had
still left nearly half of such portion of the little capital, realised
by the sale of her trinkets, as had escaped the clutch of the law; and
her brother had forced into her hands a note for L20. with an assurance
that the same sum should be paid to her half-yearly. Alas! there was
little chance of her needing it again! She was not, then, in want of
means to procure the common comforts of life. But now a new passion had
entered into her breast--the passion of the miser; she wished to hoard
every sixpence as some little provision for her children. What was the
use of her feeding a lamp nearly extinguished, and which was fated to be
soon broken up and cast amidst the vast lumber-house of Death? She would
willingly have removed into a more homely lodging, but the servant of
the house had been so fond of Sidney--so kind to him. She clung to
one familiar face on which there seemed to live the reflection of her
child's. But she relinquished the first floor for the second; and there,
day by day, she felt her eyes grow heavier and heavier beneath the
clouds of the last sleep. Besides the aid of Mr. Perkins, a kind enough
man in his way, the good physician whom she had before consulted,
still attended her, and refused his fee. Shocked at perceiving that she
rejected every little alleviation of her condition, and wishing at least
to procure for her last hours the society of one of her sons, he had
inquired the address of the elder; and on the day preceding the one in
which Arthur discovered her abode, he despatched to Philip the following
letter:

"SIR:--Being called in to attend your mother in a lingering illness,
which I fear may prove fatal, I think it my duty to request you to come
to her as soon as you receive this. Your presence cannot but be a great
comfort to her. The nature of her illness is such that it is impossible
to calculate exactly how long she may be spared to you; but I am sure
her fate might be prolonged, and her remaining days more happy, if
she could be induced to remove into a better air and a more quiet
neighbourhood, to take more generous sustenance, and, above all, if her
mind could be set more at ease as to your and your brother's prospects.
You must pardon me if I have seemed inquisitive; but I have sought to
draw from your mother some particulars as to her family and connections,
with a wish to represent to them her state of mind. She is, however,
very reserved on these points. If, however, you ha