"I lay on my straw, but I could not sleep. I
thought of the occurrences of the day. What chiefly struck me was
the gentle manners of these people; and I longed to join them, but
dared not. I remembered too well the treatment I had suffered the
night before from the barbarous villagers, and resolved, whatever
course of conduct I might hereafter think it right to pursue, that
for the present I would remain quietly in my hovel, watching, and
endeavouring to discover the motives which influenced their actions.
"The cottagers arose the next morning before the sun. The
young woman arranged the cottage, and prepared the food; and the
youth departed after the first meal. "This day was passed in the
same routine as that which preceded it. The young man was constantly
employed out of doors, and the girl in various laborious occupations
within. The old man, whom I soon perceived to be blind, employed his
leisure hours on his instrument or in contemplation. Nothing could
exceed the love and respect which the younger cottagers exhibited
towards their venerable companion. They performed towards him every
little office of affection and duty with gentleness; and he rewarded
them by his benevolent smiles.
"They were not entirely happy.
The young man and his companion often went apart, and appeared to
weep. I saw no cause for their unhappiness; but I was deeply
affected by it. If such lovely creatures were miserable, it was less
strange that I, an imperfect and solitary being, should be wretched.
Yet why were these gentle being unhappy? They possessed a delightful
house (for such it was in my eyes) and every luxury; they had a fire
to warm them when chill, and delicious viands when hungry; they were
dressed in excellent clothes; and, still more, they enjoyed one
another's company and speech, interchanging each day looks of
affection and kindness. What did their tears imply? Did they really
express pain? I was at first unable to solve these questions; but
perpetual attention and time explained to me many appearances which
were at first enigmatic.
"A considerable period elapsed
before I discovered one of the causes of the uneasiness of this
amiable family: it was poverty; and they suffered that evil in a
very distressing degree. Their nourishment consisted entirely of the
vegetables of their garden, and the milk of one cow, which gave very
little during the winter, when its masters could scarcely procure
food to support it. They often, I believe, suffered the pangs of
hunger very poignantly, especially the two younger cottagers; for
several times they placed food before the old man when they reserved
none for themselves.
"This trait of kindness moved me
sensibly. I had been accustomed, during the night, to steal a part
of their store for my own consumption; but when I found that in
doing this I inflicted pain on the cottagers, I abstained, and
satisfied myself with berries, nuts, and roots, which I gathered
from a neighbouring wood.
"I discovered also another means
through which I was enabled to assist their labours. I found that
the youth spent a great part of each day in collecting wood for the
family fire; and, during the night, I often took his tools, the use
of which I quickly discovered, and brought home firing sufficient
for the consumption of several days.
"I remember the first
time that I did this the young woman, when she opened the door in
the morning, appeared greatly astonished on seeing a great pile of
wood on the outside. She uttered some words in a loud voice, and the
youth joined her, who also expressed surprise. I observed, with
pleasure, that he did not go to the forest that day, but spent it in
repairing the cottage and cultivating the garden.
"By
degrees I made a discovery of still greater moment. I found that
these people possessed a method of communicating their experience
and feelings to one another by articulate sounds. I perceived that
the words they spoke sometimes produced pleasure or pain, smiles or
sadness, in the minds and countenances of the hearers. This was
indeed a godlike science, and I ardently desired to become
acquainted with it. But I was baffled in every attempt I made for
this purpose. Their pronunciation was quick; and the words they
uttered, not having any apparent connection with visible objects, I
was unable to discover any clue by which I could unravel the mystery
of their reference. By great application, however, and after having
remained during the space of several revolutions of the moon in my
hovel, I discovered the names that were given to some of the most
familiar objects of discourse; I learned and applied the words,
fire, milk, bread, and wood. I learned also the
names of the cottagers themselves. The youth and his companion had
each of them several names, but the old man had only one, which was
father. The girl was called sister, or Agatha;
and the youth Felix, brother, or son. I cannot
describe the delight I felt when I learned the ideas appropriated to
each of these sounds, and was able to pronounce them. I
distinguished several other words, without being able as yet to
understand or apply them; such as good, dearest, unhappy.
"I spent the winter in this manner. The gentle manners and
beauty of the cottagers greatly endeared them to me: when they were
unhappy, I felt depressed; when they rejoiced, I sympathised in
their joys. I saw few human beings beside them; and if any other
happened to enter the cottage, their harsh manners and rude gait
only enhanced to me the superior accomplishments of my friends. The
old man, I could perceive, often endeavoured to encourage his
children, as sometimes I found that he called them, to cast off
their melancholy. He would talk in a cheerful accent, with an
expression of goodness that bestowed pleasure even upon me. Agatha
listened with respect, her eyes sometimes filled with tears, which
she endeavoured to wipe away unperceived; but I generally found that
her countenance and tone were more cheerful after having listened to
the exhortations of her father. It was not thus with Felix. He was
always the saddest of the group; and, even to my unpractised senses,
he appeared to have suffered more deeply than his friends. But if
his countenance was more sorrowful, his voice was more cheerful than
that of his sister, especially when he addressed the old man.
"I could mention innumerable instances, which, although
slight, marked the dispositions of these amiable cottagers. In the
midst of poverty and want, Felix carried with pleasure to his sister
the first little white flower that peeped out from beneath the snowy
ground. Early in the morning, before she had risen, he cleared away
the snow that obstructed her path to the milkhouse, drew water from
the well, and brought the wood from the out-house, where, to his
perpetual astonishment, he found his store always replenished by an
invisible hand. In the day, I believe, he worked sometimes for a
neighbouring farmer, because he often went forth, and did not return
until dinner, yet brought no wood with him. At other times he worked
in the garden; but, as there was little to do in the frosty season,
he read to the old man and Agatha.
"This reading had puzzled
me extremely at first; but, by degrees, I discovered that he uttered
many of the same sounds when he read as when he talked. I
conjectured, therefore, that he found on the paper signs for speech
which he understood, and I ardently longed to comprehend these also;
but how was that possible, when I did not even understand the sounds
for which they stood as signs? I improved, however, sensibly in this
science, but not sufficiently to follow up any kind of conversation,
although I applied my whole mind to the endeavour: for I easily
perceived that, although I eagerly longed to discover myself to the
cottagers, I ought not to make the attempt until I had first become
master of their language; which knowledge might enable me to make
them overlook the deformity of my figure; for with this also the
contrast perpetually presented to my eyes had made me acquainted.
"I had admired the perfect forms of my cottagers--their
grace, beauty, and delicate complexions: but how was I terrified
when I viewed myself in a transparent pool! At first I started back,
unable to believe that it was indeed I who was reflected in the
mirror; and when I became fully convinced that I was in reality the
monster that I am, I was filled with the bitterest sensations of
despondence and mortification. Alas! I did not yet entirely know the
fatal effects of this miserable deformity.
"As the sun
became warmer, and the light of day longer, the snow vanished, and I
beheld the bare trees and the black earth. From this time Felix was
more employed; and the heart-moving indications of impending famine
disappeared. Their food, as I afterwards found, was coarse, but it
was wholesome; and they procured a sufficiency of it. Several new
kinds of plants sprung up in the garden, which they dressed; and
these signs of comfort increased daily as the season advanced.
"The old man, leaning on his son, walked each day at noon,
when it did not rain, as I found it was called when the heavens
poured forth its waters. This frequently took place; but a high wind
quickly dried the earth, and the season became far more pleasant
than it had been.
"My mode of life in my hovel was uniform.
During the morning, I attended the motions of the cottagers; and
when they were dispersed in various occupations I slept: the
remainder of the day was spent in observing my friends. When they
had retired to rest, if there was any moon, or the night was
star-light, I went into the woods, and collected my own food and
fuel for the cottage. When I returned, as often as it was necessary,
I cleared their path from the snow, and performed those offices that
I had seen done by Felix. I afterwards found that these labours,
performed by an invisible hand, greatly astonished them; and once or
twice I heard them, on these occasions, utter the words good
spirit, wonderful; but I did not then understand the
signification of these terms.
"My thoughts now became more
active, and I longed to discover the motives and feelings of these
lovely creatures; I was inquisitive to know why Felix appeared so
miserable and Agatha so sad. I thought (foolish wretch!) that it
might be in my power to restore happiness to these deserving people.
When I slept, or was absent, the forms of the venerable blind
father, the gentle Agatha, and the excellent Felix flitted before
me. I looked upon them as superior beings, who would be the arbiters
of my future destiny. I formed in my imagination a thousand pictures
of presenting myself to them, and their reception of me. I imagined
that they would be disgusted, until, by my gentle demeanour and
conciliating words, I should first win their favour, and afterwards
their love.
"These thoughts exhilarated me, and led me to
apply with fresh ardour to the acquiring the art of language. My
organs were indeed harsh, but supple; and although my voice was very
unlike the soft music of their tones, yet I pronounced such words as
I understood with tolerable ease. It was as the ass and the lap-dog;
yet surely the gentle ass whose intentions were affectionate,
although his manners were rude, deserved better treatment than blows
and execration.
"The pleasant showers and genial warmth of
spring greatly altered the aspect of the earth. Men, who before this
change seemed to have been hid in caves, dispersed themselves, and
were employed in various arts of cultivation. The birds sang in more
cheerful notes, and the leaves began to bud forth on the trees.
Happy, happy earth! fit habitation for gods, which, so short a time
before, was bleak, damp, and unwholesome. My spirits were elevated
by the enchanting appearance of nature; the past was blotted from my
memory, the present was tranquil, and the future gilded by bright
rays of hope and anticipations of joy."
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