He began his examination in such a delicate manner that the girl grew more and more communicative, and revealed her history, which was not a common one.

Her name was Mary Ann Purcel, and she was the daughter of a respectable cordwainer of London.  Her father, as usual with men of his kind of business, had taken an apprentice to learn his profession, but it seems that the young fellow had studied the beauty of the girl more than his duties, which gave greater satisfaction to the lady than the parent, and a quarrel ensued; and Robert Herrets’ (the name of the apprentice) indentures were broken or given up, and the young fellow was told that he had better seek his fortune in some other quarter of the globe, or at least attempt some other business besides that of being a cordwainer.

The lover did not relish the summary manner that his claims were disposed of, and so intimated; but he was ridiculed for seeking to ally himself with a man who could afford to give his daughter five hundred pounds on her wedding day, and yet keep up his business.

Robert, like all lovers, did not despair of yet claiming the girl as his wife, and to Mary he made known his plans.  She was to remain single for three years, and to await his orders, while he tried to push his fortune in the mines of Australia; for they had just been opened to the world, and thousands wore leaving the shores of England to suffer hardships, privations, and perhaps death, to collect a portion of the dross.  The girl readily consented to any terms that he offered, and with tearful eyes kissed her lover, and wished him God speed on his long journey of thousands of miles across the salt ocean.

He arrived at Melbourne safe and well; and to convince us that, her story was true she pulled from her bosom half a dozen letters written by Robert after he had reached the island.  In his first he told her of his stormy passage, and the bad food that he had been compelled to eat to save himself from starvation; but he was confident and hopeful, and told her to remember her promise of being his wife, and that if he should succeed in making money he would send for her, and that they could he married the day of her arrival.  The next letter was dated at Ballarat, where the lover had proceeded as soon as possible, and where he was hard at work sinking a shaft, with great hope of taking out gold by the pound.

The third letter was still more encouraging, for he had cleared in three months three hundred pounds above his expenses, and yet he wrote that he had not reached the richest part of the earth which he was mining.  The fourth letter was an urgent appeal for the lady to come to him without delay, and he would send a draft to pay her expenses.