ARTHUR
52

He looked at me in wonder. "Theford! this is not his place of residence. She moved in a few weeks before the fever . Those who last lived under this roof were an English woman and seven daughters."

This error detection of mine is somewhat comforting to me. There is still a possibility that Wallace is alive and safe. I vigorously asked where Thetford had been transferred to, and if he knew his current condition.

They've moved in Market Street. As for their situation, he knew nothing. His introduction to Thetford was not perfect. Whether he had left the city or stayed behind, he was completely uninformed.

Be me to ascertain the truth in this matter. I was preparing to say thank you for my parting to the person with whom I greatly benefited; for, as he now informs me, I was, with his interposition I was prevented from being locked up alive in a coffin. He doubted my true condition, and decisively ordered the morgue followers to stop. A delay of twenty minutes, and several medical applications, would, he believed, determine whether my life was extinguished or suspended. At the end of this time, with pleasure, my senses recovered.

Seeing my intention to leave, he asked me why, and where I was going. After hearing my answer,— "Your Design," he continued, "very unwise and rash. There is nothing faster to cause this fever than fatigue and anxiety. You have just recovered from the blows received lately. Instead of being useful to others, this rainfall will only paralyze yourself. Rather than wandering the streets and breathing this unhealthy air, you better go to sleep and try to sleep. In the morning, you will be more qualified to ascertain the fate of your friend, and give him the relief he wants."

I cannot help but acknowledge the reasonableness of this refusal; but where should rooms and beds be sought? It is unlikely that a new attempt to get accommodation at the inn will succeed better than the first.

"Your situation," he replied, "sad. I don't have a house I can lead for you. I divided my room, and even my bed, with another, and my house owner could not be persuaded to accept a stranger. Are you going to do it, I don't know. This house has no one to defend it. It was purchased and furnished by the last owner; but the whole family, including the mistress, children, and servants, was cut in one week. Perhaps not one in America can claim the property. Meanwhile, looters are numerous and active. A house that is completely empty, and refilled with precious furniture, I fear, will fall prey to them. Tonight there is nothing that can be done to secure it, but staying in it, are you willing to stay here until tomorrow?

"Every bed in this house may have housed a deceased person. Therefore, it is inappropriate to lie down on one of them. Maybe you can find a resting place on this carpet. At least, it's better than harder pavement and open air."

This proposal, after hesitation, I hugged. He was getting ready to leave me, promising, if he was alive, would come back early in the morning. My curiosity to honor the man whose dying agony I had witnessed prompted me to hold it for a few minutes.

"Before his departure, he established a gentle relationship with the eldest daughter of this family. My mother and children have just arrived from England. So many women are blameless, both mentally and personally, it was not my luck to meet before. This young man deserves to be adopted into this family. He proposes to return with the best expedition to his home country, and, after finishing his affairs, to immediately return to America and ratify his contract with Fanny Walpole.

"The ship he was riding on had just sailed for twenty leagues, before the ship was damaged by a storm, and had to return to port. He sent it to New York, to get the inside of the package soon to sail. Meanwhile the disease prevails among us. Mary Walpole's pole is hindered by her ignorance of the nature of evil that attacks us, and the advice of her unwise friends, from taking precautions for his safety. He hesitated to fly until the flight became unworkable. His death added to the helplessness and disruption of the family, they were successively captured and destroyed by the same pest.

" Maravegli was informed of their danger. He lets the package go without him, and rushes to save Walpole from the dangers that include them. He arrived in this city enough time to witness the burial of the last survivor. At the same time he was afflicted with this disease: the calamity is known to you.

"Now I will leave you to rest. Sleep is no less necessary for myself than for you; for this is the second night that has passed without him." Saying this, my friend left.

I now enjoy the free time to review my situation. I have no tendency to sleep. I lay down for a moment, but my uneasy feelings and restless contemplation did not allow me to rest. Before I entered this house, I was tormented with hunger; but my desire had given place to unrest and hatred. I paced back and forth, in an attentive and anxious mood, across the apartment floor.

I reflect on the incidents told by Estwick , on the nature of the destruction of this pestilence, and on the horrors it brings. I compare the experience of the last hours with the images that have drawn my imagination in the retirement of Malverton . I wonder at the contradiction that exists between the city and rural landscape; and cultivate, with more vigor than ever, the resolution to avoid that seat of depravity and danger.

Regarding my own fate, however, I have no doubt. My new sensation convinced me that my stomach had received this corrosive poison. Whether I should die or live was easily decided. A disease that can be eliminated by diligent presence and strong prescriptions will, due to negligence and solitude, be fatal; but from whom can I expect medical or hospitable treatment?

I have a roof over my head. I should not perish in public; but what is my basis for hoping to continue under this roof? My illness was suspected, I had to be dragged by train to the hospital; where I did have to die, but not with the consolation of loneliness and silence. The dying moans were the only music, and the wrathful corpses were the only spectacle, where I had to be introduced there.