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MORTON. CHAPTER I. ey Ao, Tr it anemry tp at tat Tam of ceaectto parentage vith tie if Tobepol the Uetates of my own judgment, T eould ‘The projudiecs, however, ofa respected relative, now deceased, made ap early impression upon my mind ; and although, to say the truth, there were obutinaie symptoms of a carpenter, smong my im metiste anecstry, yetmy aunt, who was foud of heraldry, was not to be deterred by euch tnitlor.from vindicating the antiquity of her She elbowed her way acctrdingly through the moh af operatives, who wo apt to cucumber the path of # geneulogically-inclined Avcricia, with vast adroituess ; and at let, aRer suabe trouble, set~ ted herself to her satisfaction at tho ond of aline of reputable, nay, Tamay ald of showy rca hich mall fostered by her gare, our family plant, which to all appearance, wig but scrihof lempucan doused tne ¢ Been Trence it will be seon, that if [hed believed all the legends and ‘vaditions which she had carefully collated F might now baye much gertaning mater to rolato,conoering the snsiont history of the fartons. ‘ Town, however, it always seemed tome alitle absurd, if my an- geitors had been auch eesincnt people as she supposed, that nobody fn the world should ever bave heard of them. It is very. cortsin Chatif chey wore in reality xs ilustrious as she would have’ it, they always kept it to themselves, She was tho otly person L over howd of who interested herself af alli tho matéer. Tho Blight, however, which she todk in ber favourito subject Was inedable, Tt was amusing to see her hopping and chattering Uke a bobalink from twig to twig of the above aentioned family- ‘tree but unfortunately when she was faiely perched upon the top, ‘here wis uo possibly of binging her down again io the regions of common’acase, wea epee ENR FOO. Rs Stg RAR Dated ie Sen 2 MORTON. had always an unlocky facility for getting on the wrong side. Th Gromwell’s tims they wore suid to have been staunch Cavaliers, and, so forfeited half their estato; and just as the tide was turning, they .reem fo have turned too, and so lost the other, ‘The tlemen of ono generation eoured into a Puritan im the nest. The Puritaa dwindled into a dissenter, and the dissen- ting clergyman, after having in vain endeavoured to lear Dutch, and smoke mecrschms with the Congregationalis of Leyden, finally shipped hirnself for America, and landed in the tnerry snonth, of November, ou the genial shores of Newfoundizad. Fortunately the climate proved ovon too severo for the frigid constitution of the Nonconformist—for if my respectable ancestor had ‘not thought Proper to rohove to a irifing distance from the Arctic regions where he frst lauded, itis prabable that his descendant would have ‘boon a white taar by thit timo, instead of the compiler of this Pleasing autobiography. Of my father, Y shall, after this chapter, hava very little to say, at Joust til a fiture period. ‘Phere was a mystery about him which L ‘was along time unable ta salve, Me walked 3a 4 clond, and there seemed tw bos mark upon hie forchead, My mother, I never Know; for she diel in my fnfasey. But in order to pat all end to this wnaecenary branch of my a Tanyas woll mention that T consider gay maternal lineage more illusttious than my paternal one, My mother was the direct descendant of an uncient and royal aco. As, however, her birth belonged to the desoription of those At whieh Uap herald antl, * I suppose I am likely to derive but litle bonetit from it, « Natto koup you ia suspense; sho was an Indian prinooss. Toe taerly was ofthe bose toed of the Six Nations, aad. the tombe of the lint of her foreluthers, who were couvorted to Christianity, may still be seca, npon a lovely plain in ono of the oweetest spots of New England. . ‘Tho rice, however, has of late fillen into decay ; and ill-neturod, acquaintances have even. gone so fir as to affirm iu my hearing, that thoy have mit with Sacheme of the Uncas family in the kitchens of certain opulent parvenus. ‘One evening, late in the Autumn of the year ¥760, I was sitting in the parlour of my uncle, Joshua Morton, with whom, I trust, the reader, wil soan become better acquainted. It was at bis ville, some eight or ton miles from Boston ; a huge and grotesquely constuct- ‘palace of clap-boards and shingles. “I was then about six years of age, and was accounted a reaarkably cluver child —this has been say pane—L was always brilliant in the estimation of my friends, and A Saget wth thom fora lng ino, During a geste pact of my life, Talways took it for granted that 1 possessed uncommon genius, I had alwaya been toldco, and I caw no reasen to coutra- MORTON, 3 Gict it, Toonsidereil myself a genius, was contented, and thought nomore onthe subject, As years woro away, I reflected that geo~ ple of uncommon genius sometimes did something to distingnish themselves, Leonsidored whother I had doue #0 ar not, end an discovering that Thad nover accomplished anything, good, bed or indifferent, I eam to the conelusion that I wai not @ youth of uncommon. goniax; 10 contented myself again, and again thought. no morean the mubject. ‘This was all when I waa very young. ‘Ont eveniog T peak of, X'van amusing myeell vite, su 00- cupation, which was considered among the prominent proof of my infant tslents. Twas seated in the coracz of the room, directin an exhibition of a puppet theatre. Probably there ia ‘not a chil in ten, that has not manifested the seme uncommon geniua in the same uncommon way ; but the playa that I onacted, and the won- erful charactors that T iavented or selected, were the constant themes of admiration for my uncle oud cunt, and the rest of my lations, T was ounsidared « prodigy of dramatic talent—mechanical ‘ingenuity—opie favention—the Lord knows what, Qn this ooca- sion, | ses repretenting an ingenious comedy, of which I recallect nothing but that the devil and French king were the two most pro- mainont characters. Tt was during the war of Great Britain with Franco, and as my uncle was 2 staunch loyalist, thia extraordinary effort of invention was hailed as a proof of hid nephew's incipieat patriotismas well as a purely intellectual phenomenon As I was repeating ‘my drama aver and over gain for the old gentleman's gratification, the report of a pistol was heard from without, My Ainele jumped up ; a crackling of leaves near the houee betrayed the Ihanty steps of 2 strangor ; they came nearor ; presently ane of the windows, which reached to the ground, was thrown violently open, nul a stranger suddenly sprang into the room neatly aversetiing tay uncle in his haste. CHAPYER 11. ‘DWa BROTHERS. T wan never seen the personage who made his appearance 40 ua- ceremoniously. | never saw him again for years, but the ficst im- resion he made apo my mint was indelible, “He vay tall nd dressed in 2 sort of a mixtare of the military and the Indian costume. Te had no hat, and & torrent of aabura hair fell over hia shoulders half way to hin waist, His eyes wore largeand bine, and soft at a wowan’s ; his face was regular, but the lower part was almost eutirely concealed by immense ‘mustachios’ and 4 MORTON. beard, He had ared uniform coat with the British button, to- gether with leather legoings and moceasina; a blanket was hung found his left shouldes, and a rife wean his right hand. As he entered the room, he was about tonddress my mcle, wh seemed to regord him with s look of surprise and horror, when wuddenly his eyes lighted upon me. ‘To my utter dismay, he bonnted ta wards we like a tiger, and hiy eye gleamed with joy. Te caught me in his arms, pressed ma to hin hort, aid covered w frantic kisser. ‘Tor a moment I bung motionless im his embrace, Bul holding the vil Rey by the tei an cestany al ent rueot and fear, Presently fag to sour with noger ail ta, cult my new acquaintance, with all the impotent malice of an infant's rage. Finding his situation ncomforiable, the stranger, strode towards the window, with evident intentions of taking me with him, Ic was intercepted by my uncle, who attvanced toward hiut with a pistol in his hand, Upon this, the stranger, smiling with perfect eweetness, stop- pot suaktenly, ad out é Joshua’ Morton, lst you should sok farther to intimidate me, the only way in which you can poxubly excite the evil spirit, which towards you ut least, has long Leon, dormant within me, [ will release the “child.” ‘Tho strmger’s voice ‘was like a silver clarion, aud the tones hmunted my mcisory for years. As he Gnished, he phistd mie gently on the grourul. * Joshua Rinrtou,’ continued he, advancing close tn ary uncle, + [have loug iliaminsed all thoughts of violence towards you and yours, “Teame here, through a thonsand dangers, actuuted by a Bingle Lope. For the love of God, yest me the child ‘My uncle seemed almost suffocated with conflicting emetions. For an instant, as he yielded to the strange: fiscination of the others voies, he seemed to hesitate 5 bie suddenly his ated aad anger agsin obtainal tho mastery." Serpent—voltaze—liend Ihe exclaimed, * you are even more hateful to me inthis oping of faybeavanco—t hate you fess when yon are at least. not hypocriti~ eal, Why should the wolf fear to show his fangs, huwever sincared. with blood ” Mortou—Morton replied the other, ‘Tam ‘not what you think me,—guilty {rm—blaot-vivined—damned. But ¥ wna not alwys what fate, circumstances, nay, what you yourself have made me.—Hvery day, every four, I become worse feel my heart Geezing within mie—give me something to love—indeed, indeed, I am not quite x fiend P «Do not prate to me af love. {f you would eoften me, speak to me, as you ars.—-Do I not know yon fill of hate ancl of deecit? Have Thot found you subtleasaséepuat—and ferocious as faine ? Will you ark of nie something that you ean love—at me, who know every line of your history P * One day, you will discover how much of that history was falae montoy. 3 bat [ scorn to explain, AM that for a moment ean reconcile me with my nature, is that L do not pardon mysell, 1 know inyzelf tao deeply laden with erimes that ara wy osu, to eare to cxat off tho inaputation of thers which do not belong’ to me. My back aches with tle burden, bat L have strength ta bear al ill the end, ‘One day—you will fear how much yon have wronged me—y will dincover when i€ is too lute, that you might stilt Imve toved nue--have atill reclaiened me to vietnd, if not ta bappines. But Tau willing in part to aione for ny own follies and criunes, by wearing the brand of those I was meapable of committing—if & hai time [ woutd even now— "A gu wns fited wt a slight distance from the house. _t secm- ef tobe @ signal for the strauger, fir. bo resuoud, heatly Sud eartestly—* Morion—Surton-—1 bie btn instants oh! do not drive me back into myself. Grant my paper give ine something external, around which my alfections inay chine My heart is crushud—but not dead, Give me the chitd—Eat me ‘till love~-Pity me—tur the love of onr mother, pity mo. "'Ieyon were. wnitiog the fat agony at my lest replied the would mot veuch fords ny lend to pe the denthosoat fie, Lf you hung befdce we on the cross, [world not huoisten your throat withone single water-op, Hwith your expies ing wiee yon sought me for forgiveness, 5 world not soothe the parting pang by one merciful tock, Ie it yoo—is it Butrico More fon that aake for pity—the eriminal whose hands are dyed to the bone iu the blood which is dearest to me, that dares ta ask for ity? PUFICT wore not eximinal, should Lack to be forgiven ?—La it nat Decause Fam aw wretdh, that Lane for compassion? If 1 were not guilty should feat myself? Cask not to be restored to happiness Shot esen tranguillity--nor peace, L ask foc the ebild, that L may ance more know a human feeling, The tiger whose throat ia Asipping with human blood, will a1 fondle hin whelp. Yuu call ine figer—vultare—demen.” Tam all—all! Tsay aut a word in extsnuation; but hest tow smear Ghat Edo not hate yor. Yau rer jected my love, which still renewed iteelf for you: yon hava fered ry -enitentiey with ursea—-my Tepentines with seam ny love with bntred,—Be it ao. Be it 00. 1 have retreated into’ enyseli—for"yeare [ have not ktiown one human sympathy —the blessed tonie of my native tougue has not once pene inated my ear. T havo Deon Jengued with savages, wiih des: poraloes, with demon; ‘and I'tove dovelt ta the wildemess with beasts, and with men more aavz than beasts. Bat even now E have not quite fost all feeling of humanity. Ie 1 coutd be protected from myself, I might yet beenme waa, Bly time is expiring—on instant and 1 most be gone, Pity me, Mot= ton, Do uot drive me back into my own heart. [tt is filled with