The Freemason's Daughter: A Novel — page 230: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE FREEMASONS DAUGHTER. 233 light that the full sense of her supposed bereavement burst upon her. ‘‘Curse them!” she exclaimed, sinking on her knees by the side of the bed! ‘‘a widow’s curse pursue them, the orphan’s shrieks yell in their ears—haunt them in their sleep—strike terror to their hearts ; may the ear of God be deaf to their last prayers, and his justice overtake them when man’s fails! Who will bring up the children now in honesty and labour ?” she added, wildly; ‘‘ our stay is lost—the poor-house must be their home when I am gone! Oh, Tim— husband—my heart is breaking—God, I shall go mad !” Tears—nature’s solace to the o’erfraught heart— came to her relief. Throwing herself upon the body, she strained it convulsively to her desolate heart, while her neighbours, who stood weeping by—for the poor can always commiserate each other—could only vent their sympathy in muttered curses upon Flin. Suddenly Meg started from the bed, as if she had received an electric shock—gazed wildly upon the features of her husband—placed her trembling hand apon his heart—held her cheeks to his lips, to assure herself that imagination had not deceived her. His heart still beat, but so faintly, that the pulsation of a new-born infant was a giant’s struggle to it; and the breath came, like the last sign of the dying breeze in summer, which scarce ruffles the rose-leaf in its path. COniiclooecl SS (SO