That smothes the wrinkles care has learned to plough,
And wipes the trace of anguish from the brow!
And Oh! if spite of war and wasting pain,
Feelings so noble—so divine remain,
Where were the brighter star to cheer our gloom,
Make heaven of earth, and triumph o'er the tomb!
University Prize Poem.
CHAPTER CVIII.
CONCLUSION OF THE TALE OF SORROW.
"Although I was enabled to administer temporary assistance to this unfortunate and persecuted family, and, under the delicate guise of a loan of money, gave them the wherewith to make themselves comparatively comfortable, it was nevertheless necessary for Alexander to resolve upon some decisive step. To remain in prison was to bury his talents in a manner so as to render them completely unavailable,—to think of liquidating the enormous burthen of debt which lay upon his shoulders, was ridiculous,—and to move the stony heart of Walkden was a hopeless idea. The only alternative was the Insolvents' Court. Good food, medical attendance, and the altered appearance of his wife and children, who had all improved greatly, restored Alexander to some degree of health and spirits; and he soon began to discuss with me and Lucy his present position and plans for the future. The lawyer who had enabled him to pass over to the Bench, returned to town at this precise period, after some weeks' absence; and he not only agreed to provide the funds to take Alexander through the Insolvents' Court, but also promised to give him employment as a clerk on his release. Thus was it that this good man infused hope into the bosoms of the Craddocks; and the necessary steps were adopted to effect the emancipation of the prisoner. But scarcely were the initiatory proceedings set on foot, when intelligence was received to the effect that Walkden was resolved to oppose Alexander's discharge by all the means that were within his power. This intimation, which reached the prison through a private channel, aroused Alexander's fury against the man who so unrelentingly persecuted him; and it required all the attentions of his amiable wife and all the manifestations of friendship which I was enabled to offer, to restore him to comparative tranquillity.
