The Second Macabre Megapack Page 2

  However groundless may have been the report, yet it was certain that the various families, who had occupied the parsonage, had each been visited by some sudden misfortune, in the untimely death of the male branches; and where there were twins, as had been several times the case, one of the pair was always selected as the victim.

  About the year 1750, the very respectable pastor, William Drummond, was elected to supply the church of the above mentioned village. For ten years after attaining manhood, he had been a candidate for the ministry; during the next ten, he had filled the place of Curate, with only forty pounds income; and as fifteen years had passed since he found himself an accepted lover, yet without possessing the means of marrying, it is not to be wondered at, that on becoming master of a hundred and sixty pounds per annum, his first act was to persuade his affectionate Joanna to enter into the holy bonds of matrimony, and to undertake the domestic economy of the parsonage, even though it were haunted by as many ghosts as there were leaves on the trees. About a year after their marriage, the honest couple were made happy by the birth of two sons, who, in memory of their grandfathers, were baptised by the same names, one being called John William and the other William John, a bright idea, which had its origin in the pastor’s own brain. Until this time Drummond had paid little attention to the stories circulated with regard to his dwelling, and often playfully observed that, as yet, he had not even had a sight of the hem of the Gray Lady’s garment, but when, after the birth of the twins, the village matrons hastened to offer their congratulations, with which were injudiciously mingled their hopes and prayers, that heaven would avert from the children the dark prophecy which had been accomplished in so many instances, his wife became so wretchedly anxious to inquire into the truth of the story, as to excite her husband to a like degree, and he determined to look into the church archives and discover whether there was any clue to be found to the rumor. His examination, however, met with but trifling success; since the church books referring to earlier times were very defective, and after turning over pages of discolored and worm-eaten paper, he could find nothing to corroborate the legend, except a small, half-obliterated note, which ran as follows, and which seemed to glance at some such occurrence as the one in which he now felt so deeply interested. “In the year of our Lord’s birth 1670, I, Albertus Marstonius, Theologia Magister, caused the fallen stone cross, which stands in the corner of the church-yard to be again set upright. The Lord grant rest to the unhappy remains which lie beneath it.”

  Soon, however, Drummond received a stronger testimony through the following accident. It was on Monday, when the pastor sat in his study, busily engaged in writing out the heads of his next Sunday’s discourse. His wife, who, as an active and prudent housekeeper, contrived to get along with but one servant, had transported the cradle of the twins into her husband’s study, who, as she said, could easily give an eye to them, while she was stirring about the house; and thus the respectable pastor might be seen industriously wielding his pen, while from time to time he touched the cradle with his foot, as a whine from its drowsy inmates threatened a speedy outburst. Two hours had thus passed, when his wife entered the room, bearing in her hand a tattered and dusty roll of paper.

  “You know, Magister,” said she, for so she called her husband, “I have been busy today putting the house in order.”

  “No doubt, my dear, that is your favorite employment,” he rejoined, with something of a sigh.

  “Nay! but you cannot reproach me for destroying any of your manuscripts this time; on the contrary, I have found this paper behind the chimney;” with these words she laid the roll on her husband’s writing-desk and retired.

  On turning over the sheets, Mr. Drummond discovered that the manuscript was a sort of chronicle, left by one of his predecessors, many years before; among items referring to conflagrations, floods, and the scarcity of provisions, he came across the following. “On the 17th of October I had the misfortune to lose my beloved son Henry, who was accidentally killed by his brother Charles while hunting, thus has the prophecy been fearfully full filled in my family.” Again, in another place, Drummond met with the following paragraph.

  “(Wednesday before Jubilate.) This morning I paid a visit to my brother in Christ, Paul Aiken, who is now seventy-eight years of age, and having been Curate of the parish of Penrith for the last fifty years, is a living chronicle of the events of that neighborhood. Speaking of the fate of my unhappy son, as connected with the singular prophecy, my worthy friend informed me that the circumstances regarding the widow were really true, since, from a well authenticated source, he had learned that she was the partner of the first Protestant minister in the village, and at the death of her husband, had hired a room from his successor in the parsonage. Her proud and impetuous temper, caused her, however, to be continually at strife with the Curate’s wife, till one day, when the twin boys of the latter were quarrelling on the stairs, greatly disturbing her by their noise, she rushed out and attacked them so furiously that one of them pushed the other over the balustrade, who thus received a blow of which he ultimately died. Exasperated by her harsh conduct, the Curate insisted that she should immediately leave his house; when carried beyond all bounds, she exclaimed:

  “Yes, I will go, but in a different manner from what you imagine, for I will still visit it often; yes, as long as one stone stands upon another. You acquit me of the death of your son. I am innocent, since it was his brother who gave him the unlucky push; and as a proof of my innocence, I swear I that will bring misfortune on every family who may, in after time, occupy this accursed house.’ On the following morning she was found dead on the stone bench under the yew tree, while the dregs of a white powder in a glass at her side, left no doubt but that she had taken poison.”

  The minister was not a little shocked by this unexpected testimony; and although neither he or his wife had yet met with the least trace of the ghost, he could not hide from her his newly gotten and painful information, and while their thoughts turned continually on this one subject, they watched their children with an anxiety, which it is impossible to conceive.

  The twins grew rapidly into beautiful boys. William, who was quiet and of a thoughtful disposition, had the blue eyes and fair complexion of his mother; while the lively and unmanageable John resembled his father in his dark hair and skin.

  As neither showed any decided turn for study their father determined to allow them both to enter on a sea-faring life, several of his relatives having become distinguished in that line, and almost anxiously he looked forward to the time when the boys could be separated; since even in their sports their mother particularly watched them with intense anxiety, as though a dark fate hung over them, and although devotedly attached to each other, it seemed at any moment the fatal prophecy might be accomplished.

  These secret anxieties were greatly increased by the observations of their kind but ill-judging neighbors, who, when they visited them, would declare how much they rejoiced that no evil had yet befallen the twins; so much so, that Mrs. Drummond, loving her boys as she did, hardly shed a tear when the time came for them to separate, William, who was destined for the navy, to enter the naval school at Portsmouth; and John, who was intended for a merchant ship, to go to Liverpool. She even rejoiced with her husband, that they would thus, at least for several years, be safe from the curse of “the Gray Woman,” and they both determined, if possible, to prevent them from visiting home at the same time.

  In the course of a few years the wishes of the parents seemed fully realized; since the career of the youths lay in entirely opposite paths. William, who had already distinguished himself as a midshipman by his activity and love of order, had risen to the rank of a lieutenant on board a ship-of-war which lay at Plymouth; and by the command of his superior officer, had gone to Liverpool to lay in sea stores. John, in the mean-while, after making several voyages as chief helmsman, was now the captain of a merchant ship trading with Havana and North America; and while at Liverpool, his brother
heard respecting him, that he was a most enterprising seaman, fearless of danger, and almost always successful in his undertakings, though it was hinted that he had already made a little fortune by smuggling.

  It was about twelve months after the above mentioned period, when the rich merchant, Samuel Barlow, sat in his small chamber attached to his counting room in Liverpool, busily engaged in reading a letter just received from a mercantile friend in Jamaica. His book-keeper and factotum, a spare man of about sixty, sat at a desk, noting down in a book whatever his principal dictated.

  “Seventy boxes of hardware. Have you that down, Nathaniel?”

  The writer bowed assent

  “This next is a singular item,” observed Mr. Barlow, “but shall be attended to.” He read as follows: “Having determined to marry, and being unable to procure a suitable girl in Jamaica, I wish you to send me by the next ship a young lady possessing the following requisites. She must be about middle size, with an agreeable countenance, neither below twenty or beyond twenty-five years of age, of a good constitution, and sound in health, so as to be able to bear the change of climate. This last requisite is particularly desirable, since by her early loss I should be subjected to the repeated trouble of looking out for another. With regard to property I am indifferent, only desiring that the said person should come from a respectable family; and with your endorsement, I pledge myself to accept and marry her in fourteen days after sight.”

  “This item will cost us some trouble,” said the book-keeper, pressing his hand to his brow. “Our best plan will be to insert an advertisement in the Liverpool Reporter.”

  “No, Nathaniel,” observed the principal; “that matter is already settled, since I will do the business entirely in my own firm. When does the Fortune sail? Tomorrow? Hum, had it been only a week later, we could have readily filled up this item. I will, however, write by that vessel to Hoskins & Co. So take your pen, Nat.” Mr. Barlow dictated as follows: “Sir, according to order, you will receive by the next vessel a girl of one-and-twenty years of age, of the family, size and constitution specified.”

  “Shall we mention her name?”

  “No! Hoskins & Co. might suppose we took advantage of them by sending my niece, and countermand the order. Should she, however, reach Kingston before they are apprised of the fact, they must comply with their promise, whether willing or not.”

  “What” cried Nathaniel, rousing from his usual apathy; “Is it Miss Eliza Barlow to whom you refer?”

  “Certainly!” replied the principal. “Why should I let such a good speculation escape us? Hoskins & Co. are a house of long standing, a respectable firm, one of the best in Jamaica; and why should not my niece marry that firm.”

  “But will it not cause some talk both here and in Jamaica!”

  “Not in Jamaica; since no one will be aware of her relationship with us. And what house here can find fault, if possessing an article which exactly suits, I should use it to fill up an order, instead of looking further? As for what those may say who do not understand business, I care nothing.”

  “That is all well and good, but what will Miss Eliza think? They say women have odd notions on such subjects, and perhaps her views may not coincide with yours.”

  “Nonsense!” exclaimed Mr. Barlow. “Hoskins & Co. are a house with whom any one would be glad to do business. However,” he continued after a pause of thought; “the girl may possibly raise objections, and were our aviso despatched, and a different article sent from what we promised, the same might be considered a breach of faith. Thank heaven! such a fault has never been committed by Samuel Barlow & Co. And as you, Nat, understand women better than I do, having courted that French Governess thirty years ago, though fortunately you did escape out of the net, I should like to have your opinion on the subject.”

  “Would it not be best for you,” replied Nathaniel respectfully, “to hold a consultation with Miss Eliza before I despatch the letter?”

  “Do you think so?” observed Mr. Barlow, impatiently. “I wish Hoskins & Co. had sent for twenty boxes of dry goods, rather than for this girl. However, we must know how the business stands before tomorrow; therefore summon my niece at once, and if she decides in the negative, as she may foolishly do, you must immediately put an advertisement in the Reporter. This will appear by eight o’clock, so that any person may apply before ten o’clock, allowing us time to write definitely by the Fortune.”

  Nathaniel simply bowed and left the cabinet, to do as requested.

  Eliza Barlow was the daughter of Samuel Barlow’s deceased brother, and was only taken into her uncle’s house through fear of what commercial men might think, should he leave the orphan to struggle alone with poverty and loneliness. After giving her an education in a boarding school, he took her home at sixteen; though without allowing her to shew any interest in the domestic arrangements, since an old house-keeper possessed an entire sway over the mansion, as did Nathaniel the counting room. She saw her uncle only at meals, and if absent throughout the day no questions were asked, but the equipage or servant was always ready to attend her, without any intimation to Mr. Barlow, who was never more displeased than when she went to him with a request. Until this moment the thought of Eliza’s marrying had not entered his mind, but now it flashed like a gleam of lightning.

  Although greatly surprised by the summons, for she had never ventured into her uncle’s counting room, Eliza hastened to obey it, first by pushing in her pocket a letter she had just been perusing. As Nathaniel opened the door, and she appeared before Mr. Barlow, he looked at her from head to foot, as if determining how far she fulfilled the requisites specified in his friend’s letter, till, as if satisfied with the investigation, he cheerfully invited her to take a seat, and at once opened the business.

  “Are you acquainted with the firm of Hoskins & Co. of Kingston, Jamaica? They deal in hardware and dry goods.”

  “It is the first time I ever heard the name, uncle,” replied Eliza, astonished at the enquiry.

  “It is a most respectable house, firm and solid in every respect.”

  “That is certainly advantageous for those who have anything to do with them,” observed Eliza, smilingly.

  “Yes! and for yourself who may also be concerned with them.”

  “Pray in what way could it be, uncle?”

  “Very easily! very easily!” he exclaimed—“Hoskins & Co. wish to marry you.”

  “Impossible!” cried the maiden. “As I said before, the name of Hoskins is quite unfamiliar; nay, I do not know whether the man is young or old.”

  “Neither can I exactly tell you his age, only I know he is not one of those whiskered fellows who cluster on Sundays under the church porch, molesting women by their stares; but probably a sedate person, since I have transacted business with him for the last thirty years.”

  “Mr. Hoskins may be a very respectable gentleman,” replied Eliza, “yet surely it is ridiculous in one of his years to think of marrying a girl whom he has never seen.”

  “No! he is a man of good sense,” replied the uncle, “whom we have supplied with many hundred boxes of dry goods and hardware, and who puts entire trust in Samuel Barlow & Co.”

  “Then probably the idea of my marrying him originated with you,” observed his niece, now fast rousing to a suspicion of the truth.

  “No! not exactly, child,” replied the merchant, handing her the business letter. “Here read for yourself that item number eight, and say whether you are willing to comply with the terms; for if not, an advertisement will be presently sent to the Reporter, which is issued at 4 o’clock, P. M.”

  On reading this epistle, Eliza at first hardly knew whether to be angry or amused by her uncle’s conduct; soon however the sad truth forced itself upon her, that the rich merchant felt towards her none of the pleasant ties of consanguinity; but that hitherto she had been fed and tended like a parrot in a cage, without being of use to any one, and only reserved for some moment when she might be bartered or disposed of lik
e merchandise. Her first thought was to decline the match decidedly, her second to try and restrain the words in which she was about to express her angry feelings; and to reply to her uncle as though the whole was a mere business matter, since although he had never expressed towards her the slightest attachment, she could not forget he was her father’s brother and had bestowed on her a home and education.

  “I am sorry, uncle,” she said, “that I cannot enter upon this very respectable connexion; but in case of your consent, I may comply with another offer which I have just received.”

  “Indeed!” said Mr. Barlow, bowing. “Is it as advantageous as that of Hoskins & Co?”

  “Probably not as lucrative,” replied Eliza. “It is a seaman who has made me the offer.”

  “A seaman! And are you not aware that the life of such a man depends greatly upon wind and weather?”

  “And is not your merchandise, including myself, in case I should be sent, liable to the same risks?” remarked his niece somewhat bitterly.

  “My goods are always insured.”

  “And I will have my husband insured.”

  “In a towline? A good notion, girl, I did not give you credit for so much thoughtfulness. Where did you get acquainted with this seaman?”

  “I can hardly say I am acquainted; I only have cause to suspect that he is the handsome young man who has boarded opposite for several months, and whom I have often seen from my window; his name is Drummond, and here is his letter.”

  So saying, she drew the epistle from her pocket, and handed it to her uncle. It was brief, and written in a seafaring style. The writer commenced by saying that he had frequently seen Eliza at a distance, and believed that she had noticed him also. That his business had not allowed him to seek a nearer acquaintance, but that being about to sail, he could not deny himself the pleasure of offering her his hand, fearful as he was that she might be won by some one else before his return. He entreated an early answer, desiring her to send her letter to the firm of Gibbs & Sons, who would be acquainted with his direction, in case her uncle was ignorant of the same. He signed himself “J.W. Drummond.”