“Oh, yes, I knew his voice; but I did not at the moment know where the voice came from.”
“Oh, Dick, what was it he said? dear little Lenny! tell me again.”
Dick repeated the words.
“And oh, Dick, did he speak sadly, piteously, imploringly as if he was suffering, and wanted you to relieve him?”
“No, indeed! quite the contrary! he hailed me in his usual hearty manner; and commanded me to come to him, just as he is accustomed to speak to all of us, his slaves, when he is lording it over us and ordering us around,” said Dick, so cheerfully that he called up a wan smile upon the poor young mother’s face.
“Now, I’ll tell you all about it, Drusilla,” pursued Dick confidently. “The fact is, the child must have been stolen first, for the sake of the fine lace and gold and coral on his dress; and now he is kept for his beauty to beg with. No doubt, now that the clue is found, he will be recovered in a few hours. And I want you to bear this fact in mind—that you need not be surprised at any moment to see your child brought in and laid upon your lap. Keep that hope before you, and let it support your soul through this suspense, and let it prepare you for the event, so that you may not die of joy when it comes,” said Richard Hammond.
And certainly he believed himself justified in giving this advice.
“Dick! dear Dick, you have brought the first crumb of earthly comfort that has come to me since I lost my little Lenny,” said Drusilla, gratefully. “But where is uncle?” she asked, suddenly recollecting the General.
“He is detained by some business.”
“He is quite well?”