"'Yes, gone out at the door, in her night-clothes,' replied the child;
'I saw her get out of bed, look at my father to see if he slept, and
then she went out at the door.' "What could induce her to leave her bed, and all undressed to go out,
in such bitter wintry weather, with the snow deep on the ground, was
to us incomprehensible; we lay awake, and in about an hour we heard
the growl of a wolf, close under the window. "'There is a wolf,' said Caesar; 'she will be torn to pieces.' "'Oh, no!' cried Marcella. "In a few minutes afterwards our mother-in-law appeared; she was in
her night-dress, as Marcella had stated. She let down the latch of the
door, so as to make no noise, went to a pail of water, and washed her
face and hands, and then slipped into the bed where my father lay. "We all three trembled, we hardly knew why, but we resolved to watch
the next night: we did so--and not only on the ensuing night, but
on many others, and always at about the same hour, would our
mother-in-law rise from her bed, and leave the cottage--and after she
was gone, we invariably heard the growl of a wolf under our window,
and always saw her, on her return, wash herself before she retired to
bed. We observed, also, that she seldom sat down to meals, and that
when she did, she appeared to eat with dislike; but when the meat was
taken down, to be prepared for dinner, she would often furtively put a
raw piece into her mouth. "My brother Caesar was a courageous boy; he did not like to speak to
my father until he knew more. He resolved that he would follow her
out, and ascertain what she did. Marcella and I endeavoured to
dissuade him from this project; but he would not be controlled, and,
the very next night he lay down in his clothes, and as soon as our
mother-in-law had left the cottage, he jumped up, took down my
father's gun, and followed her. "You may imagine in what a state of suspense Marcella and I remained,
during his absence. After a few minutes, we heard the report of a gun. It did not awaken my father, and we lay trembling with anxiety. In
a minute afterwards we saw our mother-in-law enter the cottage--her
dress was bloody. I put my hand to Marcella's mouth to prevent her
crying out, although I was myself in great alarm. Our mother-in-law
approached my father's bed, looked to see if he was asleep, and then
went to the chimney, and blew up the embers into a blaze. "'Who is there?' said my father, waking up. "'Lie still, dearest,' replied my mother-in-law, 'it is only me; I
have lighted the fire to warm some water; I am not quite well.' "My father turned round and was soon asleep; but we watched our
mother-in-law. She changed her linen, and threw the garments she had
worn into the fire; and we then perceived that her right leg was
bleeding profusely, as if from a gun-shot wound. She bandaged it up,
and then dressing herself, remained before the fire until the break of
day. "Poor little Marcella, her heart beat quick as she pressed me to her
side--so indeed did mine. Where was our brother, Caesar? How did my
mother-in-law receive the wound unless from his gun? At last my father
rose, and then, for the first time I spoke, saying, 'Father, where is
my brother, Caesar?' "'Your brother!' exclaimed he, 'why, where can he be?' "'Merciful Heaven! I thought as I lay very restless last night,'
observed our mother-in-law, 'that I heard somebody open the latch of
the door; and, dear me, husband, what has become of your gun?' "My father cast his eyes up above the chimney, and perceived that his
gun was missing. For a moment he looked perplexed, then seizing a
broad axe, he went out of the cottage without saying another word. "He did not remain away from us long: in a few minutes he returned,
bearing in his arms the mangled body of my poor brother; he laid it
down, and covered up his face. "My mother-in-law rose up, and looked at the body, while Marcella and
I threw ourselves by its side wailing and sobbing bitterly. "'Go to bed again, children,' said she sharply. 'Husband,' continued
she, 'your boy must have taken the gun down to shoot a wolf, and the
animal has been too powerful for him. Poor boy! he has paid dearly for
his rashness.' "My father made no reply; I wished to speak--to tell all--but
Marcella, who perceived my intention, held me by the arm, and looked
at me so imploringly, that I desisted. "My father, therefore, was left in his error; but Marcella and
I, although we could not comprehend it, were conscious that our
mother-in-law was in some way connected with my brother's death. "That day my father went out and dug a grave, and when he laid the
body in the earth, he piled up stones over it, so that the wolves
should not be able to dig it up. The shock of this catastrophe was
to my poor father very severe; for several days he never went to the
chase, although at times he would utter bitter anathemas and vengeance
against the wolves. "But during this time of mourning on his part, my mother-in-law's
nocturnal wanderings continued with the same regularity as before. "At last, my father took down his gun, to repair to the forest; but he
soon returned, and appeared much annoyed. "'Would you believe it, Christina, that the wolves--perdition to the
whole race--have actually contrived to dig up the body of my poor boy,
and now there is nothing left of him but his bones?' "'Indeed!' replied my mother-in-law. Marcella looked at me, and I saw
in her intelligent eye all she would have uttered. "'A wolf growls under our window every night, father,' said I. "'Aye, indeed?--why did you not tell me, boy?--wake me the next time
you hear it.' "I saw my mother-in-law turn away; her eyes flashed fire, and she
gnashed her teeth. "My father went out again, and covered up with a larger pile of stones
the little remnants of my poor brother which the wolves had spared. Such was the first act of the tragedy. "The spring now came on: the snow disappeared, and we were permitted
to leave the cottage; but never would I quit, for one moment, my dear
little sister, to whom, since the death of my brother, I was more
ardently attached than ever; indeed I was afraid to leave her alone
with my mother-in-law, who appeared to have a particular pleasure in
ill-treating the child. My father was now employed upon his little
farm, and I was able to render him some assistance. "Marcella used to sit by us while we were at work, leaving my
mother-in-law alone in the cottage. I ought to observe that, as the
spring advanced, so did my mother-in-law decrease her nocturnal
rambles, and that we never heard the growl of the wolf under the
window after I had spoken of it to my father. "One day, when my father and I were in the field, Marcella being with
us, my mother-in-law came out, saying that she was going into the
forest, to collect some herbs my father wanted, and that Marcella
must go to the cottage and watch the dinner.