A life and yet a poison on its tide.
..............
Clem. Thy wife?

Vict. Avaunt! I've changed that word to "scorn"!

Clem. Thy child?

Vict. Ay, that strikes home,--my child, my child!

Love and Hatred, by --------

To an obscure town in shire there came to reside a young couple, whose
appearance and habits drew towards them from the neighbouring gossips
a more than ordinary attention. They bore the name of Welford. The man
assumed the profession of a solicitor. He came without introduction
or recommendation; his manner of life bespoke poverty; his address was
reserved and even sour; and despite the notice and scrutiny with which
he was regarded, he gained no clients and made no lawsuits. The want of
all those decent charlatanisms which men of every profession are almost
necessitated to employ, and the sudden and unushered nature of his
coming were, perhaps, the cause of this ill-success. "His house was too
small," people said, "for respectability." And little good could be got
from a solicitor the very rails round whose door were so sadly in want
of repainting! Then, too, Mrs. Welford made a vast number of enemies.
She was, beyond all expression, beautiful; and there was a certain
coquetry in her manner which showed she was aware of her attractions.
All the ladies of ------- hated her. A few people called on the young
couple. Welford received them coldly; their invitations were unaccepted,
and, what was worse, they were never returned. The devil himself could
not have supported an attorney under such circumstances. Reserved,
shabby, poor, rude, introductionless, a bad house, an unpainted railing,
and a beautiful wife! Nevertheless, though Welford was not employed,
he was, as we have said, watched. On their first arrival, which was in
summer, the young pair were often seen walking together in the fields or
groves which surrounded their home. Sometimes they walked affectionately
together, and it was observed with what care Welford adjusted his wife's
cloak or shawl around her slender shape, as the cool of the evening
increased. But often his arm was withdrawn; he lingered behind, and
they continued their walk or returned homeward in silence and apart.
By degrees whispers circulated throughout the town that the new-married
couple lived by no means happily. The men laid the fault on the
stern-looking husband; the women