"Would to heaven all in the South were like you.

It might have been different with my poor wife, and my angel girl might have been alive this day.

However, it was not their duty to succor and protect my family, and I have no right to complain because they lent her no helping hand.

I alone must bear the weight of my affliction, and from the misery it causes me, I devoutly trust none of my comrades may ever know it.

Here your betrothed comes," he continued, observing Emma at the door.