ARTHUR
53

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.

Immersed in this gloomy meditation, the night passed. The light peeking through the window woke up in my chest a glimmer of cheerfulness. Contrary to my expectations, my feelings were no more disturbed, even though I wanted to sleep, than on the last night. This is a sign that my circumstances are far from as desperate as I thought. It's possible, I thought, that this was the worst condition I had to endure.

Meanwhile, Estwick's arrival was impatient. The sun had risen, and the morning had risen, but he had not come. I remember that he was talking about having a reason to regret his visit to this house. Maybe he was sick too, and this was the cause of his delay. This guy even has my love. If I knew the way to his abode, I should have rushed there, to inquire about his condition, and performed for him every task that mankind might command; but he didn't give me any information about that head.

It is now my duty to find a place to live in Thetford. Leaving this house accessible to every passenger seems unwise. I don't have a key to lock the main door. Therefore I locked it on the inside, and passed through a window, which leaves my window closed, although I could not tighten it behind me. This led me to a large field, at the end of which was a brick wall, where I jumped into the street. This is the way I used before to escape from the same area.

The streets, as I passed by, were quiet and desolate. The greatest calculation makes the number of fugitives two-thirds of the whole person; however, judging from the universal destruction, it seems that solitude is almost absolute. That so many houses were closed, I was forced to assume traffic jams, which rendered their window openings useless, and the terror of infection, which made its inhabitants seclude themselves from each other's observation.

I went on to find the house where Estwick had directed me as the residence of Thetford. What worries me when I find the same thing at the door where the conversation took place where I became an auditor on the last night!

I remember a scene where rough sketches were given by the hearse people . If such was the fate of the family master, who was rich with money and friends, what could be expected of a moneyless and friendless Wallace? The house seemed empty and silent; but these tokens might be deceiving. There is little room for hope; but the certainty of wanting, and perhaps, perhaps, is gained by entering the house. In some of the upper rooms, wretched beings may be locked up; by whom the information, which is very desirable, may be given, and to whom my presence may bring relief, not only from pestilence, not only from pestilence, but also hunger. For a moment, I forgot my own important condition, and did not realize that abstinence had weakened my strength.

I proceeded to knock on the door. That my signal was not noticed was not surprising. The door was unlocked, and I opened it. At this time my attention was drawn to the opening of another door near me. I looked, and saw a man coming out of a house in the distance.

It now occurred to me, that the information I was looking for might be obtained from one of Thetford's neighbors. This person was old, but did not seem to lose his cheerfulness or spirit. He had an aura of courage and calmness. It soon appeared that I was the object of his curiosity. He, perhaps, had marked my conduct through the window of his dwelling, and had gone out to investigate the motives of my actions.

He politely saluted me. "It looks like you," he said, "looking for someone. If I could give you the information you want, you'd receive it."

"It's true" he said. “Yesterday he, his wife, and his son, were in a desperate condition. I saw them at night, and hoped not to find them alive this morning. However, as soon as it was a bright day, I visited the house again; but found it empty. I guess they must have been dead, and moved at night."

Despite wanting to ascertain Wallace's fate, I am not willing to ask any direct questions. I shuddered, while I wanted to know the truth.

"Why," I said, stammered, "he did not withdraw from the city seasonally? Surely he has the means to buy asylum in this country."

"I can barely tell you, "he replied. "Some madness seems to have mastered it. No one was more afraid; but he seemed to consider himself safe as long as he avoided contact with an infected person. He was also, I believe, detained for his interests. His escape would do no more harm to his affairs than to anyone else; but profit, in his eyes, was the highest good. He had ultimately intended to retreat; but his escape today, gave him new courage to face tomorrow's danger. He delayed his departure day by day, until it could no longer be done."

"His family" I said, "a lot. Consists of more than his wife and children. Maybe they retired in a pretty season."

"Yes," he said; "his father left home at the beginning of the period. One or two servants also left him. One girl, more loyal and heroic than the others, rejects the reprimands of her parents and friends, and decides to follow her in every stroke of luck. He was anxious that the family would fly away from danger, and would willingly flee with them, but while they stayed, it was his unwavering determination not to abandon them.

"Oh, poor girl! He had no idea what material Thetford's heart was made of. Unfortunately, he is the first to fall ill. A few days, it will disappear by itself, or easily succumb to the appropriate treatment.

"Thetford was terrified. Instead of calling a doctor, to ascertain the nature of his symptoms, he called a nigger and his chariot from Bush Hill. In vain the neighbors mediate these unhappy victims. In vain he begged for his gratification, and affirmed the severity of his illness.He asked him to allow him to send to his mother, who lived a few miles in the countryside, which would hasten his help, he said, and freed him and his family from the dangers and difficulties of caring for him.

"The man was crazy from fear. He rejected his plea, though urged in a way that would conquer a fiery heart. The girl was innocent, and friendly, and brave, but comforted the invincible fear of the hospital. Finding the plea ineffective, he exerted all his strength to fight the man who lifted him onto the carriage.