"Here it is," said William, as he commenced to read it; while we, to give the reader a better conception of the production, crave pardon for inserting it verbatim. The superscription is "Mr. Wm. Fuggishon, Esqe. Farn Vail per barer," and the contents are:
"Weddingsday, Dare Sir, Exkuse the libety i take for to rite yer but Capting Jones and me presints our comblemints and 'ave to say as how weir agoing to 'ave a partey on nixt munday and wood be glad if you'd cum as theril be golley sprey and lots of gents. be shuer and cum and also yer syster cos we shal 'ave ladeys to at hour ouse, and theril be no fears on her getting 'ome agin, cos I thinks you dosent drink so of corse you'd not git drunk I am Mr. Fuggishon sir yours truly Mrs. Capting Jones wat is to be or Mary ann Sawyer now.
"P.S.—If you now any other frends as wood like to cum, bring em."
When the laughter that had followed the reading of this epistle had somewhat subsided William said to his sister: "Now, Kitty, what do you think of that invitation? my word! but we are going to have a gay time of it up here; parties will be going the round of the country after this. Of course, you will go to the Sawyers rejoicings, Kitty, and put on your pretty, and good behaviour?"
"If I had not known you were joking, Will, I would be angry with you," exclaimed the indignant girl. "The impertinence of the horrid creatures indeed!"
"But you know, Kate, 'I dosent drink,' as the prospective Mrs. Jones affirms; consequently there is no fear of you, unless you too often drink to the health of the happy couple."
"Don't talk nonsense, Will, but tell us how this affair has come about; it is the first I have heard of a marriage in their family being contemplated?" said Kate.
"Well, my little poppet," said William, "I will impart to you all the information I have been able to glean, and which has been obtained from Mr. Reuben Sawyer, the brother of the bride, and the bearer of the note of invitation. It appears that a certain gentleman rejoicing in the name of Jones, and honoured by the prefixed title of Captain (though from whence, or in what service I know not), has by some means introduced himself to the family of Sawyer, and made a conquest of the heart of the younger female member. They are to be married at Alma on Sunday, thence to return to the hall of the bride's father, and entertain their friends on Monday. What the pecuniary arrangements are, I don't know; but I strongly suspect they are to the advantage of the soi-disant Captain, of whom, by the bye, I imagine the Sawyer family know very little. It strikes me it will turn out a sell for the girl, for I fully expect the bridegroom will be discovered to be an impostor. I am convinced he has assumed a title and garb to palm himself off on them as a gentleman, while they have snatched at the bait."
"What a dreadful man he must be then," said Kate.
"Even so, Miss Kate," said Tom; "but there are numbers of such 'dreadful men' prowling about in the colony; who appropriate and abandon as many aliases and personate as many characters as would people a small town. They have a convenient knack of falling in love with such girls as Miss Mary Ann Sawyer, to whom they give a glowing account of all their wealthy friends and genteel relations. Then before the effect dies out they propose, are accepted, recommend a speedy marriage to prevent, as they say, their relations from hearing and stopping the intended match, and induce, too frequently, not only the girl, but her friends to fall into their views; while they do not discover their error until the gay Lothario takes leg-bail upon the first symptoms of an enquiry being made after him by the victim of some previous matrimonial swindle."