rend
William S. Downey, an Englishman, claiming to be of noble birth. He
recovered his health, but was entirely deaf, not being able to hear the
loudest sound for the remainder of his life. Miss Bray married him, and
for forty years endured martyrdom, for he was of a tyrannous disposition
and disagreeably eccentric.

Mrs. Downey had never told her husband of her early acquaintance with
Whittier, but he found it out by a singular chance. When Reverend S. F.
Smith and his wife celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of their marriage
the event was mentioned in the papers, and the fact that Mrs. Smith was
a schoolmate of Whittier was chronicled. Mr. Downey had heard his wife
speak of being a schoolmate of the wife of the author of "America," and,
putting these two circumstances together, he concluded that his wife
must also have known the Quaker poet in his youth. He said nothing to
her about this, however, but wrote a letter to Whittier himself, and
sent with it a tract he had written in severe denunciation of Colonel
Robert G. Ingersoll. As a postscript to this letter he asked: "Did you
ever know Evelina Bray?" Whittier at once replied, acknowledging the
receipt of the tract, and making this characteristic comment upon it:

"It occurs to me to say, however, that in thy tract thee has hardly
charity enough for that unfortunate man, Ingersoll, who, it seems to me,
is much to be pitied for his darkness of unbelief. We must remember that
one of the great causes of infidelity is the worldliness, selfishness,
and evil dealing of professed Christians. An awful weight of
responsibility rests upon the Christian church in this respect."

And to this letter Whittier added as a postscript: "Can you give me the
address of Evelina Bray?" Mr. Downey at once wrote that he was her
husband, told of his service of the Master, and indirectly begged for
assistance in his work of spreading the gospel. At this time he was an
evangelist of the Baptist church, having some time since abandoned the
mother faith. And, though he was not reduced to poverty, he accepted
alms, as if poor, thus trying sorely the proud spirit of his wife. So it
was not an unwonted request.

Of course, the poet had no sympathy with the work of attack Mr. Downey
was evidently engaged in. But he feared the girl friend of his youth
might be in destitute circumstances, and, for her sake, he made a
liberal remittance. All this the miserable husband tried to keep from
his wife,