exception of her mother and Rosond, diminished; as for the former,
though she did not understand the thoughtfulness that sat on the brow of
her child and shadowed her birth, the soul’s longing for sympathy from
responsive spirits, yet, so great was her love and her gentleness
towards her, that Corala clung to her with the same affection she would
have done to her own natural mother. As for Rosond, so constantly was
he in companionship with his sister that his mind became in time
assimilated to hers, and, from having ever in contemplation a higher
order of intellect, the society of his former associates became as
distasteful to him as to Corala. Soon they were left almost entirely to
themselves, and the mother, satisfied at seeing them happy--to all
appearance happy--left them free to roam together where they would,
never dreaming that Corala was for ever talking of the worlds beyond,
and of the beings that peopled them. But so it was; and as time advanced
Rosond had the grief of seeing his dear sister pining away under the
influence of the unspeakable longing that possessed her, and, in his
anxiety to relieve it, he formed a plan which he imparted to Corala, by
means of which together they would be enabled to know more of those
countries towards which Corala’s heart seemed ever to be yearning.
Accordingly, when all at night were in their resting places, sunk in
sleep, Rosond, with Corala in his arms, were sailing on the seas making
such discoveries as was in their power, and each morning they were
found in their usual places, so that they excited no suspicion. Again
and again they set out and returned, and were so rewarded for their
exertions by the wonders that were thus revealed to them that they grew
elated and fearless of danger. But yet no information concerning the
other worlds was afforded them, and they began to despair of learning
what they wished. One night, however, having reached the point where
their wanderings usually terminated, Rosond was about to go back, but
Corala still urged him onward; and, notwithstanding his misgivings, in
accordance with her wishes, he emerged with her from the warm and quiet
waters into the dashing, foaming sea, over which the blue sky and stars
shone clear and pure. New feelings filled the soul of Corala, new voices
were speaking in her ears; she was as it were in an ecstasy, and, wrapt
in the enjoyment, she forgot all else at the moment. While Rosond paused
at her request, and she was looking around, she espied a great object in
the distance that riveted her whole attention. A tiny speck on the
water seemed to be following it, like a bird with its little one beside
it, but in truth it was a ship far off, and a boat which had been let
down by the seamen, one of whom from the deck having espied through a
glass what seemed to be a maiden riding upon the waves, they were coming
to satisfy themselves concerning this strange sight. The little speck
gradually grew larger and larger as it came nearer to her, till it at
last it looked like one of her own tiny islands afloat upon the waves,
with living beings upon it. She held her breath lest it might alarm
Rosond, who, bearing her on high in his arms, was concealed beneath the
waters, and saw nothing above him. Noiselessly and stealthily the boat
approached her. Corala perceived, and her heart bounded at the sight,
that the forms of the creatures that were moving within were like her
own, and in a moment the truth darted into her brain. She was not then
an isolated being, but one of a race, and these were her kindred. How
her heart yearned towards them! Their gaze was fascinated on their
leader, as cautiously they floated towards her; no sound escaped her
lips till the shriek she uttered when she found herself torn from the
arms of Rosond, and borne away within the hearing of his cries--seeing
him beaten back by the oars, as he vainly endeavored to pursue and
rescue her, till at last, fainting with affright, she became unconscious
of all that passed. When she was restored to herself she was on the
vessel, which was bearing her fast away from all that she had known and
loved. Most pitiful was the moaning she made as the tenants of the ship
gathered around, and tried in vain to comfort her. She at first refused
all consolation; yet, in time, as the poignancy of her grief abated, and
she looked more calmly around, she felt herself inspired with a new and
more powerful interest in life; every glance conveyed intelligence; all
about her, like herself, were reasoning and thinking. She was ONE in a
mass of SOULS, and, though she could not comprehend a single word they
uttered, yet their expression and gestures conveyed to her a meaning
that she could well interpret. When they reached the port from which
the vessel sailed, the news spread afar like wildfire, that a young
maiden of great beauty, speaking a language that no one understood, had
been rescued from the grasp of a frightful sea monster, so that many
came from great distances to see her. Among others was a gentleman and
lady of high rank, who, on beholding Corala, were so impressed with her
appearance, that they determined to take her home with them, and adopt
her for their own daughter, as their only child had been lost at sea
years before, while still an infant, and strange to say, if she had
lived, would have been about the age that Corala now appeared to be; and
stranger still it seemed, when it was made known that Corala had been
rescued near the very spot where the shipwreck had occurred so many
years before; and to their redoubled wonder, the likeness of Corala to
both of them, was remarked by many persons, as if she had been their
daughter indeed; so that the mother could hardly help feeling that their
child had been saved by some good spirit; nurtured and restored to her
again by the mercy of heaven. But as this would have been deemed
madness, she kept her thoughts to herself, and only revealed them to her
husband, who, like her, felt as if heaven indeed had interposed in their
behalf, and that the beautiful girl they bore to their pleasant home was
their lost darling. Corala found relief in this quiet spot by the
seaside, from the noise and bustle of the town, the confusion of
tongues, and the curious gazers who came on board the ship to see her.
Enraptured with the beauty of all that surrounded her, she would have
been most happy could she have forgotten that her sea-mother and Rosond,
far away, were mourning their lost one; and she wept in bitterness at
the thought that she should never again behold those who loved her so
dearly, and were by her so dearly loved. Soon by the care and patience
of her new-found mother she became acquainted with the names of the
various objects that she saw around, and very rapidly she learned to
express herself in sentences. At last she could relate to them the tales
of her infancy, of her cradle on the sea-girt isle, of her sea-mother,
and her sea-brother, that she longed again to find. They deemed it all a
fantasy of her imagination; and she, finding how little faith her
hearers had in her representations, kept these remembrances to herself.
However, they only grew more vivid from being thus repressed, and were
still her first thoughts. As she made progress in the language, she was
taught to read, and gradually the treasures of knowledge were unfolded
to her. The universe, which had been to her sealed, was now as it were
opening before her; she began to unravel its mysteries, and her whole
being expanded in the genial atmosphere by which she was surrounded. So
passed several years, but time did not efface from her memory the images
of her early days; each new joy only rendered more poignant her grief,
that the companions of her infancy were debarred from these pleasures to
which she had such free access. Each day found her in a favorite seat by
the water-side, looking afar at the sea, watching it toss on the shore,
and listening to the roar of its waters, as if such sounds could tell
her the fate of those for whom her heart yearned, and for whom every
night she put up a petition to heaven.
And now let us leave Corala for a while, and see what has become of the
protectors of her helpless infancy. When Rosond, after giving up all
hope of recovering his sister, returned with the sad news to his mother
that she was lost to them, in a frenzy she flew hither and thither.
Then, for the first time, her companions of the sea learned that she who
had lived for years among them, whom they had despised, was one of those
immortal natures for whom they had been taught such veneration. Rosond
also now learned his sister’s history, and great was his grief to find
that she was not only far removed from him in space, but was also above
him in the scale of being; yet he felt he could still but worship her as
he had ever done. The mermen and mermaids at first pitied Rosond and his
mother; but when they found them ever dwelling upon the one sad theme,
nearest to their hearts, they forsook them for more cheerful companions,
till they were left at last to wander about alone together. All their
conversation turned upon the engrossing topic--would Corala ever again
be restored? At last they heard of an old wizard of the sea, who like a
hermit dwelt in a cave in the depths of the ocean, and who was said to
have the power of foretelling future events. Together they sought his
dwelling-place, which for an age he had not left. The door was guarded
by two sea monsters, whose eyes glared, as the two went tremblingly by,
but they only opened their terrific jaws to shut them harmlessly again;
so they passed safely in. Upon a heap of sea-weed piled up with books,
on which was inscribed strange characters, sat the wizard of the sea; he
was bent and wrinkled, and when they told him their errand he shook his
briny locks, muttered strange words, and taking a curious shell in his
hand, placed it at his ear and listened long. The mermaid fearfully
asked, “shall the dear child, that I have so long cherished and loved as
my own, ever be restored to my arms?” He paused, with the shell at his
ear, and then made answer--“The voices of the deep wail and cry; she
can never more return to her home on the sea-girt isle, for she is a
mortal, and has found her kind; be therefore content and go in peace;
seek no further into the hidden things of the future.” But they still
lingered. At last Rosond spoke and said: “If indeed it is decreed that
she can never return to us, can we not go to her, and again see her
beautiful countenance, and have our hearts cheered by the music of her
loving voice?” The sage turned over leaf after leaf, and searched into
the mysterious tomes, till they grew weary with waiting, yet would not
depart till he bade them; so much did they long to hear what fate had in
store for them; while he seemed as it were to be dozing, and then at
last unclosing his eyes, he sleepily muttered, holding a shell that
glowed like living fire to his ear, made answer, “All things are
possible to superhuman power; if, after the lapse of many years, you can
find again the lost one, and your love for her is then as strong as now,
and she is able to reveal to you that she still loves you as in days
gone bye, then may you take her nature, and be united to her again; but
she can never return to you while you are of another race. Hence! no
more disturb the slumbers of the aged, who soon shall sleep forever.
Then he fell back and relapsed into a repose so deep, that they sought
no more to arouse him, but hand in hand passed out as they had entered,
and returned to their home again.”
Here they related to their companions the words of the wizard, and
declared their intention of seeking Corala, and endeavoring to ascertain
if she still loved them as of yore. The mermen and mermaids endeavored
to dissuade Rosond and his mother from attempting what must be a
fruitless task. “For,” said they, “should you succeed in discovering
whither she is carried, and to communicate with her, which is almost an
impossibility, how can you suppose that she would regard you as she once
did? Perhaps,” said they, “she even now remembers with a shudder the
friends of her former days, and, happy amid her own kindred, strives to
banish all thoughts of the repulsive beings whom she once loved.”
Though all this seemed so reasonable, and so likely to be the truth, yet
Rosond and his mother had such a certain conviction of the intensity of
Corala’s attachment to themselves, that they even dared to hope, in
spite of all, that one day they might be united to her again. Their
companions used all their arts to persuade them to abandon these hopes,
that they deemed so fallacious, and to leave Corala, and return again to
their accustomed sports. But no words could prevail upon them to give up
the search, and, bidding adieu to all that had ever known them, they set
off together.
On their voyage over the wide waste of waters the spot they both were
intent on seeking was that from whence Corala had been borne away, and,
when found, they made it the starting point from which they sailed long
distances, only to return, after vain efforts to gain some clue that
might lead them in the direction to find her once more. Months and even
years passed, and yet no success had attended their wanderings; and,
almost hopeless, they came back to the well-known spot, from whence all
their journeyings had proceeded. One day, while hovering around, in the
distance they saw an object, that both had learned to know well--a ship,
bearing the same colors as that which had been wrecked before the eyes
of the mermaid, and Rosond also marked it as being like the vessel which
had borne Corala from them. A sudden hope darted into the minds of both.
Could they not, by following it, reach the place to which Corala had
been carried? It probably was bending its course in the same direction
as the other ship had gone. Day after day saw them in this hope,
tirelessly pursuing the vessel, that, like a leading star, pointed out
their course.
The journey seemed almost endless, but at last the scenes began to
change before their eyes; the broad waste of waters gradually narrowed;
and seemed to be bounded by land, not in small islands, like dots here
and there, as they had been accustomed to see, but a broad expanse, even
as the ocean itself, over which the eye could not reach, covered with a
garment of emerald, where stately towers and spires rose pointing to
the skies. All was strange and wonderful to them, and they clung to each
other, and kept beneath the waters, but still in sight of the vessel
that had led them on, for they felt less lonely when near to that which
had so long been as a beacon before them. The ship at last was moored,
and hidden by some rocks. Rosond and the mermaid watched the busy crowds
who came flocking down to the water, to welcome the friends who
disembarked from the decks. There were among them female forms who moved
as Corala once had done. But well they knew she was not there, nor was
she in the throng that flocked along the pier, or hung over the sides,
day after day. They floated at a distance from the shore, and at last,
going out of sight of the ship, and sailing with swiftness past the
various cities and towns, they began to feel the very hopelessness of
their ever being able, amid such myriads of living creatures, of finding
her whom they sought. Yet Rosond, although in despair of gaining the
object of his search, longed to know more of her race, and, approaching
as near the land as he dared without fear of discovery, contemplated the
faces, and forms, and movements of those who came within his sight.
A long period passed in this manner, and, sick at heart, the mother and
son one evening, when the moon was shining clearly, left behind them all
the noise and bustle of the towns, and followed the current, which
carried them beside a peaceful and quiet country. At last, as daylight
passed away, they floated near the shore, where a castled mansion stood
on a hill alone, overlooking the peaceful waters. The air was soft and
balmy, and warm as that of their native clime, to which their hearts now
sometimes turned, as towards a haven where they might find rest. They
gazed in wonder at the beauty of the green slope, studded here and there
with oases of flowers, in the midst of which marble fountains threw up
jets of water that returned to bedew all around. Gradually they drew
nearer to the bank; the serenity of the scene inspired them with a
calmness and buoyancy that they had not felt for many months. All at
once a strain of soft music burst on their ears. It was a gentle voice,
accompanying a harp. The tones seemed to call up in their minds thoughts
of the sea-girt isle, and the song of the birds that there gladdened the
air, and the gentle tossing of that summer sea, and the murmurs of the
breeze that ever softly sighed, and their tears streamed, as if melted
from their hearts, at the sound. Presently a white figure emerged from
the shadowy portal of the mansion, and, like an angel shining in the
moonlight, with streaming golden hair and light footsteps, came flitting
down the slope. Their hands trembled as they held them together; their
hearts beat loudly, for they knew this was Corala. Noiselessly they sank
below the surface, as she came nearer, but their keen eyes were piercing
through the crystal, and were upon her. How their bosoms throbbed, and
they longed to rush forward and to meet her, but they dared not; she
would flee in her terror far from them. Oh! they felt that the words
which had been spoken to them by their companions must be true. She
would shrink from them if they were to reveal themselves to her; they
would be regarded as monsters in her eyes. Better thus to watch her,
and worship her at a distance, than, by revealing themselves to her,
lose their only chance of beholding her once more. Thus they thought,
and kept silently beneath the waters, though, with all their natures,
they were yearning to embrace her. At length she knelt down, and,
bending her brow till it touched the foam, cried, “Oh! mother and
brother of the sea! cannot these waves, that so ceaselessly dash upon
the shore, bear to you the cries of your mourning Corala? and tell you
how her heart still longs for you with unchangeable love, and that each
night she puts up a prayer to Heaven that you may be preserved and
restored to her!”
With one impulsive movement, hand-in-hand, the mermaid and Rosond rushed
forward. But, oh! wonder of wonders! as they came into the shallow
waters they felt themselves rising erect, with limbs and feet, upon the
pebbly shore! They knew then that the prediction of the wizard was thus
verified: they had loved each other to the end, and now were made
partakers of the same natures. With a cry of joy they rushed into each
other’s embrace, when words and explanations followed. Corala led up
the steep her long-lost sea-mother, with her gentle voice, and mild brow
and mien. Proudly, too, she watched Rosond moving stately, with his
diadem of jewels on his lofty brow, his garb of silken weed fluttering
like a scarf of honor from his shoulders, and looking like a royal
prince.
The lord and lady of the castle received with joy the long-lost friends
of their adopted child, and welcomed them to the mansion. After arraying
them in garments befitting their dignity, they presented them to their
servants and retainers. Corala saw no reason to blush for them, the
avowed guardians of her youth.
During the time that Rosond and his mother remained as inmates of the
mansion the lord and lady learned of a certainty that this was, indeed,
as they had long hoped and expected, their long-lost daughter; and,
though wonderful as was the tale of her rescue, and of her life on the
isles of the sea, and of the transformation of the mermaid and Rosond,
yet they believed all, and received her as their own with all the faith
of innocent hearts.
Rosond, by the sale of the jewels worn by his mother and himself, which
were almost of a priceless value, realized an immense fortune, and
purchased a castle within a short distance of that of the parents of
Corala, to which he took his mother to reside. Here, by the assistance
of masters, he rapidly acquired the language, and all those arts which
were befitting a young gentleman of distinction. He became one of the
most accomplished courtiers of that period, and soon, by the consent of
her parents, was betrothed to Corala, with whom he spent much of his
time. After a short space had elapsed, their marriage was celebrated in
a manner befitting the rank of both, and thus Corala became, indeed, the
child of her who had once been her adopted mother. She divided her time
between her two homes, making all happy, and seeing their children grow
up around them.
Rosond and Corala never regretted having loved through all difficulties,
and to the end.
* * * * *
STANFORD AND DELISSER
HAVE RECENTLY PUBLISHED THE FOLLOWING
CHOICE BOOKS FOR YOUTH.
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Typographical errors corrected by the etext transcriber:
Covez=> Cobez {x 8}
Corola=> Corala {x 2}
accordingy=> accordingly {pg 53}
peformed=> performed {pg 61}
liitle=> little {pg 72}
frighful=> frightful {Pg 146}
tones seemd=> tones seemed {Pg 157}