Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

to know what business could have taken fo old and poor a man so far a journey from his own home.

It had pleased heaven, he said, to bless him with three fons, the finest lads in all Germany; but having in one week loft two of the eldest of them by the small-pox, and the youngest falling ill of the fame distemper, he was afraid of being bereft of them all; and made a vow, if Heaven would not take him from him also, he would go in gra. titude to St. Iago in Spain.

[ocr errors]

When the mourner got thus far on his story, he stopp'd to pay nature her tribute-and wept bitterly.

He faid, Heaven had accepted the conditions; and that he had fet out

from his cottage with this poor creature, who had been a patient partner of his journey that it had eat the same bread with him all the way, and was unto him as a friend.

[ocr errors]

Every body who stood about, heard the poor fellow with concern-La Fleur offered him money. - The mourner said, he did not want it-it was not the value of the ass-but the lofs of hima -The ass, he said, he was affured loved him and upon this told them a long story of a mischance upon their passage over the Pyrenean mountains which had feparated them from each other three days; during which time the ass had fought him as much as he had fought the ass, and that they had neither scarce eat or drank till they met.

Thou hast one comfort, friend, faid

I, at least in the lofs of thy poor beaft; I'm fure thou hast been a merciful master to him. -Alas! faid the mourner, I thought so, when he was alive-but now that he is dead I think otherwise. I fear the weight of myself and my afflictions together have been too much for him-they have shortened the poor creature's days, and I fear I have them to answer for. - Shame on the world! faid I to myself-Did we love each other, as this poor foul but loved his afs-'twould be fomething

NAMPONT.

THE POSTILLION.

THE concern which the poor fel. low's flory threw me into, required fome attention: the postillion paid not the least to it, but set off upon the pavé in a full gallop.

The thirstiest foul in the most fandy defart of Arabia could not have wished more for a cup of cold water, than mine did for grave and quiet movements; and I should have had an high opinion of the postillion had he but stolen off with me in something like a penfive pace. On the contrary, as the mourner finished his lamentations, the fellow gave an unfeeling lash to each of his beafts, and set off clattering like a thousand devils.

I called to him as loud as I could, for heaven's fake to go flower-and the louder I called the more unmercifully he galloped. The deuce take him and his galloping too-faid I he'll go on tearing my nerves to pieces till he has worked me into a foolish paffion, and then he'll go flow, that I may enjoy the sweets of it.

The postillion managed the point to a miracle: by the time he had got to the foot of a steep hill about half a league from Nampont, he had put me out of temper with him and then with myself, for being fo.

My cafe then required a different treatment; and a good rattling gallop would have been of real service to me.

-Then, prithee get on- get on,

my good lad, faid I,

The

« ZurückWeiter »