest philosopher, we believe, to answer this question. But to proceed : — Agatha did not precisely tell the old woman that she knew as little of her future des- tiny as she did of her own, but smilingly thanked her for the favourable presage she had augured of her fate, and besought her to accept of some trifle which she might have about her, in token of her gratitude. i-^y i/cueff/iAai^r y^v/wz/yyv/// /////- ////"/ ////r/ -M tllE COTTAGE ON THE CLII-'F. 343 *' And wilt thou give me what I shall ask of thee, maiden ?" cried the old jjypsy, with a sudden transi- tion from sadness to the most brisk and vivacious hu- mour; which made Agatha again resume her former opinion, that the old woman's intellects were certainly deranged, and she answered with great timidity, — " I will certainly not refuse you, if it be in my power." " Give me that sprig of myrtle which now decorates thy lovely bosom," uttered the old woman ; " and it will be far more precious to me than rubies or dia- monds." " You are jesting now,'^ cried Agatha, deeply blush- ing, and not endeavouring to make any advances to- wards removing the myrtle from her snowy breast. " I am serious, maiden," cried the old woman; " I am not used to jest, — give me that myrtle, or, refusing it, you will have wormwood planted in that breast of snow ; take your choice 'ere you bid me farewell." " Dearest Agatha," cried the trembling Jessy, " give her the myrtle, and let her begone." " For God's sake. Miss Singleton, give the old wretch the myrtle!" whispered Olive, who had adopted a similar idea with Agatha, that the old gypsy was crazy, " for I begin to be terribly afraid of her; we shall certainly be bewitched by her before we get to Margaret's." Thus compelled by necessity alone, and the fears of both Jessy and Olive, Agatha drew from her beau- teous bosom the gift of Lord Montague Montault, and unwillingly placing it in the hands of the old wo- man, exclaimed, — "Since you require so trifling a favour, and will c. 2y 346 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. take no other, receive it, though I would you had not taken a fancy to that in particular." " And if so trifling, why dost thou prize it, maiden?" enquired the gypsy. " I did not tell you that I prized it," retorted Agatha, with a brighter tint glowing on her lovely cheek. " Then why do you feel regret at parting with it?" quickly answered she. Agatha was silent : she averted her head from the piercing glance of the old woman, who, casting on her a look of almost undefinable expression, pronounced the following words : — " Before the leaves of this myrtle wither we shall meet again ;" and darting into the deep embowering shades that were before her, in- stantaneously disappeared from their view, leaving Agatha and the two sisters with no other impression on their minds, than of the old woman being insane ; and they lost not a moment, with no small terror and alarm by the apprehension of her again pursuing them, in endeavouring to reach as soon as possible the ha- bitation of Margaret Craftly. TMS COTTAGE ON TllR CLIFF. 34T OlIAPTER XX. ** Dear are the bonds of consanguinity, Holy, paternal, and fraternal love ! Yet to vow perpetual virginity, Still in the circle of those ties to move, Thy wonted wisdom, dearest, doth not prove ; Nor that bless'd sweetness that belongs to thee Nor goodness that I prize all charms above : Oh, mine's no sophistry, but homely truth ! What sin were it to waste such loveliness and yotith !" Olive was the first almost in breathless accents to relate to Margaret the incident they had met with, and the alarm they had undergone, at the singular manner, appearance, and language of the old gypsy woman, and what she had said to Miss Singleton. Meanwhile Jessy and Agatha had seated themselves, without having the power to articulate a sentence ; the former having actually been under the influence of terror and fright, and the latter feeling regret at being obliged to part with her branch of myrtle, which she could not account for ; since, at the very best, what was it but a mere sprig of myrtle, which she coHild easily replace, if she wanted it, from the very tree itself. The prediction of the old gypsy, that she was shortly to meet her again, did not give her a moment's unea- siness, as she attributed all that she had addressed to r 348 THE COTTAGE ON THE CUFF, her as the mere wanderings of a disturbed imagination : still, — during tea, which was immediately ordered in by Margaret, who endeavoured to chase from their minds all apprehension of again seeing the old woman, and assuring them that Nicholas should see them safe home to Herring Dale, — still our lovoly heroine could not help deploring the loss of her myrtle, blushing deeply as she exclaimed, — " I should not have minded if she had asked me for any thing e.se I had about me but that sprig of myrtle, and it is really something singularly strange, that it was only to this myrtle she should take a fancy." " And she said that before the leaves were withered she would meet you again, Miss Singleton," cried Olive ; "my gracious I I am so happy that she did not take just such a fancy to any thing I had ! for I verily believe that she is a witch, and can bewitch every body she has a mind." " I do not believe in witches, and therefore do not entertain any apprehension of the kind," replied Aga- tha; "I am only sorry that she obtained the myrtle from me by her hypocritical cant and ridiculous pro- phecies." " Lord, Miss Singleton, I never heard you so anxious about a trifle before !" rejoined Olive ; " for what is there in a bit of trumpery myrtle to make such a piece of work about ? but, Lord 1 now 1 think of it, where did you get it, Miss Singleton ? perhaps you got it off the tree that somebody placed under your chamber window ; but, as you cannot tell who it was, I should not care so much about the giver." Agatha, during this rude speech ofiUf envious and THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, 349 inquisitive Olive, had betrayed no small symptoms of embarrassment; the more as the eyes of Margaret Craftly H'ere fixed on her with an expression of evi- dent astonishment ; yet, willing to encourage the idea of Olive, that she had taken the branch from the myrtle-tree, and to avoid all further rude interroga- tories on the subject, she endeavoured to collect her- self, and, assuming an air of careless indifference, re- plied, — "Neither the myrtle-tree, nor the giver of it, who- ever he may be, is, I assure you, of the slightest con- sequence ; yet I do not see why I should have parted even with such a trifle, merely to gratify the whims of a foolish old woman who chose to demand it, because she happened to chatter a parcel of idle and unmeaning jargon ; however, it is scarce worth mentioning or thinking of again." This speech, apparently so carelessly given, com- pletely silenced all further conversation on the subject, and other topics were canvassed of a far more interest- ing nature to some of the party, and that was the ex- pected return of Leontine Craftly from the herring fishery : and Margaret expressing her fears that her brother had not met with the success he had done on his former voyage, and that some unexpected incident had detained him on the coast, Olive exclaimed, — " Lord, Margaret, don't vapour one to death with your dismal fears I — I protest you make one quite melancholy; I dare say that Leo is quite safe; for if any thing had happened very particular to hin), you would not have been the first to have been informed of it, J can assure you." " Indeed, Miss Olive Blust, that is taking upon you 350 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. to say a great deal," replied Margaret somewhat tartly ; " I do not know who has a better right than his own sister to hear of his concerns ; but it is all very well, Miss Olive — it is all very well," repeated Margaret, with additional asperity ; *' Leo, perhaps, has found a more able counseller, and a more warmly attached friend than Margaret Craftly, in whose bo- som he may choose to repose his confidential affairs; but I am well persuaded that he never will find a more sincere or a less self-interested one." " Well, you need not be so snappish about it, Miss Margaret," cried Olive, " Leo has a right to do what he pleases, without asking your leave, I suppose; you cannot expect him to be tied to your apron-strings now he is a man, Miss Margaret ; and if he has a mind to be married, what's that to you I should be glad to know ?" The astonished, and now highly offended and in- sulted Margaret, looked at Olive as if doubting the evidence of her senses, and then at poor Jessy, as if there she could derive any intelligence, or an expla- nation of words so mysterious, for never had Olive spoken with such unparalleled effrontery of address and manner ; but Jessy was profoundly silent, as well as Agatha, both of whom were shocked at the preme- ditated attack she had made on the feelings of her inoffensive and good-natured kinswoman, who, after a painful struggle in endeavouring to suppress her in- dignant emotions of rising anger against this shame- less girl, exclaimed, — " Olive, I did not wish to make my brother's dwel- ling, and my own, a scene of contentious jarring, or to render your sister, and the amiable Miss Singleton, THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 351 uncomfortable while they remain in it ; you have afflicted me deeply, but really more on your own ac- count than my own, that a daughter of my worthy kinsman's should have betrayed so much weakness of mind, — so much badness of heart ! I will not flatter you, Olive; you have a bad heart, foolish in your own conceit, and evil-minded to every body else. Had your poor mother been this day living-, she would have been sorely grieved for thy sake, child : for there was not a better, kind-hearted woman in existence than poor Jessy ! But I have done with thee, Olive Blust ; I have done with thee, child : e'en take thy own blind, foolish, and perverse ways, and do as thou wilt ; thou wilt one day bring a sorrowful heart to repentance, and mayhap the grey hairs of thy fond old father to" Margaret stopt — looked a moment at the tearful eyes of the trembling, gentle Jessy, and breathed out the remainder of the sentence in a heart- felt sigh." Meanwhile, Olive had sunk into a sullen and obsti- nate silence, and seemed neither affected by the emotions of her kinswoman, or moved by the tears of her gentle sister. And Agatha, shocked at this insensibility, as well as the depravity of her unnatural and unfeeling disposi- tion ; and, imagining that the sooner this discussion was put an end to the better, by quitting Margaret's residence as soon as possible, proposed to Jessy that they should immediately return to Herring Dale ; alleging to Miss Craftly, as a reason for her hasty departure, the promise given to the fisher, to be home to supper : — " On which condition, you will excuse our remaining longer, I know, my dear Miss Craftly," 362 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. uttered Agatha, with her accustomed sweetness, and risiiii^ to put on her scarf. " Oh, my dear ! don't apolog^ize to me for only doing what you consider to be your duty," cried jMargaret, surveying the calm, placid, and lovely features of Agatha with unspeakable satisfaction, " which you are a young lady too sensible of propriety, good sense, and delicacy, ever to lose sight of: and I hope your next visit to me, my dear Miss Singleton, will be one of a more agreeable nature than that you have wit- nessed this evening." Perhaps this speech was uttered with more warmth than she intended, for it immediately crimsoned the cheeks of the indignant Olive ; who, whisking her bonnet over her ears, did not so much relax from her ill-humour as to return the " good night" which, when they were ready to depart, was pronounced by Mar- garet, in a tone of greater kindness than could be expected, after the treatment she had received, or that her petulant and unforgiving young kinswoman merited at her hands. But the atfectiouate Jessy am- ply atoned for the want of feeling in her sister, by doubling her attention to Margaret w hen she bade her farewell, and hoping that it would not be long be- fore she paid them a visit at Herring Dale ; to which INIargaret coldly replied, — *' That, child, will depend upon circumstances, time, place, and season ; there is a time and season for all things, you know, Jessy ; but I shall always be happy to see you and Miss Singleton : so Heaven be with you till we meet again !" Olive had taken her usual flight, according to her whimsical disposition, and had walked with rapid HE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 353 strides to a considerable distance before either Ai^a- tha or Jessy could reach her ; old Nicholas ff>llowing close at their heels, whom Margaret had appointed for their guardian, to see them safe home. " Oliva how can you think that Miss Singleton or 1 can at all keep pace with you, if you continue walk- ing on at that rate ? pray give us leave to breathe a moment at the foot of this hill." — To which Olive sullenly replied, and relaxing in her pace only while she uttered, " And why are not you and Miss Singleton able to walk as fast as me, pray ; you are prodigiously deli- cate all of a sudden, Miss Jessy ; — but I suppose you have taken a lesson out of somebody's book that shall be nameless, and want to set yourself up for a fine lady. Never the more I sha'ut wait while you choose to stay here cooling your heels at the bottom of the hill, I assure you. Father will wonder where the iickons we have got to all this while." " Your rudeness, Miss Blust, is actually intolera- ole," cried Agatha, obliged to sit down to recover her breath, having walked so rapidly •, " and though it is too contemptible for me to take any serious offence at it, yet I would advise you to repress it, lest it might lead to some unpleasant altercation w ith one who will not tamely suffer you to insult me with impunity. He is your protector : but remember, that he is mine also. He will shield me from the unmerited attacks of malevolence and ill-natured sarcasm, although exercised on me by you." " Lord ! I only spoke to Jessy," cried Olive, now somewhat abashed by a rebuke so unexpec^l, from the mild and gentle Agatha ; " I'm sure>4^!?f?fer sf.\ c § z 354 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. much as mentioned your name but once, and then it was only in joke." " True," retorted Agatha, " I am always a nameless body with you, Miss Blust, but I am not at a loss to guess where your allusions point; you dooiot repeat my name indeed, but remember, that the dagger ge- nerally strikes deepest when aimed in the dark." Old Nicholas now stood at a humble distance, but found it necessary to remind them that the hour was growing late, and night advanced apace. " For my own part, I care not a jot how late *t may be, young ladies," said he, " but there has been a grand dinner and hunting party to-day up at Lord Winstone's, and mayhap some of the gay sparks may be journeying homewards, with more wine in their heads than they have discretion in their hearts ; and falling in with three such handsome young ladies, there's no knowing what they might say to you ; 1 would defend you while I had a drop of blood left in my old veins; but Lord love you ! I should be no more than a rat in the way of such ranting blades." Agatha and Jessy grew fearfully alarmed at this unexpected piece of intelligence of the old man's; while Olive laughed immoderately at the idea of en- countering them before they reached Herring Dale, and was now as slow in her movements as she had been rapid in them before, stopping one moment on pretence of tying her bonnet, and the next to adjust her scarf, to the great annoyance of her sister and Agatha, who in vain besought her to reflect on the pro- bability of their meeting with some of the inebriated huntsmen; on which she exclaimed, " Danger of a fid- dle-de-dee ! what harm could they do to us, when we THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 355 are so near father's ; and then what a bit of fun we should have, if they should olfer to see us home. Father would look so funny, and Sam Russel so fierce, that I protest 1 shoyld be ready to die with laugh- ter." " Well Miss, if ever I heard the like of you," cried Nicholas ; " I should not much relish such sport, if I was a prudent sort of a body, I assure you." "Oh my heavens, Olive! how can you talk in this manner before Nicholas," said Jessy, softly whisper- ing in the ear of her sister, " I wonder you are not ashamed of yourself; what must he think of you ?" " 'Tis very plain what he thinks of her," said Aga- tha, increasing her pace, and uttering this in as soft a whisper, as she linked her arm in that of Jessy's, en- treating her to walk with as much speed as she possi- bly could. But Nicholas, who at this moment had proceeded a few paces before them, suddenly called out for them to stop. " For may I never smoke tobacco, ladies," uttered he, " if there be'ant a parcel of huntsmen just gallop- ing down the hill at full speed ! if you stand still a bit here, belike they'll not see you, and pass by ; but if they chance to catch but a glimpse of your petti- coats, the devil an inch they move afterwards." Agatha and Jessy instinctively obeyed the voice of their conductor ; but Olive, whether by accident or de- sign we will leave the reader to guess, happened to slip her scarf loose from her shoulders, and it dropped on the ground just as the huntsmen appeared in view; and two of them instantly stopped their horses, taking a full gaze at the disrobed Olive, but a fuller gaze at the trembling and now dreadfully alarmed Agatha, 356 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. one of them exclaiming to the other, "Halt, Cleve- land ! )3y Heaven! there is the same lovely creature that we saw at Adams's Library ! Fair game, by all that's beautiful !" " And the pretty little girl we saw with her," uttered his companion in the same licentious tone and manner : I'll attack her — you the beauty !" " Indeed, gentlemen," cried Nicholas, advancing, with his oaken stick towards them, " but I suppose you will attack neither, when you know who these young ladies are, and belong to : and if you do not, 1 do again suppose, that seeing they are females, it would not become you to attack them in any sort of ungentlemanly manner." " Confound your suppositions, you old Quizby, and are you their protector ?" cried the younger of the huntsmen, in a taunting sarcastic accent, and jumping otf his horse at the same instant. " No, my Lord," uttered Nicholas, " I trust they have better protection than a poor old man, who can do naught to serve them ; but I pray that Heaven will protect them. And what have they to fear, when such high-titled gentlemen as you appear be- fore them ? two peers of the British realm, I am very sure, would never disgrace their titles by offering an insult to unprotected females." " There my old boy you have us," cried the elder; " but how the devil came you to scent us out so cle- verly as being peers of the realm, eh ?" " What," cried Nicholas, " is my Lord Winstone and Lord George Cleveland so little known in this neighbourhood as not to be distinguished whenever they are seen ; if you have wine in your heads, my THE GOTTAGli ON THE CLIFF. 357 Lords, you Iiave honour in your hearts. I pray you to use it in your conduct towards these young ladies that you see before you." " Curse your preaching ! you had better let it alone, unless you can teach us the practice as well as the theory, you old Snap-dragon," cried the younger, who appeared to be most under the influence of the ijitoxi- cating libations he had offered that day at the shrine of Bacchus. "What the devil ! when you tempt us with such bewitching fruit, are we not to taste of it ?" And seizing Olive round the waist, he snatched a kiss from her glowing lips. Meanwhile, the elder dismounting from his horse, at the same instant approached Agatha and Jessy, though In a less licentious manner, and requested the favour of a similar salutation ; but he was haughtily repulsed by the indignant manner of our heroine, who, pushing him back, exclaimed, — " Forbear, my Lord ! if indeed you are a Lord, and a gentleman, (and the one ought not to be separable from the other,) from insulting those who will not suffer it with impunity ; you are mistaken in your ob- jects ; nor is the situation in which you now appear an excuse for your unwarrantable attack on defenceless females returning to their home, where they will shortly find protection under theroof of a father and a friend, and an avenger of your ungentlemanly conduct. Permit us quietly to pursue our path homewards ; — prevent us, and it is neither your high rank or title that will screen you from exposure and punishment." "By all the gods and goddesses, you are an angel, whatever earthly name you bear!" cried Lord Win- stone : " tell me that name, and I am gone this instant " 358 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. " And the lovely ones who are with you, thou celes- tial !" uttered Lord George Cleveland, " and we will vanish this moment." The blood of Agatha now mounted to her cheeks, and casting a look which utterly awed and repelled the advances of the bold enquirers, she indignantly ex- claimed, — " On no other condition should I deem it necessary to gratify a curiosity which I consider on the present occasion to be impertinent, and offensive to female delicacy ; but the name 1 bear, is Agatha Singleton." «^ A charming name by all that's heavenly !" ex- claimed Lord George, turning to his friend, who ap- peared struck with evident surprise and confusion : " Winstone, here's a discovery ! Montague's Cottage Venus without a shadow of doubt! And the young ladies who are w ith you, madam ?' " The Misses Blust !" cried our heroine, in the same indignant tone, " the two daughters of the Fisher Blust, of Herring Dale, to w hich we were journeying, had not your ungentlemanly interruption so rudely and unnecessarily delayed us." "That intelligence sufficeth," uttered Lord George : " Bob, we must pair off; we have hit a wrong mark. Peter will shoot us, and these lovely creatures will stand in evidence against us, to sign our warrant for execution. Come, why the devil don't you mount your Rosinante ! Knight of the Woeful, why don't you depart ! here's no Dulcinea for either you or I, — so the sooner we make our exit the better." " Not till I obtain one favour of this heavenly crea- ture !" exclaimed Lord Winstone, approaching Aga- tha with the most respectful deference, — " her pardon THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 359 and forgiveness for the unlucky incident of this even- ing." To which Agdtha in a milder manner replied, — " That will be readily granted to you, my Lord, on the instant departure of you and your friend." " Implicitly, Madam, I obey your commands," ut- tered JLord Winstone, bowing gracefully, and mount- ing his horse at the same moment. Meanwhile, his more lively companion turned round to Olive, and exclaimed, — " I, too, loveliest, am bound to offer some apology here at the foot-stool of Beauty; and though no dra- gon guards the Hesperian fruit from the rude touch of the invader, yet 1 would not willingly transgress the boundaries of discretion, or harm its sacred repose : will you therefore, Miss Blust, kindly pardon a rattle- brained fellow for his offences here, when he candidly confesses that he has been this day offering more sa- crifices to the merry god Bacchus than to the shrine of Beauty. Those roseate lips were never formed for anger ; tell me that you forgive me, and I shall ride on the wings of my flying Pegasus with double speed." " Oh dear, my Lord !" cried the vain and gratified Olive, " you may fly away then as fast as you like, for you have not offended me in the least degree, 1 assure you. I am not so nice as some folks are about such trifles." "But would you were as wise!" softly ejaculated Lord Winstone, resting his eyes for a moment on the modest and beautiful countenance of Agatha, whose lovely cheeks were now suffused with blushes at the impropriety of Olive's speech, to one who had already confessed that he was in a state of inebriety ; and Lord SCO THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, Wiiistone perceiving^ that the embarrassment she be- trayed, and the confusion of the timid Jessy, as fear- ing' the intemperance of his young' friend, impatiently exclaimed, — " Come, Cleveland ! let us now depart, and leave these ladies quietly to pursue their walk, which we have so indecorously interrupted. Miss Singleton, I have the honour once more of bidding you farewell." Agatha curtsied, but responded no farewell to that which Lord Winstone had addressed to her in parti- cular : in short, his Lordship's looks were particular, and on that very account she was desirous that her own should decidedly repress them, and give him no chance of looking at her again in the same like manner. Lord George Cleveland had now mounted; and nodding to his friend, and once more bowing to the confident Olive, in a manner that any other female would have discourag,ed, galloped off at full speed, Lord Winstone following at a more moderate pace ; and no sooner were they completely out of sight, than Agatha piously ejaculated, — " Thank Heaven, they are gone at last ! Now let us hasten home immediately ; there is not a moment to be lost ; there may be more huntsmen on the road yet ; pray let us endeavour by every possible means to avoid them. We may not again escape insult." " Nor would have escaped it now, 1 do verily be- lieve, Miss, if it had not been for your very becom- ing spirit and modesty of behaviour," observed Nicho- las, as they hastened on ; " for both their Lordships had been tasting pretty freely of the juice of the grape, or they would not have talked so much about the gods THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 361 and the goddesses, and the like of that, which I con- eider to be a most abominable thing, and quite hea- thenish, as a body may say, seeing as we have but one God that rules over us all : but, lack-a-day ! the world is turned topsy-turvey, that's for certain, or there would not be such rantipoley people in it, that want to turn our blessed Christian religion into all manner of ways, on purpose that they may find an excuse for their perverse, blind, and foolish vagaries: but never the more will the good man stray ; if he is honest and wise, he will always keep in the right path, be it ever so rugged, because it is the surest. Not that I mean to disparage the young men, because they are a little merry : no, no, they are gentlemen of good report in this neighbourhood, and do a mint of good to the poor, and are well beloved by their tenants too. Ijord George is a little rackety or so to be sure, and loves the lassies more than he loves his money, for he parts with it as freely as a prince ; and so does Lord Winstone, but he is quite another guess sort of a man to Lord George Cleveland. He has been on his tra- vels all through outlandish countries, and is looked upon to be one of the most learned gentlemen down in these parts. He has a fine estate too, and will have more riches than he will know what to do with, when he is married to the young lady he is paying his addresses to." " And who may that be, pray, Nicholas ?" demanded Agatha, who was glad to find that they were now in sight of the habitation of the fisher. " Ah ! do pray let us know who such a sweet young man is going to be married to," cried Olive, in the most curious and impatient manner. C. 2 a 36^ THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. To which the old man instantly replied, " To the daughter of the Most Noble the Marquis of Mon- tault, Miss." " Oh my gracious! to the beautiful Lady Lavinia," cried Olive ; " and she is sister to Lord Montault, one of the prettiest, delightfulest young fellows in exist- ence ; and dear me ! I wonder who he will marry, — some grand princess, I dare say ; for he is the only son that the Marquis has got, and will roll in riches when his father dies, and be a marquis too into the bargain." How it happened, that the very unexpected men- tion of Lord Montague's name should crimson the cheeks of our lovely heroine with a roseate blush bright as the tints of morn, we cannot divine ; 'tis a mystery of Love's own manufacturing, and they must be cunning indeed who can solve it ! The shades of the evening, however, kindly threw a veil over those beautiful blushes, and hid them from the prying eyes of observation ; but they could not veil them from the too conscious bosom of Asratha, which gently heaved with a sensation of half pain half pleasure, — a strange combination of feelings hard to be described, and never felt before, as the sentence which had escaped from the lips of Lord George Cleveland recurred to her memory, and passed in a sort of fleet- ing succession across her mind ; — ' that Agatha Sin- gleton was the cottage Venus of Lord Montault.' Was she angry, or was she pleased, at this flatter- ing epithet bestowed on her ? This was the point in question : and something very like a blush again per- vaded her lovely features. But what of that — it was not seen ; so it was only ' young Love among the THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 363 roses ;' and who would not envy the sly urchin for having formed so delicious a retreat ? But our heroine fortunately possessed pride as well as sensibility, and we believe that at the present moment the former was the most predominant sensation to- wards Lord Montague ; it was evident, then, that he had been speaking of her to these young noblemen, for her name was already familiar to their ears. But in what terms had his Lordship spoken of her, — a cottage Venus; perhaps in idle sport he had so styled her ; and she thought the term was too insignificant, and too hackneyed, for her to feel pleased with the compliment: — but Agatha forgot that it was only Lord George Cleveland who had called her by that name, and not Lord Montague ; why then should she be so hasty in her conclusions, or unjust towards one of whom she had formed no unpleasing impression ! Meanwhile, Nicholas had replied to Olive's obser- vations in the following manner, — " Ah, Miss ! but if you knew Lord Montague as well as I do, you would find that he does not place his happiness in riches, nor grandeur, nor fine clothes. Lord love you ! he thinks no more of them than I do. He is as humble as a bee, and does not mind who he talks to, if they be ever so poor, as long as he knows they be honest : there is not the fellow of him in all the country round, both far and near : he is his father's own child for that all the world over. A better man never saw the light than the Marquis of Montault ! — but as for the Marchioness she is a fine, handsome woman, but I will say no more, — handsome is as hand- some does, as the saying is." "Oh ! she is a prodigious fine woman to my mind," 564 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. cried Olive Blust ; " and Lady Lavinia is a fine wo- man too, with an elegant figure ; she is almost as tall as me, but not quite ; much about my size ; don't you think so Nicholas ?" To which Nicholas replied, — "Why, to say truth. Miss, I have never seen but little of the young- lady, and that little did not please me, so I won't tell a fib about the matter ; she is too proud and too scornful for poor folks to have any things to do with ; but lack-a-day ! all flesh is grass ; she may lay low enough one of these days ; Mr. Death is a very uncivil sort of a gentleman ; he don't stand upon much ceremony, when he has a mind to pay us a bit of a visit, and it is no use to tell him we are not at home; he won't ^call again to-morrow,' I warrant him." By this time they had arrived at Herring Dale, Olive's ill-humour having entirely vanished since she had received a salutation from a young Lord, whom her vanity suggested she had captivated with the charms of her person, and this circumstance was not forgot, in relating the incident of the evening to her father and SamRussei; but the outlines of the adven- ture they had met with had already been drawn by a far more skilful hand ; and when Agatha actually informed her protector that their Lordships had made the handsomest apologies that coald be offered by gentlemen in their situation for the offence they had committed, the fisher's indignation against them was completely appeased, and he answered, — "Well, well, my dear, if that be the case, I shall say nothing about the nmtter; a man in liquor can do no more than make an apology, though his pocket THE COTTAGE ON THK CLIFF. 365 sometimes pays for it too at the same time, when he plays the fool and the drunkard together ; but if they had been sober, and had dared to insult you, or one of ray children, shiver my top-sails ! but 1 would have twisted a yarn about their necks, whether they were lords or commoners. I would soon let them know what sort of stuff Peter Blust is made of." " And 1," cried Sam, his eyes glistening with all the bright enthusiasm of youthful ardour, " would have blown any rascal's brains out who dared to have of- fered harm to" Sam coloured deeply, for he had fixed his eyes full on Agatha ; and added afterwards in a less energetic tone, — " to either of you." To which our heroine immediately replied, — " Heaven forbid. Sir, that you, or any other man, should proceed to such violent measures on my ac- count ! such incautious haste, before you were ac- quainted with the nature of the offence, 1 should deem highly reprehensible, instead of being- praiseworthy." And this being all the thanks that poor Sam received for his gallantry, he coloured deeply, bit his lips, and continued profouniily silent during the remainder of the evening. 366 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. CHAPTER XXI. " Though nature awhile in our breasts may awaken Emotions with awe and with rev'rence replete, Yet these will by tenderness often be shaken. And never withstand aught that's touching or sweet; And hence the soft sigh of affectionate sorrow. And hence the big tear in that soul-beaming eye ; That eye, whence the diamond new lustre might borrow. Whose brightness outshone every star iu the sky." At the departure of Sam Russei a silence of some minutes ensued, the poor fellow having actually quitted the house of the fisher with a heart too full for his tongue to find utterance ; the cold and formal 'good night' of Agatha Singleton being a complete extinguisher on his hopes of ever succeeding to gain a place in her affections : and although he had ob- tained a promise from the Fisher Blust, that he would use his interest in his behalf with his lovely adopted, yet there was a silent dignity in the manner of Aga- tha towards him on this evening, so utterly repulsive to all the fond hopes of an impassioned lover, and the warm and romantic notions he had formed of address- ing her on the subject of his passion, that he des- paired even of any kind intercession which would be made on the part of her protector, to move a heart THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 367 80 cold and insensible to the tender and idolized passion with which his was glowing for her But Agatha was not so insensible as he imagined ; she be- held with deep regret the strong though hopeless at- tachment which this young man was inspired with, but felt that it was utterly out of her power ever to return it ; she therefore thought it a duty which she owed to herself and to him, to disdain the petty arts of co- quetry and vanity, by plainly adopting one decisive line of conduct consistent with candour and sincerity, that he might at once be able to form a conclusive opinion of her sentiments towards him, and spare her the pain of giving a direct refusal of his addresses. But, whether the fisher had promised Sam more than he was able to perform, or that he thought Agatha unnecessarily severe towards her disconsolate lover, we cannot pretend to decide, for an expression of some displeasure passed suddenly over his countenance, as Sam, in a tone of the most abject despondency, bade him farewell : and immediately replenishing his pipe, and puffing away a sort of half angry and impatient sigh, he exclaimed to Jessy, who sat near him, but without directing one glance towards Agatha, — "Jess, thee hast a soft heart, dost not pity him, wench ?" Jessy artlessly replied, "Pity who, father." This was certainly one way to make matters worse; and poor Jessy trembled when her father somewhat angrily pronounced, — " Shiver my top-sails ! why who dost think I meant but poor honest, quiet Sam, who, though he is nothing but a fisher, carries as warm a heart in his breast a gome great folks carry scorn in their countenance. 368 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF, Poor Sara ! I do pity him with every vein of my heart's blood : 'tis desperate hard to be in love ! I am sorry for poor Sam, and that be the truth of it. What say'st thou, Agatha Singleton ?" The eloquent blood of our lovely heroine had mounted to her fair cheeks, even at the commence- ment of this singular and extraordinary speech of her protector ; but now it glowed with brighter and warmer hues, and the dignified demeanor which was always a striking feature in the character of Agatha, now shone conspicuously on the occasion, and without once losing sight of the ties of gratitude, which so strongly bound her to the fisher, she gravely an- swered, — " Thus called upon, Sir, you compel me to answer you on a subject which I plainly perceive it is no longer possible for me to avoid. I have heard your sentiments upon it: will you now have the goodness to hear mine ; and I will then allow you to be a judge of the nature of my feelings with respect to the ob- ject in question ; but surely you will not condemn me unheard. — I wait your decision. Sir ; will you be pleased to listen to me or not ?" The manner of Agatha, — so calm, so dignified, and yet so firm, confounded, surprised, and for a moment perfectly pozed her protector : but instantly resum- ing his wonted tone of kindness to her, he replied, " Listen to you, my dear girl : shiver my top-sails ! when has there ever been a time that I have not lis- tened to you? Don't I always listen to you with pleasure ?" Agatha answered mildly, "Perhaps, Sir, that may- be doubtful at the present moment ; nevertheless, 1 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 369 cannot depart from the language of truth and since- rity, which from earliest infancy I have been taught to hold sacred. You appear to wish, Sir, that I should form a more favourable opinion of the merits of Mr. Sam Russel, than has been evident from my conduct towards him this evening." " Why yes, my dear, I do somehow wish that poor Sam had been a bit of a sweetheart of yours, if you had a mind to him," cried the fisher, " seeing as he has fallen desperately in love with you, and would marry you to-morrow, without a brass farthing in the world, if you would but fancy him ; but if you cannot, why there's an end of the matter altogether." " Yes, Sir," cried Agatha, deeply colouring, " there is certainly a decided end to any expectation of that kind, Sir, it is not that I wish to insinuate that I con- sider myself superior in merit, or above the station of Mr. Russel, or that I do not feel obliged to him for the favourable sentiments he has entertained towards me, but I have really no inclination at present to en- ter into the matrimonial state ; and if 1 had it — would not be on BIr. Russel that I would bestow ray hand. I will never give my hand where I cannot give my heart ; my dear father, had he been living, would in this respect have left me free. I am still free ; and will not be importuned again on this subject." " No, shiver my top-sails ! if you shall ;" exclaiiued the fisher, puffing away a cloud of smoke at the same moment, " aad I will tell Sam so when he calls to- morrow." " Do so. Sir," cried Agatha, "and you will oblige me, as well as spare me the disagreeable necessity of telling him so myself* V. 3 b 370 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. So saying, our heroine respectfully bidding tbe fisher good night, immediately retired to her chamber, glad to obtain a few moments for reflection, and to be re- lieved from pursuing a conversation, which had consi- derably oppressed her feelings : for, never since she had been under the roof of the fisher, had she felt so severely the loss of her beloved father, or that she was really an orphan ; supported by the bounty of a benevolent stranger, who, kind and good-hearted as he was, to serve the interest of his young friend, had on this occasion stretched a point beyond the bounda- ries of friendship or delicacy ; for certainly Agatha felt that he had no right to stand between her and her own heart, in the disposal of which she was the free agent, and would be so while she remained mistress of her own actions. If any thing could have operated on her feelings the more strongly to reject the ad- dresses of the young fisher, it was this very conduct of her protector ; for Agatha with joy and gratitude reflected, that though she had been afflicted with many severe and heavy trials, Providence had not left her wholly destitute on the bounty of Fisher Blust. She had still a dwelling that she could call her own, and still the means left in her power to discharge the obli- gations she was under to him by the sale of the valu- able jewels of which she was fortunately possessed ! for never had she forgotten the words of her father, when a few days before she was separated from him for ever, he deposited them into her hands, as the means of support if ever she required it. These were certainly not the gift of her father, but probably had been the property of her mother ; he had never told her so it was true, and had forbade her to importune THK COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 371 him on the subject, and she had implicitly followed his commands ; but Agatha conjectured that these Jewels must have belonged to her mother, for who but a mother would have felt so deeply and tenderly concerned in her fate ! It seemed that the fear of her wanting the means of support had been the strongest motive of her receiving so valuable a treasure, and that her father (Captain Singleton) had been expressly enjoined by that dear and tender relative to tell her so; or why had he so particularly dwelt on the wishes of the generous donor of so liberal a gift. Agatha profoundly felt the pleasure arising from being independant of the ties of obligation, whenever necessity should require it. What is more painful and agonizing to a feeling heart, than the galling sense of obligation to our fellow-beings. Alas ! how frequently are we reminded of it, and how bitterly are we all obliged to carry the burthen which we cannot shake off. The dearest friends if reduced to the necessity, will sometimes give us occasion to remember in what manner they have benefitted us; and an obligation to those for whom we cannot feel esteem or respect, is rendered still more insupportable ; for, they will never fail to choose a season to reproach us with it, when they are conscious it is utterly out of our power to return it, it is then the only channel through which they can strike the barbed arrow to our hearts, and we cannot strike again ! Not that this was exactly a case in point with Aga- tha and the fisher. She was well aware of the noble and distinguishing traits of his character and disposi- tion, and of the pure and benevolent motives which had induced him to offer her an asylum beneath his roof: he had protected her as a father, and expected CC 72 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. no other reward from her than the smile of an ap- -proving conscience, for the performance of a virtuous action. Nay, it was even probable that from his un- deviatino- kindness towards her, that he already re- garded her in the light of one of his own children ; but was he to expect any sacrifice of her affections on this account, or that she should marry a man she did not love, merely to testify her gratitude towards him ! — and if he did expect this, her gratitude to him was nothing; for it would be purchased at too dear a price, when the happiness or the misery of her existence would ever after be dependant on it. Our heroine felt that she would much sooner part with all that she possessed, and repay the obligation she was under to the Fisher Blust, than be so con- strained to act in opposition to her own feelings ; sooner toil for her daily meals, than wed a man for whom she felt a total indifference. How long she would have indulged in these reflections, or whether she would not have passed the remainder of the night in resolving and re-resolving on the same, we cannot tell, had not the sharp shrill voice of Claribelle completely awakened her, by exclaiming, — "I protest and vow, Miss Agatha, there is some- thing bewitches this house, and that is the truth of it. I only opened the window a moment to let in a bit of fresh air, and what should I see but an old wo- man, that looked like a fortune-telliog gypsy, only that I believe she is more of a witch ; for when I asked her what she wanted, she answered in a grumbling tone, 'not you ;' and threw this paper in at the window, be- fore I bad time to shut it down, and then vanislied out of sight us quick as lightning." " And why did you not instantly fling the paper THE COTTAGK ON THE CLIFF. 373 after her," cried Agatha, taking it out of the hand of her attendant : and yet the poor old creature is roorje deserving of our compassion than our anger, for it is plain that she is a maniac, and does not know whither she wanders ; we met her this evening as we went to Miss Craftly's." "Lord! so Miss Olive was telling me," cried Clari- belle ; " I protest I never once thought of that, or I should not have answered her so sharply ; but I bade her begone, or I would soon send her a-packing ; so she flung the paper directly in my face, and marched oft' in a huff. Pray heaven! that paper is not a charm to bewitch us with some evil spirit; 1 have heard of such things before, I assure you. Miss Agatha, and am mightily afraid of them : you had better not touch it." The fear which now pervaded every feature of the alarmed Clarib^lle occasioned her lovely mistress to laugh heartily. " I wonder, Claribelle, you can be so ridiculous," uttered she; "would to heaven that no evil might be- fal us but what this poor old wandering creature may threaten us with, and I should fearlessly encounter it ! Come, let us see what the charm contains. Bring hi- ther the candle, and I will examine it." Claribelle obeyed, but took great precaution to stand at a respectful distance, holding out the candle at arm's-length, in the apprehension that the effects of the charm might operate on her before her mistress. But what was the astonishment of Agatha, on open- ing the paper, to find that it contained a sprig of myr- tle similar to that which she had given to the gypsy, only that it appeared to be freshly gathered, for it still 374 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. retained all its bloom and sweetness ; and on the pa- per were written words to the fVdlovr'ing effect : — " Where true love exists, it is to be found among the breathing sweets of heaven's own atmosphere ; it is a flower that can never perish ! It will bloom when the flowers of the forest are seen no more ! It will spring- up in the wilderness! and even barren sands will not destroy its fragrance ; — it is inhaled from heaven itself; — and in two genial souls united by one faithful tie, it will survive even the wreck of nature ! wafting^ its last sigh on the loved bosom from whence it sprung ; and, like summer's rose, its beauties can never fade : when the roseate colour is fled, its fra- grance still remains behind! The fond memorial of its virtues never dies. But passion, base, corrupted, and fleeting as the wind, — that indeed is perishable! and wherever it breathes its baneful influence, destruction is sure to follow. These, alas ! are only the colours, but not the sweets of the lovely blossom ; and soon it withers, and is no more remembered ! for the hand that mars its odours, ruthlessly consigns it to oblivion, or an early grave ! The emblem of the former be thine, sweet maid: but never may thy young heart become the victim of the latter : fear not to act uprightly, and let no one presume to stand between thee and thy chaste affections. The guardian of innocence and vir- tue will triumph over the evil spirit that would crush thee, were he able, — but he is withheld. There is a charm in goodness too potent for the wicked to over- come. Loveliest, farewell ! and when you fail in spi- rit, and are weary with trouble, think of a gypsy's prophesy, and you will be comforted." Agatha, perfectly confounded at the contents of the THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF 375 paper, which was addressed to her in a hand unknown, (for it was not the hand-writing of Lord Montague,) now felt convinced that the appearance and character of the gypsy was only an assumed one. She paused and re-perused the paper, before she attempted once to satisfy the curiosity of the impatient Claribelle ; who, having seen only the sprig of myrtle, immedi- ately conjectured that it was accompanied with a love letter to her fair mistress, and exclaimed, — " Well, to be sure ! what sly creatures these men are ; only to think of sending the old gypsy woman in that comical manner with that love letter to you. Miss Agatha. Lord ! there is no being a match for the tricks of men, after all. They will find a way to over- come us, do what one will to prevent it !" " What are you talking about, Claribelle ?" said Agatha. " Why, your sweet-heart. Miss, to be sure," an- swered she, " that has sent you that long, and no doubt, that very pretty love letter." "You are quite mistaken," replied our heroine, with a deep blush, "you are quite mistaken, Clari- belle ; this paper contains no love letter, I assure you." " Then, pray Miss Agatha, if I may be so bold as to ask, what is it all about ?" said the inquisitive at- tendant. To which Agatha somewhat sharply replied, " What you do not understand, and therefore the contents cannot possibly concern you one way or the other. I have once before hinted to you, Claribelle, that I will not be questioned on subjects that do not at all con- cern you : it is no love letter that 1 have received, nor 376 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. do I know from whence this paper tame, or who has written it; but it means me no harm ; let that intelli- gence quiet your fears of all evil spirits on my account, nor shall I ever fear any, while I repose my hopes in the bosom of Him who permits no injury to his crea- tures, when they look up to him for confidence and protection." " Well, Miss, I know that," cried Claribelle, " but men will be wicked in their ways, in spite of all the religion in the world, and will do us harm, too, if they can. And you are very young-, and very beautiful. Miss Agatha, and I was going to say without any of- fence, — but, perhaps, you will be angry, so — so — I had better hold my tongue." "That, 1 believe, you will find to be a difficult mat- ter to do," cried Agatha, half smiling, "so I will in- dulge you now in listening to what you were going to say, and without being offended, — Come, Claribelle, out with it." " Why, Miss I protest I do not think it at all a very pretty thing, for a gentleman to be sending old gypsy women, at this time of night, with papers and bits of myrtle, and flinging them in at windows, to frighten one in this sort of way," uttered Claribelle, " and never so much as to think it worth his while to let you \cnow who he is; 'tis a comical way of paying his addresses to such a young lady as you, I am sure, ■ — and — and — if I was you. Miss Agatha, I should not take it quite so civilly, I promise you." " And pray, how would you have me remedy it, supposing that it is really offensive to my feelings ?" cried Agatha, who could not but acknowledge the justness of the remark : " I have never seen the ob THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF 377 ject from whom I receive these mysterious though trifling- gifts, or I should decidedly put an end to such clandestine proceedings ; but were I to throw this pa- per again out of the window, it might fall into some hands that would place some improper or false con- structions on a matter so trifling ; 1 therefore deem it more prudent to retain it in my possession, till by some chance or accident the writer may be revealed to me, either in person or by name." Agatha had not altogether been ingenuous or sin- cere in giving this explanation of her feelings and motives for her conduct to her attendant, conscious that she had not, occasioned her to blush deeply! but it was an explanation every way so satisfactory to the feelings of Claribelle, and she felt so proud of the confidence which her beloved young mistress had now thought proper to repose in her. that neither the blush nor the sigh that followed it, was observed by hei curious and prying eye. Agatha then retired to rest, but certainly was more disturbed by waking dreams than sleeping* ones ; for she no longer doul)ted that the personage who had assumed the form of the old gypsy was either an agent of Lord Montague, or Lord Montague himself; and that he should think it necessary to pursue such a sys- tem of conduct with respect to her, and assume such disguises for the purpose of revealing his sentniients to her, she conceived to be the very height of indeli- cacy and impropriety; as by this conduct, at once mys- terious and clandestine, he was daily and hourl) exposing her to the animadversions, and perhaps would shortly expose her to the censure, of a base and always ill-judging world ; and how should she be c. 3 c 378 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. able to resist such an attack, in her orphan state, with no protector, save only one, who would in such a case not feel disposed to stand forward in her defence ; for the Fisher Blust had a strange mixture of contradic- tion in his character, sometimes softened even to effe- minate weakness, and in the next moment guided only by the wild impetuosity of intemperate passidn; for what is passion but intemperance, alas ! more intoxi- cating than the fu-mes of the most spirituous liquors, and far more baneful and destructive in its effects on the human frame : she had seen such effects on the disposition of her protector, though never shewn to her, and she had always trembled at the consequences that it produced ; for, after the conflicts of rage had subsided, the fisher was always reduced to a state of imbecile weakness, powerless as the infant; which dis- position, added to his want of education, unfitted him for the task of even being the guardian of his own cliildren, much less to be a mentor of those so highly gifted with accomplishments, natural and acquired, as was the mind of our lovely heroine ; she could di- rect him, not he her; and in the present instance he had greatly lost sight of being the guardian of her happiness, in wishing her to espouse a man, without once considering whether he had obtained any influ- ence over her affections ; that she had at once frus- trated every attempt to constrain her on a point in which her happiness was so materially concerned, she rejoiced because she was very certain that after this, the attempt to control or rather to fetter her inclinations would never be made by him again. But with respect to Lord Montague, what could she do, if he still continued tlius to address her in so mysterious a charac- THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 379 ter ? If she complained to her protector of such a pro- ceeding against his Lordship, would not the complaint be instantly made to the Marchioness, and her son, as well as herself, be made the objects of reproach and 'jealousy? Alas, what unhappy quarrels might not such a discovery occasion in the family of the noble Marquis, to be informed that his only hope and he'ur had formed a romantic passion for a poor orphan girl, who had found an asylum under the roof of the Fisher Blust ? And would it not be said that she had thrown out some lure to ensnare his Lordship's affec- tions ? Certainly every mark of reproach, ill-nature, and malevolence would be directed towards her, both in the family of Lord Montague, and in that also of her protector ; for what had she not already endured from the impertinence of Olive Blust? And what struggles had she not made to conceal her indignation of the conduct and disposition of this evil-minded girl, who had insulted her beyond the stretch sometimes of almost human forbearance ? She had also an avowed enemy in the person of Leoutine Craftly, for what cause she could not precisely tell, but she was evi- dently the object of his aversion, perhaps, because owing to tiie influence he perceived she had acquired over the mind of Jessy, he considered her a drawback on his base and dishonourable views, on the gentle heart of that amiable girl ; and perhaps, because he knew that she suspected him, that he naturally disliked her : but of this Agatha was certain, that she was both the object of Craftly's aversion and his jealousy, and that he would probably rather rejoice at any ac- cident which might occasion her to fly from beneath the roof of her protector, than lament or sympathise 380 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. in her sufferings ; and Avas any altercation to take place with her and the fisher, that none but the gentle and tender-hearted Jessy would pity her misfortunes Thus circumstanced i.i the house, even of the man who had promised her his protection, and who doubt- - less would not withdraw it wliile her conduct, in his views, merited his approbation, yet her heart was by no means at ease with the repeated attacks of Lord Montague, for how could she doubt that it was not his Lordship who had continually addressed her, not cer- tainly directly in the language of love, but someihing warmer than was generally attaclied to friendship ? and that language too was ambiguous; it implied that she had a secret enemy, whose baneful influence was to crush her by some cruel and invidious means, but he did not mention who that secret enemy was. She could not conceive in what manner she had incurred the displeasure of so perfidious a foe ; she had not, to her knowledge, injured mortal, but through the whole of her short and blameless life had endeavoured by every means in her power to do good to her fellow-crea- tures. Lost, therefore, in perplexity and painful doubt, Agatha passed nearly the whole of the night without sleep, and when she appeared at the breakfast table of the fisher, her pale countenance and disor- dered looks alarmed the fears of the whole family, not even Olive excepted, for she exclaimed, as soon as she beheld her, — "My gracious. Miss Singleton, why what's the mat- ter with you ? 1 am sure something is, for you look all manner of colours this morning, blue, green and yel- ' low ; Lord, 1 am sadly afraid you are going to be ill jf a fever, and then we shall all catch it, every skin THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 381 of US. Oh ! dear, I am so terribly frightened, I would not catch a fever for all the world." " Dearest Agatha, you are certainly not well," ut- tered Jessy, approaching our heroine, and taking her cold and trembling hand with an air of the most affec- tionate anxiety, " what can I get for you, my dear friend, that will in any degree relieve you ?" Agatha was much affected with the manner of the kind-hearted and amiable girl, and returning the affec- tionate presure of her hand, replied, — " Nothing, my dear Jessy ; do not alarm yourself on my account, I do not feel ill, I assure you, but I have not slept well, and not having my usual rest, feel a little uncomfortable, that is all ; I have no presage of approaching indisposition, believe me, do not thus alarm yourself." " But we must alarm ourselves, Miss Singleton, and whether you like it or not, we must enquire what is the matter with you, that father may send for the doc- tor, to give you some physic," cried Olive, " for it would be quite shocking if we were all to catch your disorder, and die of it; but here comes father, and he will give you the best advice that is possible in your shocking condition." At this moment the fisher entered the room, and perceiving something extraordinary in the looks of both his daughters, as well as an unusual agitation in the countenance of Agatha, he exclaimed, — " Shiver my top-sails ! what is the matter with you, lassies ? Agatha, my dear, Avhat ails you ?" "You must ask Olive, Sir," answered Agatha calmly, "for she appears to be a better judge of my feelings than I am myself; she is apprehensive that I 382 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. have caught a contagious fever, since you beheld me last night, and that I shall endanger the health of your whole family, and therefore is desirous that you should instantly send for medical assistance, to prevent the impending mischief I am likely to bring down at Herring Dale." Astonishment too great for utterance took posses- sion of the features of the fisher ; but only for an in- stant he permitted astonishment to dwell there, it was exchanged for a look of the most affectionate and anx- ious concern, for immediately approaching Agatha, and looking her full in the face, he uttered, " And are you really ill, my dear girl, tell me, for God's sake, are you really ill, Agatha Singleton ?" " Not that I know of, my dear Sir," answered Aga- tha half smiling. The fisher instantly regarded his daughter with a look of the fiercest anger. "You hussy," vociferated he, "you Jezabel, get out of my sight or I will knock you down with my tobacco pipe ; you audacious rebel, how dare you think of frightening us all in this kind of manner ? what did you mean by it, you impudent bold-faced jade ? look how you have alarmed that dear girl, and frightened poor Jess out of her very senses. Get out of my sight, I say, before I knock you down.'* Both Agatha and Jessy now attempted to interfere, and to soften the incensed feelings of the fisher, but to no purpose ; he persisted that if Olive did not imme- diately go out of the room, he would strike her : mean- while the audacious girl provokingly exclaimed, — "You may knock me down, if you please, but I will make you repent it, if you do, I promise you; and you THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. 383 may beat your own children, on purpose to please Miss Singleton, but I will let her know that she shan't turn me out of doors, to let a beggar like her in ; and you ought to l)e ashamed of yourself, father, to encourage her to treat your own children, that you had by my mother, in this shameful manner." No sooner had Olive uttered this, than she ran out from the presence of her father with the rapidity of lightning, not without some apprehension that after this, the enraged father would put his intended threat into instant execution. " For heaven's sake, I implore you to have patience with this wayward girl. Sir," exclaimed Agatha; "she knows not what she says, what she is doing ; in a few minutes she will return to a sense of her duty and atfection ; on my knees I beg you not to be harsh with her." " Oh! hear her, father, pray hear her!" cried Jessy, bursting into a flood of tears, which she could no longer restrain ; " Olive has been much to blame, but at tlie intercession of Agatha Singleton, do not punish her with severity." " By the eternal God, who has created me," cried the fisher, " I do not think that I shall ever bear to see her in my sight again, for she has been the tor- ment of my existence ever since she was born ; and yet I am her father ; shiver my top-sails ! that I ever was a father to such a termagant jade." "Will you then refuse my most earnest supplica- tions, Sir ?" cried Agatha, greatly agitated at the in- crease of the violent passion which stilled every nerve of her protector; oh! let me not be a cause of dissen- sion between a father and his child; rather let me quit 384 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. your roof instantly, Sir, and no longer be a burthen on your compassionate bounty. I have not offended, it is true, — but you know I am not so destitute as to seek an asylum where I am considered not welcome ; instantly let me leave your house, but not without re- paying you for the shelter you have afforded me; take all 1 have, it is at your disposal, but leave me free, and not exposed to this almost insupportable agony, of the reproaches of your own child. A beggar on your bounty ! all but this I could have endured with patience, but this is not to be tolerated, and the daugh- ter of Captain Singleton disdains any longer to suffer so unmerited a reproach." CHAPTER XXII. " Oh, power of guilt ! Iiow conscience can upbraid! It forces us not only to reveal. But to repeat what most we would conceal." Perhaps our lovely heroine, prompted alone by the native ingenuousness of her disposition, and the con- scious rectitude of her principles, which were dictated by the purity of a mind and heart that had never yet been contaminated, by one unchaste thought, had oc- casioned her to speak with more warmth than shiff would have done, had she not been so bitterly galled by the reproaches and unmerited accusation which THE COTTAOE 0^ THE GJA^F. S8§ was preferred against her by Olive Blust. But Agatha Singleton could not forget that she was the daughter of a gentleman by birth, education, and manners ; and that though, by his decease, she was left an orphan, she still had the means of discharging any obligation which she had incurred beneath the roof of the Fisher Blust, and still had a dwelling that she could claim as her own, if her circumstances and situation were such as to oblige her to resort to it : and she feared that the hour was nearly at hand, when she should feel under the necessity of applying to those resources which the never-failing goodness of the Almighty had not yet deprived her of; for the Cottage on the Cliff, though rented for the term of two years to her illus- trious tenant, was still at her disposal after that time had expired, and in the intermediate space, she could take private lodgings in the house of some respectable person, who would accommodate her with the same, until such time as she could have possession of her own paternal dwelling. Why, then, should she suffer herself to be exposed to such unfeeling insults, and taxed with such unmerited accusations ! and such ac- cusations ! to be thought guilty of so base a crime as that of alienating the affections of a father from his children, and those children females, like herself! Could she endure this in silence, and still patiently suffer so vile a reproach ? and would not her further continuance beneath the roof of the Fisher Blust, give a colour to so foul a charge ? But who else hatl accused her, besides the malicious and vindictive Olive ? Certainly not the gentle kind-hearted Jessy, nor yet her benevolent protector : yet she had in plain and direct terms told him that, she considered it necessary S8,6 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIFF. to quit the asylum he had so compassionately and so generously afforded to her in the time of her necessity and alHiction, without reflecting what effect so sud- den a resolution would produce on his feelings, already wounded and rendered irritable by the conduct of his unnatural child; and something like reproach assailed her heart, at having uttered words so hastily ; for the fisher, after having looked at her for a moment in painful and agonizing silence, burst into a flood of tears, which he seemed to have no power of restrain- ing. "What!" exclaimed he, "leave me, Agatha Singleton ; do I indeed hear you rightly ? Shiver my top-sails ! have I sheltered a young and tender nest- ling only iO forsake the shelter these old fond arms had provided for her ? I, Peter Blust, who have been endeavouring to keep out every bitter storm, that might assail thee in the hour of danger, — I who have cherished thee as my own, and warmed thee in my old heart, as the dearest thing about it, save my Jessy ; and now thou would'st leave me, because a fool of a mad-cap wench has angered thee a little. Agatha Sin- gleton, had thy poor father, the captain, been living, he would have thought this rough usage for one that has loved you so dearly as poor old Peter. He would have chided you for it, I know he would, for he was a good and just man ; and perhaps I might chide you, too ; but when 1 look at you, curse me if I can say a word, and that's the truth of it ; but I am devilishly angry with you, Agatha Singleton ; shiver ray top- sails, I could blow a gale of wind that would send Herring Dale to Davy's locker in an instant ! Jess, give me a glass of brandy. I must wish Agatha Sin- gleton a safe journey wherever she is eoinff : and the The'cottage on the cliff. 587 worst wish of old Peter is, that her voyage may be far happier over the other side of the water, than the keen blowing winds that wafted her to the coast of Cromer ! Why dost not bring me the brandy, wench, when I bid thee ?" Jessy was about to obey the command of her father, but the imploring and beseeching look she gave 16 our now really agitated and distressed heroine, wa^ not without its influence on her throbbing heart; and instantly approaching the side of her protector, sh6 exclaimed,— " Hold, Sir ! add not to my present sufferings, by resorting to the only means which will utterly de- prive me of the consolation of justifying myself, iii your good opinion, and you of the power of hearing me with patience : hear me first, and drink your brandy afterwards. By these tears ! drawn from my eyes by your cruel reproaches, hear your ever grate- ful, your truly devoted Agatha Singleton, before you so harshly condemn her." " Well, well, I won't drink the brandy, if you will wipe away the deAV drops from those pretty twinklers," cried the fisher, instantly resuming the natural tone of his manner towards her; "shiver my top-sails! if I would cause you to shed a tear to save a fifty-gur> ship from sinking, when every body was out of her; mind that though: now what hast thou got to say for thyself, and for what art thou going to leave me ?' " Surely, Sir, you have strongly misconstrued my meaning, if you conceived for a moment I had inten- tionally uttered any thing to occasion you uneasi- ness," cried Agatha, with the most placid sweetness ; "I only meant to give you comfort, ta be a peace- 388 THB COTTAGE ON THE ClTlFF. nmker in your family, and not a peace-breaker; Hea- ven forbid ! But think you, Sir, I can tamely bear the insults to which I am hourly exposed beneath your roof, by being accused as the author of bringing down disgrace and ruin on your house by your having af- forded me a shelter in it. Can I hear myself so unjustly reproached, without attempting once to oppose it, or seek to be acquitted of so false and bitter an aspersion on ray morals as well as disposition; and what are the most proper means I should take to do this, but by ridding you of the presence of an object so hateful and obnoxious to your dearest ties and connexions ? what alternative have 1 left for restoring peace to your so highly oftended child, but by being no longer a burthen on your bounty. And think you for a mo- ment that I could adopt such an alternative without doing violence to my own feelings ? think you, that 1 should depart from your dwelling without feeling agony the most insupportable, from a consciousness of your fatherly goodness and benevolence towards me ; or that your humanity for a helpless orphan, would not demand my eternal gratitude and boundless thanks? think you that it is not interwoven with every reijiaining hour of my existence, or that I shall ever cease to regard you with the affection and duty of a child ? No, Sir, believe me not so base a wretch ; 1 trust 1 have profited by the precepts and example set before me by the best of fathers, whose memory I have never yet disgraced, and whose principles I have in- variably followed. I spoke with warmth, but I uttered truth ; I cannot deviate from it. I cannot endure, I cannot tolerate the incessant accusations and re- proaches of your daughter, and forget the station in TUB COTTAGE ON THE C^LIFF. 389 which 1 was born and educated. Still I would not have you punish her with severity on my account: she will be sufficiently so, when she is conscious of having offended in her duty, and wounded the affection of a tender and indulgent father. What shall I say more. Sir, to justify my conduct to you ? I was led, nay irre- sistibly impelled by the purest motives to address to you the language of candour and sincerity, not to dis- please, but to convince you, that no other motives but those which I have urged should have forced a wish to quit the roof of so benevolent and generous a friend. But, for your sake, and Jessy, the sister of my heart, I will yet endure with patience and fortitude the un- pleasantness to which I am exposed under your rocf Do therefore with me what you please, on this condi- tion only, that I will remain with you as long as you receive payment for the maintenance of myself and my attendant Claribelle. I must insist on your accept- ing these conditions, as the only means by which I shall be induced to continue at Herring Dale for the future. I need not say that those means are stil within my power, and that you know they are so : thej are in your possession ; use them for the purpose and, in the presence of your daughter, proclaim thai Agatha Singleton did not enter your house as tht child of your bounty. I respect, 1 revere you. Sir; but I cannot, I will not submit to further obligation For Jessy 1 would do much. Alas ! gentle girl, fon her sake I have perhaps borne the continued insult; of her wayward and indigriant sister. Jessy ! perhaps for thy sake I am now enduring the slanderous reports of some malicious and evil-minded foe, — (ah ! whr should I disguise my words, when thy happiness, th/ 390 THE COTTAGE ON THE CLIfF. honour, has been at stake,) the slanderous and mali- cious insinuations of thy kinsman, Leontine Craftly." " Of Leontine Craftly!" exclaimed the fisher, cast- ing on Jessy a look full of the fondness of a doatin^ father, mixed with astonishment, "what sayst thou, Agatha Singleton, (and thy word is not to be doubted,) hast thou any reason to suspect the honour of Leon- tine Craftly ? Speak, child, for shiver my top-sails I if I will be made a dupe of any longer by my own children : dost thou know aught of treacherous con- duct in my kinsman ?" " Alas, too much ! I suspect, Sir," cried Agatha, "that this artful and insidious being, in whose honour you have so long reposed, is even now aiming a blow at the destruction of your family. Jessy, your dar- ling child, would have been deceived by him ; 1 ai'erted the blow which was destined at her peace and uin. Olive next becomes the prey of the licentious Ijbertine, if means are not taken to prevent it : al- ready has he found opportunity to contaminate her leart and pervert her principles ; and I am the object df his secret malevolence, because he knows that I sm fully aware of his designs on this lovely and inno- cent object of his base arts ; he would stab me to