I entered, and she soon proposed to me to let her go and tell my mother
that I had returned to the city. To this I objected. I went with her,
however, to the house of one of her acquaintances near by where I
remained some time, during which she went to my mother's and came with
a request from her, that I would have an interview with her, proposing
to come up and see me, saying that she had something very particular to
say to me. What this was, I could not with any certainty conjecture. I
had my suspicions that it might be something from the priests, designed
to get me back into their power, or, at least, to suppress my testimony.
I felt an extreme repugnance to seeing my mother, and in the
distressing state of apprehension and uncertainty in which I was, could
determine on nothing, except to avoid her. I therefore soon left the
house, and walked on without any particular object. The weather was
then very unpleasant, and it was raining incessantly. To this I was
very indifferent, and walked on till I had got to the suburbs, and
found myself beyond the windmills. Then I returned, and passed back
through the city, still not recognised by anybody.
I once saw one of my brothers, unless I was much mistaken, and thought
he knew me. If it was he, I am confident he avoided me, and that was my
belief at the time, as he went into a yard with the appearance of much
agitation. I continued to walk up and down most of the day, fearful of
stopping anywhere, lest I should be recognised by my enemies, or
betrayed into their power. I felt all the distress of a feeble,
terrified woman, in need of protection, and, as I thought, without a
friend in whom I could safely confide. It distressed me extremely to
think of my poor babe; and I had now been so long absent from it, as
necessarily to suffer much inconvenience.
I recollected to have been told, in the New York Hospital, that
laudanum would relieve distress both bodily and mental, by a woman who
had urged me to make a trial of it. In my despair, I resolved to make
an experiment with it, and entering an apothecary's shop asked for
some. The apothecary refused to give me any; but an old man who was
there, told me to come in, and inquired where I had been, and what was
the matter with me, seeing that I was quite wet through. I let him know
that I had an infant, and on his urging me to tell more, I told him
where my mother lived. He went out, and soon after returned accompanied
by my mother, who told me she had my child at home, and pressed me to
go to her house and see it, saying she would not insist on my entering,
but would bring it out to me.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account