Virginia Dare [pp. 585-595]

SOUTHERN LITERARY MESSENGER.
PUBLISHED MONTHLY, AT FIVE DOLLARS PER ANNUM-THOMAS W. WHITE, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.
VOL. VI. RICHMOND, SEPTEMBER, 1840. NO. 9.
scoted with oak led to the principal apartments,
which looked out upon the west, commanding a
beautiful prospect. Through the long painted windows streamed the last rays of the setting sun, and
the rich colors they scattered around were softened by the delicate blue of the hangings. Beside a
massive table a young and beautiful lady was seated, engaged in earnest conversation with two gentlemen standing near hear.
"Eleanor, my child," said Mr. White in a quivering voice, "I can never consent to this sacrifice.
I must resign my appointment if you persist in accompanying me. Remain here at least till some
arrangements have been made for your comfort and
security."
"Your father is right," said George Dare, the
younger of the two gentlemen, " he will return in
a year or two, when the colony will be prepared
for the residence of a delicate female."
"George," replied Eleanor, in a sweet, earnest
voice; "I am your wife and bound to obey you, unless obedience interfere with a higher duty. In
t his case your authority must yield to the dying
command of my departed mother. I promised her
that my father should never want any care or attention which it was in my power to bestow.
When a year since I gave you my hand, you knew
that I had made this promise, and declared that you
would aid me in its fulfilment."
Mr. White laid his hands on Eleanor's head, sayinmg-" Bless you, my priceless daughter, well have
you kept your vow. But you do not add to my
happiness, love, by persisting in this wild scheme.
T hink what it is you propose:-To accompany a
band of men to a distant country-to place yourself in the power of untutored savages, perhaps to
fall a victim to their cruelty or pine away a prey
to famine. How much better could I endure any
of these evils, if consoled by the thought that you
were happy amidst the comforts and friends to
which from your childhood you have been accustomed."
" Dear father," answered Eleanor, " I could not
enjoy these comforts while you were distant and
surrounded by dangers. Let Sir Walter find some
one else to command this expedition, and if after
a few years it shall prosper, we will then all emigrate together to the New World."
"If you wish it, dearest," said the troubled father,
"s;I will renounce this undertaking; but, alas! in the
inactivity of ordinary life, I fear lest I should becorne a prey to sorrow. It was to drive away the
sad remembrances haunting my thoughts, that I
wished to engage in this exciting adventure. No
We have parted forever!-no, never to meet
While Love is an idol or Friendship is sweet;
FT or sorrow ha s darken'd life's delicate span,
A n d our spirits are under Fate's ter rible ban.
We have parted forever, forever-and y et
The past, neither of us, can wholly forget:
For still as we journey, there's one standing by
With a smile on her lip, but a tear in her eye'Tis Memory, and yet she is almost like Hope,
As she strives with the past and the present to cope.
But the garland of Hope is of evergreen made,
And Mem'ry's is woven of flowrets that fade!
Life's chain of its gilding is rudelv bereft,
But still in Hop~e's store-house one bright bud is left,
Whose beauty can brighten life's loneliest evenThe hope of re-union forever in Heaven.
THOMAS W. WHITE, EsQ.
Sir:-The accompanying narrative is founded on Bancroft's account of the Colony of Roanoke. Most of the
facts may be found in his History of the United States, and
the real names of the principal persons have been preserved.
It is a wonder that no one has before paid a tribute to the
memory of " Virginia Dare," the first offspring of English
parents born on the soil of America. The historian alone
has done justice to the inhabitants of " the City of Raleigh,"
of whom he remarks, that, "if like their predecessors, the
emigrants from England and the first born of America failed in establishing an enduring settlement; unlike them, they
awaited death in the land of their adoption." It was impossible to shorten the story without injuring it, but I trust
it will not be found too long for insertion in your interesting
magazine. Yours, very respectfully,
CORNELIA L. TUTHILL.
Among the many pleasant mansions scattered
over the south of England in the days of good
Queen Bess, the quiet dwelling of Philip White
might often pass unnoticed. Yet, though it could
not vie in splendor with the palaces of the nobility,
it had a more elegant air than the residences of
most private gentlemen. Even in winter it wore
a pleasant aspect, and two travellers who were approaching it in the latter part of January, paused to
admire its classic exterior and perfect proportions.
But it was in the fine arrangement of the interior
that the taste of the proprietor was most conspicuous. From the massive doors, wide halls wain
VOL. VI. —74
SONG.
HarVord, (Conn.) Augmt ist, 1840.
VIRGINIA DARE:
OR, THE COLONY OF ROANOKE.
CI-IAP'FER 1.