This statement was confirmed by Mrs. Pangborn, a sister of the late Mrs
Branard, the lady with whom Sarah J. Richardson stopped in St. Albans,
and by whom she was employed as a seamstress. Being an inmate of the
family at the time, Mrs Pangborn states that she had every opportunity
to become acquainted with the girl and learn her true character. The
family, she says, were all interested in her, although they knew nothing
of her secret, until a few days before she left. She speaks of her as
being "quiet and thoughtful, diligent, faithful and anxious to please,
but manifesting an eager desire for learning, that she might be able to
acquaint herself more perfectly with the Holy Scriptures. She could,
at that time, read a little, and her mind was well stored with select
passages from the sacred volume, which she seemed to take great delight
in repeating. She was able to converse intelligently upon almost
any subject, and never seemed at a loss for language to express her
thoughts. No one could doubt that nature had given her a mind capable of
a high degree of religious and intellectual culture, and that, with
the opportunity for improvement, she would become a useful member of
society. Of book knowledge she was certainly quite ignorant, but she had
evidently studied human nature to some good purpose." Mrs Pangborn also
corroborates many of the statements in her narrative. She often visited
the Grey Nunnery, and says that the description given of the building,
the Academy, the Orphan's Home, and young ladies school, are all
correct. The young Smalley mentioned in the narrative was well known to
her, and also his sister "little Sissy Smalley," as they used to call
her. Inquiries have been made of those acquainted with the route along
which the fugitive passed in her hasty flight, and we are told that the
description is in general correct; that even the mistakes serve to prove
the truthfulness of the narrator, being such as a person would be likely
to make when describing from memory scenes and places they had seen but
once; whereas, if they were getting up a fiction which they designed to
represent as truth, such mistakes would be carefully avoided.
APPENDIX I.
ABSURDITIES OF ROMANISTS.
It may perchance be thought by some persons that the foregoing narrative
contains many things too absurd and childish for belief. "What rational
man," it may be said, "would ever think of dressing up a figure to
represent the devil, for the purpose of frightening young girls into
obedience? And those absurd threats! Surely no sane man, and certainly
no Christian teacher, would ever stoop to such senseless mummery!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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