Page:Original stories from real life 1796.pdf/170

Rh They aſcended the dark ſtairs, ſcarcely able to bear the bad ſmells that flew from every part of a ſmall houſe, that contained in each room a family, occupied in ſuch an anxious manner to obtain the neceſſaries of life, that its comforts never engaged their thoughts. The precarious meal was ſnatched, and the ſtomach did not turn, though the cloth, on which it was laid, was died in dirt. When to-morrow's bread is uncertain, who thinks of cleanlineſs? Thus does deſpair encreaſe the miſery, and conſequent diſeaſe aggravate the horrors of poverty!

They followed the woman into a low garret, that was never viſited by the chearful rays of the ſon. A man, with a ſallow complexion, and long beard, ſat ſhivering over a few cinders in the bottom of a broken grate, and two more children were on the ground, half naked, near him, breathing the ſame noxious air. The gaiety natural to their age did not animate their eyes, half ſunk in their ſockets; and, inſtead of ſmiles, premature wrinkles had Rh