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steals apples when he ought to be saying his what was his surprise, on his arrival, to see,
prayers?
on a little bed on the floor, poaching Giles
lying in all the agonies of death! Jack Wes-

Boy. No, master.
Master. What command does he break?ton, the same poor young man against whom
Boy. The fourth.

Master. Suppose this boy had parents who had sent him to church, and that he had disobeyed them by not going, would that be keeping the fifth commandment?

Giles had informed for killing a hare, was
kneeling by him, offering him some broth,
and talking to him in the kindest manner.
Mr. Wilson begged to know the meaning
of all this; and Jack Weston spoke as fol-

Boy. No, master; for the fifth command-lows: ment says, Thou shalt honour thy father and thy mother.

At four in the morning, as I was going out to mow, passing under the high wall of This was the only part of the case in this garden, I heard a most dismal moanwhich poor Dick Giles's heart did not ing. The nearer I came the more dismal smite him; he knew he had disobeyed no it grew. At last, who should I see but poor father; for his father, alas! was still wick- Giles groaning, and struggling under a eder than himself, and had brought him up quantity of bricks and stones, but not able to to commit the sin. But what a wretched stir. The day before he had marked a fine comfort was this! The master went on. large net on this old wall, and resolved to Master. Suppose this boy earnestly co-steal it, for he thought it might do as well veted this fruit, though it belonged to ano-to catch partridges as to preserve cherries; ther person, would that be right? so, sir, standing on the very top of this wall,

Boy. No, master; for the tenth command-and tugging with all his might to loosen the ment says, Thou shalt not covet.

Master. Very well. Here are four of God's positive commands already broken. Now do you think thieves ever scruple to use wicked words?

Boy. I am afraid not, master.

Here Dick Giles was not so hardened but that he remembered how many curses had passed between him and his father while they were filling the bags, and he was afraid to look up. The master went on.

net from the hooks which fastened it, down came Giles, net, wall, and all; for the wall was gone to decay. It was very high indeed, and poor Giles not only broke his thigh, but has got a terrible blow on his head, and is bruised all over like a mummy. On seeing me, sir, poor Giles cried out, Oh, Jack! I did try to ruin thee by lodging that information, and now thou wilt be revenged by letting me lie here and perish.' "God forbid, Giles! cried I; thou shalt see I will now go one step further. If the what sort of revenge a Christian takes.' So, thief, to all his other sins, has added that of sir, I sent off the gardener's boy to fetch a accusing the innocent to save himself, if he surgeon, while I scampered home and should break the ninth commandment, by brought on my back this bit of a hammock, bearing false witness against a harmless which is indeed my own bed, and put Giles neighbour, then six commandments are upon it: we then lifted him up, bed and broken for an apple! But if it be otherwise, all, as tenderly as if he had been a gentleif Tom Price should be found guilty, it is not his good character shall save him. I shall shed tears over him, but punish him I must, and that severely. No, that you shan't,' roared out Dick Giles, who sprung from his hiding place, fell on his knees, and burst out a crying, Tom Price is as good a boy as ever lived; it was father and I who stole the apples!'

man, and brought him in here. My wife
has just brought him a drop of nice broth;
and now, sir, as I have done what I could
for this poor perishing body, it was I who
took the liberty to send to you to come to
try to help his poor soul, for the doctor says
he can't live.

Mr. Wilson could not help saying to himself, Such an action as this is worth a whole It would have done your heart good to volume of comments on that precept of our have seen the joy of the master, the modest blessed Master, Love your enemies; do good blushes of Tom Price, and the satisfaction to them that hate you. Giles's dying groans of every honest boy in the school. All shook confirmed the sad account Weston had just hands with Tom, and even Dick got some given. The poor wretch could neither pray portion of pity. I wish I had room to give himself nor attend to the minister. He could my readers the moving exhortation which only cry out, Oh! sir, what will become of the master gave. But while Mr. Wilsen left me? I don't know how to repent, O my the guilty boy to the management of the poor wicked children! Sir, I have bred them master, he thought it became him, as a mi- all up in sin and ignorance. Have mercy on nister and a magistrate, to go to the extent them, sir; let me not meet them in the place of the law in punishing the father. Early of torment to which I am going. Lord grant on the Monday morning he sent to appre- them that time for repentance which I have hend Giles. In the meantime Mr. Wilson thrown away! He languished a few days, was sent for to a gardener's house two miles and died in great misery:-a fresh and sad distant, to attend a man who was dying. instance that people who abuse the grace of This was a duty to which all others gave God and resist his Spirit, find it difficult to way in his mind. He set out directly; but repent when they will.

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Except the minister and Jack Weston, no to deny himself, and to forgive an injury. one came to see poor Giles, besides Tommy Mr. Wilson the next Sunday, made a movPrice, who had been so sadly wronged by ing discourse on the danger of what are callhim. Tom often brought him his own rice-ed petty offences. This, together with the milk or apple-dumpling; and Giles, igno- awful death of Giles, produced such an efrant and depraved as he was, often cried out, fect, that no poacher has been able to show "That he thought now there must be some his head in that parish ever since. truth in religion, since it taught even a boy

TAWNEY RACHEL;

OR, THE FORTUNE TELLER:

WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF DREAMS, OMENS, AND CONJURORS.

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TAWNEY RACHEL was the wife of poach- the house of farmer Jenkins. She contrived ing Giles. There seemed to be a conspiracy to call when she knew the master of the in Giles's whole family to maintain them-house was from home, which indeed was her selves by tricks and pilfering. Regular la- usual way. She knocked at the door; the bour and honest industry did not suit their maids being in the field haymaking, Mrs. idle habits. They had a sort of genius at Jenkins went to open it herself. Rachel finding out every unlawful means to sup-asked her if she would please to let her light port a vagaboud life. Rachel travelled the her pipe? This was a common pretence, country with a basket on her arm. She pre-when she could find no other way of getting tended to get her bread by selling laces, cab-into a house. While she was filling her pipe, bage-nets, ballads and history books, and she looked at Mrs. Jenkins, and said, she used to buy old rags and rabbit skins. Ma- could tell her some good fortune. The farny honest people trade in these things, and I mer's wife, who was a very inoffensive, but a am sure I do not mean to say a word against weak and superstitious woman, was curious honest people, let them trade in what they to know what she meant. Rachel then lookwill. But Rachel only made this traffic aed about carefully, and shutting the door pretence for getting admittance into farmers' with a mysterious air, asked her if she was kitchens in order to tell fortunes. sure nobody would hear them. This appearShe was continually practising on the cre-ance of mystery was at once delightful and dulity of silly girls; and took advantage of terrifying to Mrs. Jenkins, who, with tremtheir ignorance to cheat and deceive them.bling agitation, bid the cunning woman Many an innocent servant has she caused to speak out. Then,' said Rachel in a solemn be suspected of a robbery, while she her- whisper, there is to my certain knowledge self, perhaps, was in league with the thief. a pot of money hid under one of the stones in Many a harmless maid has she brought to your cellar.'—' Indeed!' said Mrs. Jenkins, ruin by first contriving plots and events her- it is impossible, for now I think of it, I self, and then pretending to foretel_them. dreamt last night I was in prison for debt.' She had not, to be sure, the power of really 'Did you really?' said Rachel; ‘that is quite fortelling things, because she had no power surprising. Did you dream this before twelve of seeing into futurity: but she had the art o'clock or after?' it was this morning, sometimes to bring them about according as just before I awoke.'-'Then I am sure it is she foretold them. So she got that credit for true, for morning dreams always go by conher wisdom which really belonged to her traries,' cried Rachel. How lucky it was wickedness. you dreamt it so late.'-Mrs. Jenkins could Rachel was also a famous interpreter of hardly contain her joy, and asked how the dreams, and could distinguish exactly be-money was to be come at. There is but tween the fate of any two persons who hap-one way,' said Rachel; 'I must go into the pened to have a mole on the right or the left cellar. I know by my art under which stone cheek. She had a cunning way of getting it lies, but I must not tell.' Then they both herself off when any of her prophesies failed. When she explained a dream according to the natural appearance of things, and it did not come to pass; then she would get out of that scrape by saying, that this sort of dreams went by contraries. Now of two very opposite things, the chance always is that one of them may turn out to be true; so in either case she kept up the cheat.

Rachel, in one of her rambles, stopped at

went down into the cellar, but Rachel refused to point at the stone unless Mrs. Jenkins would put five pieces of gold into a basin and do as she directed. The simple woman, instead of turning her out of doors for a cheat, did as she was bid. She put the guineas into a basin which she gave into Rachel's hand. Rachel strewed some white powder over the gold, muttered some barbarous words, and pretended to perform the

black art. She then told Mrs. Jenkins to gown open than have taken a pin from an put the basin quietly down within the cel- old woman, for fear of being bewitched. far; telling her that if she offered to look in- Poor Sally had so many unlucky days in her to it, or even to speak a word, the charm calendar, that a large portion of her time would be broken. She also directed her to became of liittle use, because on these days lock the cellar door, and on no pretence to she did not dare set about any new work. open it in less than forty-eight hours. If,' And she would have refused the best offer added she, you closely follow these direc-in the country if made to her on a Friday, tions, then, by the power of my art, you will find the basin conveyed to the very stone under which the money lies hid, and a fine treasure it be!' Mrs. Jenkins, who firmly believed every word the woman said, did exactly as she was told, and Rachel took her leave with a handsome reward.

which she thought so unlucky a day that she often said what a pity it was that there were any Friday in the week. Sally had twenty pounds left her by her grandmother. She had long been courted by Jacob, a sober lad, with whom she lived fellow servant at a creditable farmer's. Honest Jacob, like his namesake of old, thought it little to wait seven years to get this damsel to wife, because of the love he bore her, for Sally had promised to marry him when he could match her twenty pounds with another of his own.

When farmer Jenkins came home he desired his wife to draw him a cup of cider; this she put off so long that he began to be displeased. At last she begged he would be so good as to drink a little beer instead. He insisted on knowing the reason, and when at last he grew angry, she told him all that had Now there was one Robert, a rambling passed; and owned that as the pot of gold idle young gardener, who, instead of sitting happened to be in the cider cellar, she did down steadily in one place, used to roam not dare open the door, as she was sure it about the country, and do odd jobs where he would break the charm. And it would be could get them. No one understood any a pity you know,' said she, 'to lose a good thing about him, except that he was a downfortune for the sake of a draught of cider.' looking fellow, who came nobody knew The farmer, who was not so easily imposed whence, and got his bread nobody knew upon, suspected a trick. He demanded the how, and never had a penny in his pocket. key, and went and opened the cellar door; Robert, who was now in the neighbourthere he found the basin, and in it five round hood, happened to hear of Sally Evans and pieces of tin covered with powder. Mrs. her twenty pounds. He immediately conJenkins burst out a-crying; but the farmer ceived a long desire for the latter. So he thought of nothing but of getting a warrant went to his old friend Rachel the fortuneto apprehend the cunning woman. Indeed teller, told her all he had heard of Sally, she well proved her claim to that name, and promised if she could bring about a marwhen she insisted that the cellar door might riage between them, she should go shares be kept locked till she had time to get out of in the money. the reach of all pursuit.

Rachel undertook the business. She set Poor Sally Evans! I am sure she rued the off to the farm-house, and fell to singing one day that ever she listened to a fortune-teller. of her most enticing songs just under the daiSally was as harmless a girl as ever churned ry window. Sally was so struck with the a pound of butter; but Sally was credulous, pretty tune, which was unhappily used, as ignorant, and superstitious. She delighted is too often the case, to set off some very in dream-books, and had consulted all the loose words, that she jumped up, dropped cunning women in the country to tell her the skimming dish into the cream and ran whether the two moles on her cheek denoted out to buy the song. While she stooped that she was to have two husbands, or two down to rummage the basket for those songs children. If she picked up an old horse-shoe which had the most tragical pictures (for going to church, she was sure that would be Sally had a tender heart, and delighted in a lucky week. She never made a black-whatever was mournful) Rachel looked stedpudding without borrowing one of the par- fastly in her face, and told her she knew by son's old wigs to hang in the chimney, firmly art that she was born to good fortune, but believing there was no other means to pre-advised her not to throw herself away. serve them from burning. She would never These two moles on your cheek,' added go to bed on Midsummer eve without stick- she, 'show you are in some danger.' 'Do ing up in her room the well-known plant they denote husbands or children?' cried called Midsummer-men, as the bending of Sally, starting up, and letting fall the song the leaves to the right or to the left, would of the Children in the Wood Husbands, not fail to tell her whether Jacob, of whom muttered Rachel-Alas! poor Jacob!' we shall speak presently, was true or false. said Sally, mournfully, then he will die She would rather go five miles about than pass near a church-yard at night. Every seventh year she would not eat beans because they grew downward in the pod, instead of upward; and, though a very neat girl, she would rather have gone with her VOL. I.

37

first, won't he? Mum for that,' quoth the fortune teller, I will say no more.' Sally was impatient, but the more curiosity she discovered, the more mystery Rachel affected. At last, she said, if you will cross my hand with a piece of silver, I will tell your

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fortune. By the power of my art I can do of this man.' 'Why so,' cried Sally, with this three ways; first by cards, next by the great quickness: Because,' answered Ralines on your hand, or by turning a cup of chel, you are fated to marry a man worth a tea grounds; which will you have? O, hundred of him, who has blue eyes, light all! all!' cried Sally, looking up with re-hair, and a stoop in the shoulders.' ́ ́No, inverence to this sun-burnt oracle of wisdom, deed, but I can't,' said Sally; '1 have prowho was possessed of no less than three dif-mised Jacob, and Jacob I will marry.' You ferent ways of diving into the secrets of fu- cannot, child,' returned Rachel in a solemn turity. Alas! persons of better sense than tone; it is out of your power, you are fated Sally have been so taken in; the more is to marry the gray eyes and light hair. Nay, the pity. The poor girl said she would run indeed,' said Sally, sighing deeply, if I am up stairs to her little box where she kept her fated, I must; I know there's no resisting money tied up in a bit of an old glove, and one's fate.' This is a common cant with would bring down a bright queen Ann's six-poor deluded girls, who are not aware that pence very crooked. I am sure,' added they themselves make their fate by their she, it is a lucky one, for it cured me of a folly, and then complain there is no resistvery bad ague last spring, by only laying it ing it. 'What can I do?' said Sally. __‘I nine nights under my pillow without speak-will tell you that, too,' said Rachel. ing a word. But then you must know what must take a walk next Sunday afternoon to gave the virtue to this sixpence was, that it the church-yard, and the first man you had belonged to three young men of the name meet in a blue coat, with a large posy of of John; I am sure I had work enough to pinks and southern-wood in his bosom, sitget it. But true it is, it certainly cured me.ting on the church-yard wall, about seven It must be the sixpence you know, for I am 'Provided,' sure I did nothing else for my ague, except indeed taking some bitter stuff every three hours which the doctor called bark. To be sure I lost my ague soon after I took it, but I am certain it was owing to the crook-two men may happen to have a coat and ed sixpence, and not to the bark. And so, eyes of the same colour? To prevent good woman, you may come in, if you that,' replied Rachel, if it is the right man, will, for there is not a soul in the house but the two first letters of his name will be R. P. This was the very thing Rachel This man has got money beyond sea.'0, wanted to know, and very glad she was I do not value his money,' said Sally, with to learn it. tears in her eyes, for I love Jacob better than house or land; but if I am fated to marry another, I can't help it; you know there is no struggling against my fate.'

me.'

While Sally was above stairs untying her glove, Rachel slipped in to the parlour, took a small silver cup from the beaufet, and clapped it into her pocket. Sally ran down, lamenting that she had lost her sixpence, which she verily believed was owing to her having put it into a left glove, instead of a right one. Rachel comforted her by saying, that if she gave her two plain ones instead, the charm would work just as well. Simple Sally thought herself happy to be let off so easily, never calculating that a smooth shilling was worth two crooked sixpences. But this skill was a part of the black art in which Rachel excelled. She took the money and began to examine the lines of Sally's left hand. She bit her withered lip, shook her head, and bade her poor dupe beware of a young man who had black hair. No, indeed, cried Sally, all in a fright, you mean black eyes, for our Jacob has got brown hair, 'tis his eyes that are black,' That is the very thing I was going to say,' muttered Rachel, 'I meant eyes, though I said hair, for I know his hair is as brown as a chesnut, and his eyes as black as a sloe.' So they are, sure enough,' cried Sally, how in the world could you know that?' forgetting that she herself had just told her so. And it is thus that these hags pick out of the credulous all which they afterwards pretend to reveal to them. O, I know a pretty deal more than that,' said Rachel, but you must be aware

o'clock, he will be the man.'

said Sally, much disturbed, that he has gray eyes and stoops.' '(), to be sure,' said Rachel, ' otherwise it is not the right man.' But if I should mistake,' said Sally,

6

for

Poor Sally thought of nothing, and dreamt of nothing all the week but the blue coat and the gray eyes. She made a hundred blunders at her work. She put her rennet into the butter-pan, and her skimming-dish into the cheese-tub. She gave the curds to the hogs, and put the whey into the vats. She put her little knife out of her pocket for fear it should cut love, and would not stay in the kitchen if there was not an even number of people,lest it should break the charm. She grew cold and mysterious in her behaviour to faithful Jacob, whom she truly loved. But the more she thought of the fortune-teller, the more she was convinced that brown hair and black eyes were not what she was fated to marry, and therefore, though she trembled to think it, Jacob could not be the man.

On Sunday she was too uneasy to go to church; for poor Sally had never been taught that her being uneasy was only a fresh reason why she ought to go thither. She spent the whole afternoon in her little garret, dressing in all her best. First she put on her red riband, which she had bought at last Lammas fair: then she recollected that red was an unlucky colour, and changed it for a blue riband, tied in a true lover's knot; but suddenly calling to mind that poor Jacob had

stranger, of whom she knew nothing, from a ridiculous notion that she was compelled to do so by a decree which she had it not in her power to resist. She married this Richard Price, the strange gardener, whom she soon found to be very worthless, and very much in debt. He had no such thing as had told her; but alas! he had another wife there.-He got immediate possession of Sally's twenty pounds. Rachel put in for her share, but he refused to give her a farthing, and bid her get away or he would have her taken up on the vagrant act. He

wail her own weakness; for it was that indeed, and not any irresistible fate, which had been the cause of her ruin. To complete her misery, she herself was suspected of having stolen the silver cup which Rachel had pocketed' Her master, however, would not prosecute her, as she was falling into a deep decline, and she died in a few months of a broken heart, a sad warning to all credulous girls.

bought this knot for her of a pedlar at the door, and that she had promised to wear it for his sake, her heart smote her, and she laid it by, sighing to think she was not fated to marry the man who had given it to her. When she had looked at herself twenty times in the glass (for one vain action always brings on another) she set off, trembling and sha-money beyond sea,' as the fortune-teller king every step she went. She walked eagerly towards the church-yard, not daring to look to the right or left, for fear she should spy Jacob, who would have offered to walk with her, and so have spoilt all. As soon as she came within sight of the wall, she spied a man sitting upon it: Her heart beat vio-soon ran away from Sally, leaving her to belently. She looked again; but alas! the stranger not only had on a black coat, but neither hair nor eyes answered the description. She now happened to cast her eyes on the church-clock, and found she was two hours before her time. This was some comfort. She walked away and got rid of the two hours as well as she could, paying great attention not to walk over any straws which lay across, and carefully looking to see if there were never an old horse-shoe in the Rachel, whenever she got near home, way, that infallible symptom of good for- used to drop her trade of fortune-telling, and tune. While the clock was striking seven, only dealt in the wares of her basket. Mr. she returned to the chuch-yard, and O! the Wilson, the clergyman, found her one day wonderful power of fortune-tellers! there dealing out some very wicked ballads to she saw him! there sat the very man! his some children. He went up with a view to hair as light as flax, his eyes as blue as but-give her a reprimand; but had no sooner beter-milk, and his shoulders as round as a gun his exhortation than up came a constatub. Every tittle agreed to the very nose-ble, followed by several people.There gay in his waistcoat button-hole. At first, she is, that is the old witch who tricked my indeed, she thought it had been sweetbrier, wife out of the five guineas,' said one of them, and glad to catch at a straw, whispered to Do your office constable, seize that old hag. herself, it is not he, and I shall marry Jacob She may tell fortunes and find pots of gold still; but on looking again, she saw it was in Taunton jail, for there she will have nosouthern-wood plain enough, and that of thing else to do!' This was that very farcourse all was over. The man accosted her mer Jenkins, whose wife had been cheated with some very nonsensical, but too accep-by Rachel of the five guineas. He had tatable, compliments. She was naturally a ken pains to trace her to her own parish: he modest girl, and but for Rachel's wicked did not so much value the loss of the mouey, arts, would not have had courage to talk as he thought it was a duty he owed the with a strange man; but how could she re-public to clear the country of such vermin. sist her fate you know? After a little dis- Mr. Wilson immediately committed her, Course, she asked him, with a trembling She took her trial at the next assizes, when heart, what might be his name? Robert she was sentenced to a year's imprisonment, Price, at your service, was the answer. In the mean time, the pawnbroker to whom Robert Price! that is R. P. as sure as I she had sold the silver cup, which she had am alive, and the fortune-teller was a witch! stolen from poor Sally's master, impeached It is all out! it is all out! O the wonderful her; and as the robbery was fully proved art of fortune-tellers!' upon Rachel, she was sentenced for this The little sleep she had that night was dis- crime to Botany Bay; and a happy day it turbed with dreams of graves, and ghosts, was for the county of Somerset, when such and funerals, but as they were morning a nuisance was sent out of it. She was transdreams, she knew those always went by con- ported much about the same time that her traries, and that a funeral denoted a wed-husband Giles lost his life in stealing the net ding. Still a sigh would now and then from the garden wall, as related in the seheave, to think that in that wedding Jacob cond part of poaching Giles. would have no part. Such of my readers as I have thought it my duty to print this litknow the power which superstition has over tle history, as a kind of warning to all you the weak and credulous mind, scarcely need be told, that poor Sally's unhappiness was soon completed. She forgot all her vows to Jacob; she at once forsook an honest man whom she loved, and consented to marry a

·

young men and maidens not to have any thing to say to cheats, impostors, cunning, women, fortune-tellers, conjurors, and interpreters of dreams. Listen to me, your true friend, when I assure you that God ne

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