ARTHUR
45

But does this event have to be regretted? This amount, like the first, would probably be spent in the same destructive waste. His career will continue for some time to come; but his usual habits will eventually make his existence a common and close criminal.

But Welbeck's destiny was achieved. The money was placed, without guilt or reason, in my possession. My luck was so unexpected and so profitable. How do I profit from his kindness? Doesn't this amount allow me to gather around me all the instruments of pleasure? The utensils, and the palace, and the many servants; the polished mirrors, the beautiful decorations, the banquets, and the flatterers, were equally disgusting to my taste and principle. The accumulation of knowledge, and the spread of happiness, in which wealth can be very instrumental, are the only rules of duty, and the only path to true happiness.

"But what," I said, "is my right to this money? By defending it, am I as innocent as Welbeck? It belongs to him, as it belongs to me, without evil; but my knowledge of the true owner is just as certain, and the poor stranger's claim is just as valid as ever. Indeed, if utility, and not law, becomes a measure of justice, his claim, desolate and poor as he is, is not fit, by his past life , by the gentleness and prejudice of his education, to deal with disaster, by his, undeniably.

“For me, health and perseverance will give me, not only the competence I seek, but the strength to enjoy it. If my current condition cannot be changed, I will not be unhappy. My work is fruitful and meritorious; I am a stranger to the attention and enjoyment of riches; an abundant means of knowledge possessed by me, as long as I have eyes to gaze upon man and nature, and to, as it is exhibited in its original form or in books, my duties cannot go wrong. The woman must be sought and the money returned to her."

There are certain obstacles to the immediate implementation of this scheme. How should I do my search? What apologies should I make for withdrawing suddenly, and contrary to the terms of the agreement I just made, from my family and the service of my friend and philanthropist Hadwin ?

My mind was knocked out of the pursuit of this question by the rumors, which gradually swelled to a formidable dimension; and which, finally, reached us in our quiet retreat. The city, we were told, was embroiled in confusion and panic, as pestilence had begun its destructive development. Judges and citizens fly into the country. The number of sick people multiplied beyond all examples; even in Levant cities affected by the pest. The disease is vicious and unforgiving.

The usual work and entertainment of life had ended. Terror has destroyed all sentiments of nature. Wives are abandoned by husbands, and children are abandoned by parents. Some have confined themselves in their homes, and deprived themselves of all communication with the rest of humanity. The concerns of others had shattered their understanding, and their misguided move led them into the midst of the dangers they had previously sought to avoid. Men contracted the disease on the streets; passengers fled from them; entry to their own residences was denied to them; they died in public places.

The chambers of disease were empty, and the sick were left to die of negligence. Nothing could be found to remove the lifeless body. Their bodies, decaying bit by bit, filled the air with a deadly gasp of breath, and added tenfold to the destruction.

These rumors are absorbing and holding the whole soul. Certain greatness is associated with great danger that gives our fear or compassion a tinge of pleasure. This, at least, may be experienced by those who are beyond the threshold of danger. My own people are not in danger. I have the free time to imagine these incredible images, and to portray the witnesses and sufferers of this disaster. This job was not ordered to me out of necessity, but pursued diligently, and as such must have been recommended by some nameless charm.

Others are affected very differently. Often times the story is peppered with new events or reinforced by new testimonies, the listener turns pale, his breathing is held back by anxiety, his blood is cold, and his stomach loses its usual energy. Temporary discomfort occurs in many people. Some are haunted by melancholy that borders on madness, and some, as a result of sleepless panic, whose cause cannot be determined, and which opiates cannot find, attacked by a deadly disease or a deadly disease.

Mr. Hadwin is superior to baseless fears. Her daughters, however, took part in all the worries that surrounded them. The eldest, indeed, had many reasons for his terror. The young man who was engaged to her lived in the city. A year earlier, he had left the home of Mr. Hadwin, who was his uncle, and moved to Philadelphia to pursue fortune.

He made himself an employee of a merchant, and, through several successful trading adventures he made, began to flatter himself with the ability, in a short time, to support a family. Meanwhile, a gentle and constant correspondence is maintained between him and his beloved Susan. This girl was a gentle fan, in her chest her devotion and love shone with a spirit rarely exceeded.

The first news of yellow fever was heard by him with an unspeakable disturbance. Wallace is interrogated, by letter, to honor his truth. For a time, he treated it as an obscure report. Finally, a confession was extorted from him that there was a pestilence in the city; but he added that it had until now been limited to a quarter, away from where he lived.

The saddest plea was urged by him that he would retreat to the country. He expressed his determination to comply when the path in which he lived had to be infected and his stay had to be attended with real danger. He states how much his interest depends on the help of his current employer, who has used the most powerful arguments to contain him, but states that, when the situation becomes, at least, dangerous, the, he would underestimate every consideration of thanks and flowers, and fly to Malverton . In the meantime, he promised to deliver the news of his safety at every turn.

Belding, Hadwin's next neighbor, though unaffected by the general panic, continued to visit the city daily with his market wagon . He departs at sunrise, and usually returns during the day. A letter was received in time by Susan. As the hour of Belding's return approached, his impatience and anxiety increased. The daily letter was received and read, with overflowing zeal. For a while his emotions subsided, but returned with increased vigor at noon the next day.