Adeline, though more surprised and more shocked than ever, could not
help laughing internally, at her not being able to put her projected
generosity in practice; but her laughter and indignation soon yielding
to contempt, she ate her simple meal in silence: and while her pampered
husband sought to lose the fumes of indigestion in sleep, she blessed
God that temperance, industry and health went hand-in-hand, and,
retiring to her own room, sat down to write, in order to increase, if
possible, her means of living, and consequently her power of being
generous to others.
But though Adeline resolved to forget, if possible, the petty conduct
of Berrendale, the mulatto, who, from the door's being open, had heard
every word of the conversation which had so disturbed Adeline, neither
could nor would forget it; and though she did not vow eternal hatred to
her master, she felt herself very capable of indulging it, and from that
moment it was her resolution to thwart him.
Whenever he was present, she was always urging Adeline to eat some
refreshments between meals, and drink wine or lemonade, and tempting
her weak appetite with some pleasant but expensive sweetmeats. In vain
did Adeline refuse them; sometimes they were bought, sometimes only
threatened to be bought; and once when Adeline had accepted some, rather
than mortify Savanna by a refusal, and Berrendale, by his accent and
expression, showed how much he grudged the supposed expense,--the
mulatto, snapping her fingers in his face, and looking at him with an
expression of indignant contempt, exclaimed, 'I buy dem, and pay for dem
wid mine nown money; and my angel lady sall no be oblige to you!'
This was a declaration of war against Berrendale, which Adeline heard
with anger and sorrow, and her husband with rage. In vain did Adeline
promise that she would seriously reprove Savanna (who had disappeared)
for her impertinence; Berrendale insisted on her being discharged
immediately; and nothing but Adeline's assurances that she, for slender
wages, did more work than two other servants would do for enormous ones,
could pacify his displeasure: but at length he was appeased. And as
Berrendale, from a principle of economy, resumed his old habit of dining
out amongst his friends, getting good dinners by that means without
paying for them, family expenses ceased to disturb the quiet of their
marriage; and after she had been ten months a wife Adeline gave birth to
a daughter.
That moment, the moment when she heard her infant's first cry, seem
to repay her for all she had suffered; every feeling was lost in the
maternal one; and she almost fancied that she loved, fondly loved, the
father of her child: but this idea vanished when she saw the languid
pleasure, if pleasure it could be called, with which Berrendale
congratulated her on her pain and danger being passed, and received his
child in his arms.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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