it occurred to me to ask, May not this evil be obviated, and the
felicity of the Hadwins re-established? Wallace is friendless and
succourless; but cannot I supply to him the place of protector and
nurse? Why not hasten to the city, search out his abode, and ascertain
whether he be living or dead? If he still retain life, may I not, by
consolation and attendance, contribute to the restoration of his health,
and conduct him once more to the bosom of his family?

With what transports will his arrival be hailed! How amply will their
impatience and their sorrow be compensated by his return! In the
spectacle of their joys, how rapturous and pure will be my delight! Do
the benefits which I have received from the Hadwins demand a less
retribution than this?

It is true that my own life will be endangered; but my danger will be
proportioned to the duration of my stay in this seat of infection. The
death or the flight of Wallace may absolve me from the necessity of
spending one night in the city. The rustics who daily frequent the
market are, as experience proves, exempt from this disease; in
consequence, perhaps, of limiting their continuance in the city to a few
hours. May I not, in this respect, conform to their example, and enjoy
a similar exemption?

My stay, however, may be longer than the day. I may be condemned to
share in the common destiny. What then? Life is dependent on a thousand
contingencies, not to be computed or foreseen. The seeds of an early and
lingering death are sown in my constitution. It is in vain to hope to
escape the malady by which my mother and my brothers have died. We are a
race whose existence some inherent property has limited to the short
space of twenty years. We are exposed, in common with the rest of