ent, and they
were privately married in December. I follow the account of Mrs.
William Story, wife of the artist, then residing in Rome. The old
Marquis Ossoli had recently died, leaving an unsettled estate, of
which his two older sons, both in the Papal service, were the
executors. "Every one knows," says Mrs. Story, "that law is subject to
ecclesiastical influence in Rome, and that marriage with a Protestant
would be destructive of all prospect of favorable administration."

The birth of a child a year later, at Rieti in the Appenines, whither
Margaret had retired, made secrecy seem more imperative; or, as
Margaret said, in order to defend the child "from the stings of
poverty, they were patient waiters for the restored law of the land."
The Italian Revolution of 1848 was then in progress. Ossoli her
husband, was a captain in the Civic Guard, on duty in Rome, and the
letters which she wrote him at this period of trial, were the only
fragments of her treasures recovered from the wreck in which she
perished.

Leaving her babe with his nurse, in April following, she visited Rome
and was shut up in the siege by the French army which had been sent
to overthrow the provisional government and restore the authority of
the pope. "Ossoli took station with his men on the walls of the
Vatican garden where he remained faithfully to the end of the attack.
Margaret had entire charge of one of the hospitals.... I have walked
through the wards with her," says Mrs. Story, "and seen how comforting
was her presence to the poor suffering men. 'How long will the Signora
stay?' 'When will the Signora come again?' they eagerly asked.... They
raised themselves up on their elbows to get the last glimpse of her as
she was going away."

In the midst of these dangers, Margaret confided to Mrs. Story the
secret of her marriage and placed in her hands the marriage
certificate and other documents relating to the affair. These papers
were afterward returned to Margaret and were lost in the wreck.

The failure of the Revolution was the financial ruin of all those who
had staked their fortunes in it. They had much reason to be thankful
if they escaped with their lives. By the intervention of friends, the
Ossolis were dealt with very leniently. Mr. Greenough, the artist,
interested himself in their behalf and procured for them permission to
retire, outside the papal territory, to Florence. Ossoli even
obtained a small part of his patrimony.

Exce