CHAPTER XXXVI.
"ONLY TO SEE YOU, MY DARLING."
Oh, what a welcome Dainty received from the true hearts in that humblehome!
They treated her like a queen, but so warm was their devotion, and soeager their interest, they soon drew from her lips all that had happenedto her in Richmond.
The women's tears fell copiously, and even Hiram Peters could not helpdrawing the backs of his horny hands now and then across his kind, moisteyes, while he groaned:
"I swow you had troubles fit to kill you!"
"At the last I could bear my shame and misery no longer. I made up mymind to come back to West Virginia, and try to find some evidence of mymarriage, that my child should not be born under a cloud of shame," saidDainty, sorrowfully.
"Poor lamb!" groaned mammy; and the others sighed in concert, for whenthey had heard all she could tell about her marriage, Mr. Peters wasfain to confess that her prospects looked very dark.
"You see, Mrs. Ellsworth, madame," he said, proudly giving her her truename, bringing a flash of pleasure to her eyes, "that old man, thecounty clerk that must have issued the license, died soon after, andlikewise the preacher of that little church in the woods; so, unless youcan find out what became of the license, it will be a hard job to provethe marriage."
"I fear so," sobbed Dainty; then she added: "Do you think, mammy, thatMrs. Ellsworth is still unrelenting?"
"Hard as a stone, honey!"
"But perhaps if she knew the truth, that a child is to come of thatsecret marriage, she might relent and pity it enough to acknowledge meas Love's wife," sighed Dainty, anxiously.
But her listeners all persuaded her that such a thing was impossible.The woman would never acknowledge anything that would cause her to loseher grip on the wealth she was holding by a shameless fraud.
"Honey, don't yo' go nigh them deceitful wretches! Don't yo' even letthem know that yo' are alive, or there'll be a new plot set on footdireckly 'ginst yo' sweet life and the one that's comin' too! Hab yo'forgot how the old 'oman shet yo' up in dat dark dungeon till yo'pisened yo'self, and how dem gals tried to burn yo' up in de ole cabin,and would hab 'ceeded, too, but for John Franklin breakin' in de winderand fetchin' yo' out--an' his face an' han's an' hair all scorcheddrefful!" expostulated mammy.
Among them all they persuaded her that it was better not to try to proveher rights than to lose her life.
"You stay here quietly long o' us, honey, and don't let no one know whoyou air, and arter your chile comes, you may leave it with me ef youwants, and I'll tek keer of it till the good Lord makes a better way forit. And all of us we'll pray and pray that good luck may come to you,"exclaimed Mrs. Peters, piously, while her husband chimed in, fervently:
"You kin 'pend on us to be your firm fren's fer life, ma'am, and you airjist as welcome ter anythin' we got as any one of our nine boys!"
Oh, how their humble kindness went to her wounded heart, encouraging herto cry out, passionately:
"There is one thing I crave more than I ought on earth, and perhaps someone might manage it for me; it is to see my husband's face again!"
A dark cloud seemed suddenly to fall over them all, and she cried indismay:
"Why do you all look so strange and frightened? Oh, my God! do not tellme he is dead!"
"No, deares', yo' husban' ain't dead!" sighed mammy, and burst intosudden loud sobs, as she added: "Dey done tooken him away dis larst weekto New York, honey. Doctor Platt, dat good ole man, yo' know, andFranklin, his body-servant, as sabed yo' from de fire, yo' know. And yo'kain't nebber look on his face no mo', fer Doctor Platt say he wasgettin' dang'ous an' might hurt somebuddy, so he 'suaded MissisEllsworth to fasten him up in a 'sylum way off yonder, an' him'll nebbercome home no mo'!"