child, who had witnessed the last sad moments of such a wife and mother.

To have dwelt so long upon such a melancholy subject, may, perhaps, appear
to some of my readers to be not only unnecessary, but tedious. I must,
therefore, intreat their indulgence, by confessing my error, if an error
it be. At the same time I must assure them, that I believe this to have
not only been the most important event of my life, but that it was a
matter of more serious importance to me than all the occurrences of my
previous existence multiplied ten times ten fold; and this being the case,
I shall rely upon their kind forgiveness with great confidence; for I feel
that every incident of my life, for many years after this, may be fairly
said to have been influenced in some degree, or in some way or other, by
this ever to be regretted, never to be forgotten, loss.

My father remained absorbed in melancholy, shut himself up, and refused to
see any one till after the last sad office had been performed for my
mother. In the mean time, he gave me instructions to overlook all the
servants, and to superintend their work.

At length the day arrived for performing the ceremony of depositing her
honoured remains in the family vault, which was in the chancel of the
parish church. My father and myself followed as chief-mourners; and,
during the performance of the funeral service, I believe there was not a
dry eye amongst the numerous congregation who attended. Every one felt
that he had sustained a loss. My father was so agitated, that I thought at
one moment he would have thrown himself headlong into the grave, upon my
mother's coffin; and it was with some difficulty that he was drawn from
the sacred spot.

The maid servant was yet confined to her bed, very ill with the fever; and