Neither Clara nor herself had eaten food
since the preceding morning; and the weakness of their
frames contributed not a little to the increasing
despondency of their spirits; but, notwithstanding several
attempts previously made, they had rejected what was
offered them, with insurmountable loathing. When they
had now swallowed a few morsels of the sliced venison
ham, prepared with all the delicacy the nearly exhausted
resources of the vessel could supply, accompanied by a
small portion of the cornbread of the Canadian, Captain
de Haldimar prevailed on them to swallow a few drops of
the spirit that still remained in the canteen given them
by Erskine on their departure from Detroit. The genial
liquid sent a kindling glow to their chilled hearts, and
for a moment deadened the pungency of their anguish; and
then it was that Miss de Haldimar entered briefly on the
horrors she had witnessed, while Clara, with her arm
encircling her waist, fixed her dim and swollen eyes,
from which a tear ever and anon rolled heavily to her
lap, on those of her beloved cousin,
CHAPTER II.
Without borrowing the affecting language of the unhappy
girl--a language rendered even more touching by the
peculiar pathos of her tones, and the searching agony of
spirit that burst at intervals through her narrative--
we will merely present our readers with a brief summary
of what was gleaned from her melancholy disclosure.
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