d been a baby's, and turned the grim device so that it should be out
of sight. One slight, sad, slow movement of the head seemed to say, "The
death-symbol is still there!"

A very odd personage, to be sure! Seems to know what is going on,--reads
books, old and new,--has many recent publications sent him, they tell
me,--but, what is more curious, keeps up with the every-day affairs of
the world, too. Whether he hears everything that is said with
preternatural acuteness, or whether some confidential friend visits him
in a quiet way, is more than I can tell. I can make nothing more of the
noises I hear in his room than my old conjectures. The movements I
mention are less frequent, but I often hear the plaintive cry,--I
observe that it is rarely laughing of late;--I never have detected one
articulate word, but I never heard such tones from anything but a human
voice.

There has been, of late, a deference approaching to tenderness, on the
part of the boarders generally, so far as he is concerned. This is
doubtless owing to the air of suffering which seems to have saddened his
look of late. Either some passion is gnawing at him inwardly, or some
hidden disease is at work upon him.

--What's the matter with Little Boston?--said the young man John to me
one day.--There a'n't much of him, anyhow; but 't seems to me he looks
peakeder than ever. The old woman says he's in a bad way, 'n' wants a
nuss to take care of him. Them nusses that take care of old rich folks
marry 'em sometimes,--'n' they don't commonly live a great while after
that. _No, Sir!_ I don't see what he wants to die for, after he's taken
so much trouble to live in such poor accommodations as that crooked body
of his. I should like to know how his soul crawled into it, 'n' how it's
goin' to get out. What business has he to die, I should like to know?
Let Ma'am Allen (the gentleman with the _diamond_) die, if he likes, and
be (this is a family-magazine); but we a'n't goin' to have _him_ dyin'.
Not by a great sight. Can't do without him anyhow. A'n't it fun to hear
him blow off his steam?

I believe the young fellow would take it as a personal insult, if the
little gentleman should show any symptoms of quitting our table for a
better world.

--In the mean time, what with going to church in company with our young
lady, and taking every chance I could get to talk with her, I have found
myself becoming, I will not say intimate, but well acquainted with Miss
Iris.