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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/1928.txt b/1928.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b1e2564 --- /dev/null +++ b/1928.txt @@ -0,0 +1,13796 @@ +Project Gutenberg Etext Elinor Wyllys, by Susan Fenimore Cooper +Volume 2 + +Copyright laws are changing all over the world, be sure to check +the copyright laws for your country before posting these files!! + +Please take a look at the important information in this header. +We encourage you to keep this file on your own disk, keeping an +electronic path open for the next readers. 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"Elinor Wyllys" +was also published in England (London: Richard Bentley, 1845), +but has otherwise not been reprinted. + +{Text and note are by Hugh C. MacDougall (jfcooper@wpe.com). +Notes are enclosed in curly brackets { }; these include +identification of epigraphs and other quotations and allusions, +explanations of obsolete word usage, and translations of foreign +words and expressions. Quotations from Shakespeare are cited to +the Riverside Edition (adopted as standard for the MLA-approved +Cooper Edition of the works of James Fenimore Cooper). Spelling +and punctuation, including the author's idiosyncratic use of +colons and semi-colons, inconsistent use of single quotation +marks for "thoughts," and combinations of dashes with other +punctuation, have not been changed (except for occasional silent +insertion of missing quotation marks). First instances of some +unusual spellings (whether or not in accordance with the author's +usual practise), and obvious typographical errors, are followed +by {sic} to indicate that there has not been a mistake in +transcription. Because of the limitations of the .TXT format, +italicized foreign words (mostly French) are transcribed in +ordinary type, and accents are omitted; words italicized for +emphasis, or to emulate dialect or incorrect pronunciation, are +transcribed as capitals.} + + + + + +ELINOR WYLLYS: OR, THE YOUNG FOLK OF LONGBRIDGE. A TALE. + +BY AMABEL PENFEATHER. + +{Pseudonym of Susan Fenimore Cooper (1813-1894), +daughter of James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851)} + + + + +ELINOR WYLLYS; +OR, +THE YOUNG FOLK OF LONGBRIDGE. +A TALE. + +BY +AMABEL PENFEATHER. + +"Familiar matter of to-day; +Some natural sorrow, loss or pain, +That has been, and may be again." +WORDSWORTH + +{William Wordsworth, English poet (1770-1850), "The Solitary +Reaper" lines 22-24} + + + + +IN TWO VOLUMES. +VOL. II. + +EDITED BY J. FENIMORE COOPER. + + + + +CHAPTER I {would be CHAPTER XXIV, if numbered from beginning of +Vol. I} + +"But there is matter for another rhyme; +And I to this would add another tale." +WORDSWORTH. + +"And how do Miss and Madam do; +The little boy, and all? +All tight and well? and how do you, +Good Mr. What-do-you-call?" +COWPER. + +{William Wordsworth (English poet, 1770-1850), "Poems of the +Imagination: Hart-Leap Well" lines 95-96. William Cowper (English +poet, 1731-1800), "The Yearly Distress, or, Tithing Time at Stock +in Essex" lines 33-36} + +It is to be feared the reader will find fault with this chapter. +But there is no remedy; he must submit quietly to a break of +three years in the narrative: having to choose between the +unities and the probabilities, we greatly preferred holding to +the last. The fault, indeed, of this hiatus, rests entirely with +the young folk of Longbridge, whose fortunes we have undertaken +to follow; had they remained together, we should, of course, have +been faithful to our duty as a chronicler; but our task was not +so easy. In the present state of the world, people will move +about--especially American people; and making no claim to +ubiquity, we were obliged to wait patiently until time brought +the wanderers back again, to the neighbourhood where we first +made their acquaintance. Shortly after Jane's marriage, the whole +party broke up; Jane and her husband went to New-Orleans, where +Tallman Taylor was established as partner in a commercial house +connected with his father. Hazlehurst passed several years in +Mexico and South-America: an old friend of his father's, a +distinguished political man, received the appointment of Envoy to +Mexico, and offered Harry the post of Secretary of Legation. +Hazlehurst had long felt a strong desire to see the southern +countries of the continent, and was very glad of so pleasant an +arrangement; he left his friend Ellsworth to practise law alone, +and accompanied Mr. Henley, the Minister, to Mexico; and from +thence removed, after a time, to Brazil. Charlie had been +studying his profession in France and Italy, during the same +period. Even Elinor was absent from home much more than usual; +Miss Wyllys had been out of health for the last year or two; and, +on her account, they passed their summers in travelling, and a +winter in the West-Indies. At length, however, the party met +again on the old ground; and we shall take up the thread of our +narrative, during the summer in which the circle was re-united. +It is to be hoped that this break in the movement of our tale +will be forgiven, when we declare, that the plot is about to +thicken; perplexities, troubles, and misfortunes are gathering +about our Longbridge friends; a piece of intelligence which will +probably cheer the reader's spirits. We have it on the authority +of a philosopher, that there is something gratifying to human +nature in the calamities of our friends; an axiom which seems +true, at least, of all acquaintances made on paper. + +"{Minister" = a diplomatic rank below that of Ambassador--a +Minister heads a Legation, an Ambassador an Embassy; prior to the +Civil War, the United States was not considered an important +enough country to send or receive Ambassadors. "Secretary of +Legation" = a diplomat serving under a Minister. "A philosopher" += Francois, Duc de la Rochefoucauld (1618-1680), French author +famous for his maxims or epigraphs: "Dans l'adversite de nos +meilleurs amis, nous trouvons quelque chose qui ne nous deplait +pas" = In the misfortune of our best friends, we find something +which is not displeasing to us. Maxim No. 99, later suppressed. +By the 1840s, a well known expression} + +We hear daily that life is short; and, surely, Time flies with +fearful rapidity if we measure his course by years: +three-score-and-ten, the allotted span of man, are soon numbered. +But events, thoughts, feelings, hopes, cares, are better marks +for the dial of life, than hours and minutes. In this view, the +path of life is a long road, full of meaning and of movement at +every step; and in this sense only is time justly appreciated; +each day loses its insignificance, and every yearly revolution of +the earth becomes a point in eternity. + +The occurrences of the three years during which we have lost +sight of the Longbridge circle will speak for themselves, as our +tale is gradually unfolded. It is evident, however, at the first +glance, on returning to the old ground, that the village itself +has undergone some alterations. Though belonging to a part of the +country occasionally accused of being "unenterprising," it had +not proved insensible to the general movement felt throughout the +republic, in those halcyon days of brilliant speculation, which +commenced with the promise of good fortune to all, and ended by +bringing poverty to many, and disgrace to others. A rail-road now +runs through the principal street, and the new depot, a large, +uncouth building, stands conspicuous at its termination, looking +commercial prosperity, and internal improvement. Several new +stores have been opened, half-a-dozen "tasty mansions"--chiefly +imitations of Mr. Hubbard's--have been built, another large +tavern has been commenced, and two additional steamboats may be +seen lying at the wharf. The value of property in the village +itself, is said to have doubled, at least; new streets are laid +out, and branch rail-roads are talked of; and many people flatter +themselves that Longbridge will figure in the next census as a +flourishing city, with the full honours of a Corporation, Mayor, +and Aldermen. In the population, corresponding changes are also +perceptible; many new faces are seen in the streets, new names +are observed on the signs; others again are missed from their old +haunts, for there is scarcely a family in the place, which has +not sent its representation westward. + +{"those halcyon days" = i.e., before the economic Panic of 1837, +and the seven-year depression that followed} + +Most of our old acquaintances, however, still remain on the spot, +this pleasant afternoon in June, 183-. There stands Mr. Joseph +Hubbard, talking to Judge Bernard. That is Dr. Van Horne, driving +off in his professional sulkey. There are Mrs. Tibbs and Mrs. +Bibbs, side-by-side, as of old. Mrs. George Wyllys has moved, it +seems; her children are evidently at home in a door-yard on the +opposite side of the street, adjoining the Hubbard "Park." On the +door of that bright-coloured, spruce-looking brick house, you +will see the name of W. C. Clapp; and there are a pair of boots +resting on the window-sill of an adjoining office, which probably +belong to the person of the lawyer, himself. Now, we may observe +Mrs. Hilson and Miss Emmeline Hubbard flitting across the street, +"fascinating and aristocratic" as ever. + +{"sulkey" = light two-wheeled carriage, seated for one person; +usually spelled "sulky"} + +Let us leave the village, however, for the more immediate +neighbourhood of Wyllys-Roof; in which, it is hoped, the reader +will feel more particularly interested. There stands the little +cottage of the Hubbards, looking just as it did three years +since; it is possible that one or two of the bull's-eye panes of +glass may have been broken, and changed, and the grey shingles +are a little more moss-grown; but its general aspect is precisely +what it was when we were last there. The snow-ball and the +sweet-briar are in their old places, each side of the humble +porch; the white blossoms have fallen from the scraggy branches +of the snow-ball, this first week in June; the fresh pink buds +are opening on the fragrant young shoots of the sweet-briar. +There is our friend, Miss Patsey, wearing a sun-bonnet, at work +in the garden; and if you look through the open door of the +house, you will see beyond the passage into the neat little +kitchen, where we catch a glimpse of Mrs. Hubbard's white cap +over the back of her rocking-chair. It is possible that you may +also see the merry, shining, black face of a little handmaiden, +whom Miss Patsey has lately taken into the family; and, as the +tea-kettle is boiling, and the day's work chiefly over, the +little thing is often seen at this hour, playing about the +corners of the house, with the old cat. Ah, there is the little +minx!--her sharp ears have heard the sound of wheels, and she is +already at the open gate, to see what passes. A wagon stops; whom +have we here? Little Judy is frightened half out of her wits: a +young man she does not know, with his face covered with beard, +after a fashion she had never yet seen, springs from the wagon. +Miss Patsey turns to look. + +"Charlie!"--she exclaims; and in another moment the youth has +received the joyful, tearful, agitated embrace of his mother and +sister. The darling of their hearts is at home again; three years +since, he left them, a boy, to meet dangers exaggerated tenfold +by their anxious hearts; he returns, a man, who has faced +temptations undreamed of by their simple minds. The wanderer is +once more beneath their humble roof; their partial eyes rest +again on that young face, changed, yet still the same. + +Charlie finds the three last years have passed lightly over his +mother and his sister; theirs are the same kindly faces, the same +well-known voices, the best loved, the most trusted from +childhood. After the first eager moments of greeting are over, +and the first hurried questions have been answered, he looks +about him. Has not the dear old cottage shrunk to a very +nut-shell? He opens the door of the school-room; there are its +two benches, and its humble official desk, as of old; he looks +into the little parlour, and smiles to think of the respect he +felt in his childish days for Miss Patsey's drawing-room: many a +gilded gallery, many a brilliant saloon has he since entered as a +sight-seer, with a more careless step. He goes out on the porch; +is it possible that is the garden?--why it is no larger than a +table-cloth!--he should have thought the beds he had so often +weeded could not be so small: and the door-yard, one can shake +hands across it! And there is Wyllys-Roof, half hid by trees--he +used to admire it as a most venerable pile; in reality it is only +a plain, respectable country-house: as the home of the Wyllyses, +however, it must always be an honoured spot to him. Colonnade +Manor too--he laughs! There are some buildings that seem, at +first sight, to excite to irresistible merriment; they belong to +what may he called the "ridiculous order" of architecture, and +consist generally of caricatures on noble Greek models; Mr. +Taylor's elegant mansion had, undeniably, a claim to a +conspicuous place among the number. Charlie looks with a +painter's eye at the country; the scenery is of the simplest +kind, yet beautiful, as inanimate nature, sinless nature, must +ever be under all her varieties: he casts a glance upward at the +sky, bright and blue as that of Italy; how often has he studied +the heavens from that very spot! The trees are rich in their +summer verdure, the meadows are fragrant with clover, and through +Mr. Wyllys's woods there is a glimpse of the broad river, gilded +by the evening sun. It is a pleasing scene, a happy moment; it is +the first landscape he ever painted, and it is home. + +Then Charlie returns to his mother; he sits by her side, she +takes his hand in her withered fingers, she rests her feeble +sight on his bright face; while Miss Patsey is preparing all the +dainties in the house for supper. + +"Well, little one, what is your name?" said Charlie, as the black +child passed him with a load of good things. + +"Judy, sir," said the little girl, with a curtsey, and a +half-frightened look at Charlie's face, for the young artist had +chosen to return with moustaches; whether he thought it +professional or becoming, we cannot say. + +"We shall be good friends I hope, Judy; if you mind my sister +better than you ever did anybody else in your life, perhaps I +shall find some sugar-plums for you," said Charlie, pleased to +see a black face again. + +Mrs. Hubbard remarked that, upon the whole, Judy was a pretty +good girl; and the child grinned, until two deep dimples were to +be seen in her shining dark cheeks, and the dozen little +non-descript braids which projected from her head in different +directions, seemed to stand on end with delight. + +"And so Mr. Wyllys and the ladies are not at home. I wish I had +known of their being in New-York; I might at least have seen them +for a moment, yesterday." + +"I wonder Mrs. Hilson did not mention their being in town." + +"Julianna never knows what she is talking about. But I am glad to +hear good accounts of them all." + +"Yes; Miss Wyllys has come home from the West-Indies, much +better." + +"Is it really true that Miss Elinor is going to be married +shortly?" + +"Well, I can't say whether the story is true or not. She seems to +have many admirers now she has become an heiress." + +"But I don't understand how she comes to be such a fortune." + +{"a fortune" = short for a woman of fortune, an heiress} + +"I don't understand it myself; Mr. Clapp can tell you all about +it. You know most people are a great deal richer now than they +were a few years ago. I heard some one say the other day, that my +old pupil's property in Longbridge, is worth three times as much +now, as it was a short time since." + +"Is it possible Longbridge has improved so much?" + +"And then your old play-fellow has had two legacies from +relations of her mother's; everybody in the neighbourhood is +talking of her good-luck, and saying what a fortune she will turn +out. I only hope she will be happy, and not be thrown away upon +some one unworthy of her, like her poor cousin; for it seems +young Mr. Taylor is very dissipated." + +Charlie probably sympathized with this remark, though he made no +reply. + +"Mr. and Mrs. Tallman Taylor are in New-York now, I hear, just +come from New-Orleans. The family from Wyllys-Roof have gone over +to see them," added Miss Patsey. + +"Yes, so I understand. They will be here before long, I suppose." + +"Not immediately; for they are all going to Saratoga together. +Dr. Van Horne thought Miss Wyllys had better pass two or three +weeks at the Springs." + +"That is fortunate for me--I shall see them the sooner; for I +must be at Lake George before the first of July. I have an order +for three views of the Lake, which I have promised to send to +England early in the fall." + +Here Charlie entered into some details of his affairs, very +interesting to his mother and sister; and they seemed to be in a +very satisfactory condition, according to his own modest views. +After a while the conversation again returned to their Longbridge +friends. + +"Did you know that Mr. Hazlehurst is coming home too, this +summer?" asked Miss Patsey. + +"Yes; he wrote me word he hoped we should meet before long. How +did that affair with Mrs. Creighton turn out?" + +"We did bear they were engaged; but it could not have been true, +for the lady has been in Philadelphia, and he in Brazil, for some +time, you know. I used to ask about such matters once in a while, +on purpose to write you word. But I had no great opportunity of +hearing much about Mr. Hazlehurst; for after that unhappy +business at Wyllys-Roof, there was, of course, a great coolness; +for some time I never heard his name mentioned there, and Mr. +Wyllys seldom speaks of him now." + +"Are they not reconciled, then?" + +"Not entirely, I am afraid; but you know they have not met for +three years." + +"I shall hardly know myself at Wyllys-Roof, without seeing Mr. +Hazlehurst and Miss Graham there." + +"You will find a great change in that respect. Mrs. Taylor has +not been here since her marriage; Miss Van Alstyne seems to have +taken her place; she is a very pleasant young lady. When the +family is at home now, there seems often to be some strange +gentleman with them." + +"Fortune-hunters, I suppose," said Charlie, with some +indignation. "Well, the course of true love never has, and never +will run quite as it ought, I suppose. And how do all the +Longbridge people come on?--How is Uncle Josie?" + +"Very well, indeed; just as good as ever to us. You must go to +see him to-morrow." + +"Certainly;--and what is Uncle Dozie about?" + +"At work in the vegetable-garden, as usual. He sent me a fine +basket of salad, and radishes, and onions, this morning." + +"Clapp has got into a new house I see." + +"Yes; he is in very good business, I believe; you saw Catherine, +you say?" + +"Yes, for a minute only. I ran in to kiss Kate and the children, +while they were harnessing a horse for me at the tavern. Kate +looks very well herself. The children didn't remember much of +Uncle Charlie; but they are pretty, healthy little things, +nevertheless." + +The grandmother assented to the commendation of her daughter's +family; she thought them remarkably fine children. "Catherine was +a very fortunate woman," she said; "Mr. Clapp was a very superior +man, so very clever that he must do well; and the children were +all healthy--they had gone through the measles wonderfully, that +spring." + +Charlie had not quite as elevated an opinion of his +brother-in-law as the females of the family; he allowed his +mother's remark to pass unnoticed, however. + +"And so Mr. Taylor has given up Colonnade Manor," he continued. + +"Yes; he has just sold it to Mr. de Vaux, a friend of Mr. +Wyllys," replied Miss Patsey. + +"Why did he sell it, pray?" + +"Well, the young ladies liked better to live about at hotels and +boarding-houses in the summer, I believe; they thought it was too +dull at Longbridge. Mr. Taylor didn't care much for the place: +you know there are some people, who, as soon as they have built a +house, and got everything in nice order, want to sell; it seems +as if they did not care to be comfortable; but I suppose it is +only because they are so fond of change." + +We may as well observe, by way of parenthesis, that this fancy of +getting rid of a place as soon as it is in fine order, would +probably never occur to any man but an American, and an American +of the particular variety to which Mr. Taylor belonged. + +"I don't wonder at his wanting to get rid of the house; but the +situation and the neighbourhood might have satisfied him, I +think," said Charlie, as he accepted Miss Patsey's invitation to +eat the nice supper she had prepared for him. + +As he took his seat at the table, Mrs. Hubbard observed, that he +probably had not seen such short-cake as Patsey made, in Rome--to +which Charlie assented warmly. He had wished one evening, in +Florence, he said, for some of his sister's short-cake, and a +good cup of tea of her making; and the same night he dreamed that +the Venus de Medicis had made him some. He was ashamed of himself +for having had such a dream; but it could not be helped, such was +the fact. + +{"Venus de Medicis" = Famous nude statue of the Goddess Venus--a +1st Century BC copy of a lost Greek statue by Cleomenes of +Athens--in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence} + +Mrs. Hubbard thought no woman, Venus or not, ought to be ashamed +of making good short-cake; if they were bad, that would be a +different matter. + +"Well, Charlie, now you have seen all those paintings and figures +you used to talk so much about, what do you think of them?--are +they really so handsome as you expected?" asked his sister. + +"They are wonderful!" exclaimed Charlie, with animation; putting +down a short-cake he had just buttered. "Wonderful!--There is no +other word to describe them." + +Mrs. Hubbard observed, that she had some notion of a painting, +from the minister's portrait in the parlour--Charlie took up his +short cake--she thought a person might have satisfaction in a +painting; such a picture as that portrait; but as for those stone +figures he used to wish to see, she could not understand what was +the beauty of such idol-like things. + +"They are not at all like idols, mother; they are the most noble +conceptions of the human form." + +How could they look human? He himself had told her they were made +out of marble; just such marble, she supposed, as was used for +tomb-stones. + +"I only wish you could see some of the statues in Italy; the +Laocoon, Niobe, and others I have seen. I think you would feel +then what I felt--what I never can describe in words." + +{"Laocoon" = A famous Greek statue, in the Vatican at Rome, of a +Trojan priest and his two sons being crushed by serpents. "Niobe" += a famous statue, in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence (a Roman +copy of a lost Greek original attributed to Scopas), of Niobe -- +in Greek mythology the daughter of Tantalus whose children were +slaughtered by Zeus and who was transformed into a weeping image +of stone} + +Mrs. Hubbard said the names sounded very heathen-like to her +ears; she had never seen a statue, of any description whatever; +she didn't think she could have any satisfaction in looking at +one. If they had any colour to them, and were dressed up in +uniforms, and handsome clothes, like the wax-figures of General +Washington, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Lord Nelson, she had once +seen, they would be worth looking at, perhaps. + +Miss Patsey wished to know, if among the statues he had seen, +there were any supposed to be likenesses of the great men that we +read about in history? + +"There are many statues and busts in Italy, that are undeniably +portraits of some of the greatest men of antiquity," he replied. + +"Do you suppose they are really like those old Romans? I don't +mean such likenesses as the portrait of our dear father; but +still pretty good for those old times?" + +"Far better than anything of the kind you ever saw," replied +Charlie, drinking off a cup of tea. + +Miss Patsey thought those might be worth seeing. A conversation +followed upon the delight Charlie had felt in beholding +celebrated places, the scenes of great events in past ages; a +delight that an American can never know in his own country, and +which, on that very account, he enjoys with a far keener zest +than a European. Miss Patsey seemed to enter a little into this +pleasure; but, upon the whole, it was quite evident that all the +imagination of the family had fallen to Charlie's share. The +young man thought little of this, however: when Judy had carried +away the remains of the supper, he returned to his mother's side, +and the evening passed away in that pleasant family chat, so +interesting to those who feel alike. Sympathy of the heart is a +tie ten-fold stronger than sympathy of the head; people may think +alike, and hate each other; while those who feel together, are +often led to adopt the same opinions. + +When Charlie had read the usual evening chapter in the Bible, and +had received his mother's kiss and blessing, he laid himself down +with a thankful heart, in the little garret-room, as in his +childish years. The young artist's dreams that night, were a +mingled crowd of fancies; the memories of his boyhood reviving in +their old haunts, accompanied by more recent images brought from +beyond the Ocean, and linked with half-formed plans and ideas for +the future. Among these visions of the night, were two more +distinct than the rest; one was a determination to commence, the +very next morning, a copy of his honoured father's portrait, in +which the artist's object was unusual; for it was his chief aim +to make it as little like the original before him, as possible. +Shall we reveal the fact that another image, wearing a gentler +aspect than the stern, rigid features of the minister's portrait, +seemed to flit before the young painter's fancy, coming unbidden, +and mingling more especially with recollections of the past? As a +ray of moonlight stole into the low dormer-window, the young man +turned on his humble bed, a sigh burst from his lips, followed by +the words, "No, no!" + +We shall keep the secret. + + + +CHAPTER II {XXV} + +"Yonder, sure, they are coming." +As You Like It. + +{William Shakespeare, "As You Like It", I.ii.147} + +THE weather had been more than usually warm for several weeks, +and the morning after Charlie's return to Longbridge, when the +steamboat North America left the wharf at New-York, her decks and +cabins were filled by some five or six hundred passengers. There +were men, women, and children, of various characters, colours and +conditions. The scene on deck was pleasing and cheerful; the day +was lovely, the steamer looked neat and bright, and the great +majority of the females were gaily dressed in their summer +attire; most of the faces looked good-humoured, as if pleased to +escape from the heat and confinement of the town, to cooler air, +and a sight of the water and green woods. One might have supposed +it a party of pleasure on a large scale; in fact, Americans seem +always good-natured, and in a pleasant mood when in motion; such +is their peculiar temperament. The passengers on board the North +America soon began to collect in knots, family-groups, or parties +of acquaintance; some chatting, some reading, some meditating. +There was one difficulty, however, want of space to move about +in, or want of seats for some of those who were stationary. + +After the boat had fairly begun her trip, and people had settled +themselves as well as they could, according to their different +fancies, a pretty little woman appeared at the door of the +ladies' cabin. In her light hair, and somewhat insipid face, +encased in an extremely fashionable hat, we recognise Mrs. +Hilson. Turning towards a gentleman who seemed waiting near the +door for her, she addressed him. + +"Now, Monsieur Bonnet, do exert your gallantry, and find me a +seat on deck. The cabin is intolerably warm, I cannot stay +here;--where are Emmeline and the Baron?" + +"You see, Madame," he said, pointing towards the couple, +"Montbrun take a tabouret at once, when we come on board, and +Mademoiselle Emmeline now has it. It was very maladroit in me not +to keep one for you; I beg a t'ousand pardons." + +{"tabouret" = a stool; "maladroit" = careless (French)} + +"Haven't you got a seat; that is a pity. But I dare say you can +easily find one." + +"Vraiment, ma chere Madame EEL-sun, there is no sacrifice I would +not make to procure you one. I am desole it should be impossible. +I have been looking; but all the tabourets and chair are taken by +ladies and gentlemans. You have a drole de maniere of travel in +this countree; so many people together, the ladies must be +victimes sometime." + +{"Vraiment, ma chere..." = truly, my dear...; "drole de maniere" += funny way (French)} + +"Oh, no; you don't know how to manage, that is all. Has not the +Baron a chair?" + +"Non, Madame; you see he is debout." + +{"debout" = standing (French)} + +"Well, there are some gentlemen seated; I see three or four--one +quite near you. Ask him for his chair." + +The Frenchman shrugged his shoulders, and looked bewildered. + +"Pray, ask that gentleman for his chair," repeated the lady, +pointing with her parasol to a person sitting at no great +distance. + +"But, Madame, the gentleman will not know what a charming lady +wish for the chair--he will not give it." + +"Oh, no danger; if you tell him it is for a lady, of course he +will let you have it. Why, how slow you are about it; you are +almost as bad as Captain Kockney, who never did anything when he +was asked." + +"Ah, Madame, de graces do not say that!--I go." + +{"de graces" = please (French)} + +And Monsieur Bonnet, edging his way here and there behind the +ladies, and begging ten thousand pardons, at length reached the +person Mrs. Hilson had pointed out to him. + +"What did you say?" exclaimed this individual, looking up rather +gruffly, at being addressed by an utter stranger. + +"Mille pardons, Monsieur," continued Monsieur Bonnet; "a lady is +very much oppressed with fatigue, and send me to beg you will be +aimable to give her your chair." + +{"mille pardons" = excuse me; "aimable" = obliging enough +(French)} + +"What is it?" repeated the man, who looked like an Englishman; "I +don't understand you." + +Monsieur Bonnet again urged his request, in terms still more +civil. It would be rendering a very great service to the lady, he +said. + +"I am not acquainted with the lady; I advise you to look for an +empty chair," replied the other, resolutely turning his face in +an opposite direction. + +Monsieur Bonnet shrugged his shoulders, and was moving towards +Mrs. Hilson au desespoir, when a gentlemanly-looking man, who was +seated, reading, not far from the Englishman, rose and quietly +offered his bench for the use of the lady. Monsieur Bonnet was, +of course, all gratitude, and returned enchante to Mrs. Hilson, +who took the matter very quietly; while M. Bonnet seemed +surprised at his own success. + +{"au desespoir" = in despair; "enchante" = delighted (French)} + +The gentleman who had given up his seat, was obliged to continue +standing; shutting up his book, he began to look about him, among +the crowd, for acquaintances. There was a very gay, noisy party, +at no great distance, which first attracted his attention; it +consisted of two pretty young women in the centre of a group of +men. The shrill voice and rattling laugh of one lady, might be +very distinctly heard across the deck; the other was leaning back +listlessly in her chair: one of the young men was reading a paper +with a sort of family expression, as if the ladies were his near +connexions; and, on a chair, at the side of the silent lady, sat +an old gentleman, with a very rusty coat, snuffy nose, and a red +handkerchief spread on one knee, while on the other he held a +pretty little boy, about two years old. + +"I tell you I know she was dead in love with him!" cried the +rattling young lady, at the top of her voice. Then, observing the +gentleman, who was looking in that direction, she bowed with a +coquettish graciousness. The bow was returned, but the gentleman +did not seem very anxious to approach the party; when the young +lady, beckoning with her finger, obliged him to draw near. + +"Now, Mr. Ellsworth, you are just the man I wanted. Three of +these gentlemen are against me; I have only one on my side, and I +want you to help me to fight the battle." + +"Must I enlist, Miss Taylor, before I know whether the cause is +good or bad?" + +"Oh, certainly, or else you are not worth a cent. But I'll tell +you how the matter stands: you know Helen de Vaux and you were at +the Springs, last summer, when she and Mr. Van Alstyne were +there. Well, I say she was dead in love with him, though she did +refuse him." + +"Was she?" replied Mr. Ellsworth. + +"Why, I know she was; it was as plain as a pike-staff to +everybody who saw them together. And here, these good folks +provoke me so; they say if she refused him she did not care for +him; and here is my ridiculous brother-in-law, Mr. St. Leger, +says I don't know anything about it; and my sister Adeline always +thinks just as her husband does." + +"That's quite right, my dear," said the rusty Mr. Hopkins, taking +a pinch of snuff. "I hope you will follow her example one of +these days." + +"What are the precise symptoms of a young lady's being dead in +love?" asked the quiet, business-looking Theodore St. Leger. + +"Oh, you know well enough what I mean. You may say what you +please about Helen de Vaux not caring for him, I know better," +continued the young lady, in a voice that might be heard on the +other side of the boat. + +"As Miss de Vaux's mother is on board, suppose you refer the +question to her," said Mr. Ellsworth, in a dry manner. + +"Is she?--I hope she didn't hear us," continued the young lady, +lowering her voice half a tone. "But you need not ask her, +though; for I don't believe her mother knows anything about it." + +"You are going to the Springs, I suppose," said Mr. Ellsworth, by +way of changing the conversation. + +"I wish we were! No; Adeline has taken it into her head to be +romantic, for the first time in her life. She says we must go to +the Falls; and it will be a fortnight lost from Saratoga." + +"But, have you no wish to see Niagara?" + +"Not a bit; and I don't believe Adeline has, either. But it is no +wonder she doesn't care about the Springs, now she's married; she +began to go there four years before I did." + +"Have you never been to Niagara, Mrs. St. Leger?" continued Mr. +Ellsworth, addressing the elder sister; who, from the giddy, +belleish Adeline, was now metamorphosed into the half-sober young +matron--the wife of an individual, who in spite of the romantic +appellation of Theodore St. Leger, was a very quiet, industrious +business-man, the nephew and adopted son of Mr. Hopkins, +Adeline's Boston escort. She had been sitting contentedly beside +the old gentleman, for the last half hour, leaving her unmarried +sister to entertain the beaux, according to etiquette. + +"No, I have never been to the Falls; and all our party but my +sister Emma, seemed to think it would be a pleasant jaunt." + +"Mr. Hopkins has entered into an engagement to supply me with at +least two beaux at a time, and a regular change all the way to +Niagara, or else I shouldn't have come," said Miss Emma. + +"We are engaged at least by the day, I hope," interposed one of +the attendant young men. + +"No, indeed; I should be tired to death of you, for more than an +hour at a time. I sha'n't speak to YOU again, until we have +passed West Point." + +"I have had no trouble as yet, my dear, in picking up recruits," +said Mr. Hopkins, whose attention seemed equally divided between +his snuff-box, and the little Hopkins, junior, on his knee--his +great-nephew. + +"If there are two, that's all I care for; but I hate to have only +one person to talk to." + +Mr. Ellsworth bit his lips, to prevent their expressing his +opinion, that the young lady must always have a large circle of +listeners. + +"Have you seen Mr. Wyllys's party this morning?" inquired +Adeline. + +"The Wyllyses!--Are they on board?" exclaimed Mr. Ellsworth, with +surprise and pleasure. "I thought them at Saratoga by this time." + +"Oh, no; they are somewhere on the other side of the boat; my +sister-in-law, Mrs. Taylor's little girl is with them. +By-the-bye, Emma, I am going into the cabin to look after Jane; +will you go with me?" + +"No, indeed; I hate the cabin of a steamboat!" + +Adeline was quite satisfied to leave her sister with the prospect +of a good supply of young men to flirt with; though matrimony had +changed her in some respects, she still considered it a duty to +encourage to the utmost, all love-affairs, and flirtations going +on in her neighbourhood. Mr. Hopkins resigned the little boy to +his mother's care; Mr. St. Leger helped his wife through the +crowd; and, under cover of the movement made to allow Adeline to +pass, Mr. Ellsworth made his escape. His eye had been already +directed towards the opposite side of the boat, where he had +discovered the venerable, benevolent face of Mr. Wyllys, with +three ladies near him. Mr. Ellsworth immediately recognised Miss +Agnes, Elinor, and Mary Van Alstyne. It was several minutes +before he could edge his way through the crowd, to join them; but +when he reached the spot, he was received very cordially by Mr. +Wyllys and Miss Agnes, in a friendly manner by Mary Van Alstyne, +and possibly there was something of consciousness betrayed by +Elinor. + +"I thought you already at Saratoga!" exclaimed Mr. Ellsworth. + +"We were detained several days, waiting for Mrs. Taylor," replied +Elinor, to whom the remark was made. + +"We shall not be at Saratoga until Monday," added Mr. Wyllys; "we +are going to pass a day or two with our friends, the V-----s, at +Poughkeepsie." + +"I am very sorry to hear it," continued Mr. Ellsworth; "I have +promised to carry Mrs. Creighton to Nahant, about that time, and +shall have my usual bad luck in missing you." + +{"Nahant" = sea-side resort in Massachusetts, then very popular, +just north of Boston} + +"We must persuade Mrs. Creighton not to run away," said Mr. +Wyllys. + +As Elinor stooped at that moment, to untie the hat of the pretty +little creature at her side, it was impossible to say whether +this intelligence were displeasing to her or not. + +"That is Mrs. Taylor's child, is it not?" observed Mr. Ellsworth, +looking at the little girl. "She is very like Mrs. St. Leger." + +"Do you really think so?--we fancy her like her mother," said +Elinor. + +"How is Tallman Taylor now?--he was not well when they passed +through Philadelphia." + +"He looks badly still," said Miss Agnes. "He is very imprudent, +and distresses Jane very much by his carelessness." + +"Gentlemen never seem to do what is right when invalids," +observed Mary Van Alstyne, smiling. "They are either very +reckless, and indifferent to their health, or else over-careful." + +"What do you say, Mr. Ellsworth; is that account true?" asked +Miss Wyllys. + +"I dare say it is--I have no doubt we are very troublesome to our +nurses. But, fortunately, women are endowed with a double stock +of patience, to make up for our deficiencies. Is Mr. Taylor on +board?--I have not seen him." + +"No; he remained in town to attend to some business," replied +Miss Wyllys. "We have charge of Mrs. Taylor, however, who was +very anxious to get into the country, on account of her youngest +child." + +"I see, Mr. Ellsworth, that old Ironsides has arrived at Norfolk, +bringing Mr. Henley from Rio," observed Mr. Wyllys. + +{"Old Ironsides" = the United States Frigate "Constitution"; in +the early 1800s, U.S. naval ships frequently carried diplomats to +and from their stations} + +"Certainly; she arrived on Tuesday." + +"I saw it in the Globe, last night, grandpapa, Mr. Henley had +arrived at Washington. Harry is with him, of course," said +Elinor, in a quiet, natural tone. + +"I supposed you knew of their arrival," observed Mr. Ellsworth. +"I have a letter from Hazlehurst in my pocket. He seems to have +had quite enough of Rio." + +"Mr. Henley, I understand, is talked of as minister to Russia," +said Mr. Wyllys. + +"Yes; I believe that affair is settled." + +"Does Hazlehurst mention whether he is going with Mr. Henley?" + +"That may be a state secret," said Elinor, smiling. + +"He has had an offer of the situation, I believe--but does not +seem to have made up his mind; he is coming home to look about +him, he says, having three months' vacation at any rate." + +The shrill tone of Miss Emma Taylor's voice was at this moment +heard so distinctly, from the other side of the boat that Mr. +Wyllys looked up from his paper, and Mr. Ellsworth smiled. It was +very evident the young lady had inherited the peculiar tone of +voice, and all the cast-off animation of her elder sister. + +"Miss Taylor seems to be in very good spirits," remarked Mr. +Ellsworth. + +"Yes; she always talks and laughs a great deal," replied Mary Van +Alstyne. + +"They are no longer your neighbours, I understand, sir." + +"No; Mr. Taylor sold Colonnade Manor this spring; De Vaux has +purchased it, and changed the name of the place. It is now to be +called Broadlawn, which is certainly a great improvement." + +"And where does Mr. Taylor's family pass the summer?" + +"Why, Jane tells me he is building something he calls a cottage, +at Rockaway, within a stone's throw of the principal hotel. They +thought Longbridge too quiet." + +Mrs. Taylor's little girl had, by this, time, become very sleepy, +and a little fretful; and Miss Agnes advised her being carried to +her mother. Elinor led her away, rather, it is believed, to Mr. +Ellsworth's regret. + +It was no easy task to make one's way among the nurses, and +babies, and baskets, filling the ladies' cabin, which was more +than usually crowded. But at length Elinor reached Jane and +Adeline, who were sitting together. + +A single glance was sufficient to show that a change had come +over these two young women, since the giddy days of their +girlhood. Jane was pale, but beautiful as ever; she was holding +on her knees a sick child, about two months old, which apparently +engrossed all her attention. What would be her system as a +mother, might be foretold by the manner in which she pacified the +little girl Elinor had brought with her. + +"Give her some candy, Dinah," she said to the black nurse; whose +broad, good-natured face was soon covered with shining marks of +affection, from the hands of the pretty little charge. + +Adeline was less changed in her appearance than her +sister-in-law; that is to say, she was as pretty as ever, and +neither thin nor pale. But there was something in her expression, +and a great deal in her manner, that was no longer what it had +been of old. That excessive animation which had distinguished her +as a belle, had been allowed to die away; and the restless +expression, produced by a perpetual labour to make conquests, +which was, at one time, always to be traced upon her features, +had now vanished entirely. In its place there was a touch of +matronly care and affection, more natural, and far more pleasing. +She, too, was sitting by the side of her child, driving away the +flies from the little thing, who was sleeping in a berth. Adeline +Taylor had married well, in the best sense of the word. Not that +she deserved much credit for doing so, since she had only +accidentally, as it were, become attached to the young man who +happened to be the most deserving among her suitors. Chance had +had a great deal to with the match, as it has with many matches. +She had, however, one merit--that of not rejecting him on account +of his want of fortune; although at the time, she might have +married a man who would have given her a four-story, four-window +house in Broadway. Mr. Taylor had not interfered: she had done as +she pleased in the affair. It is true, that her father rather +inclined towards the richest suitor; still, he took it for +granted, that if Theodore St. Leger had not a fortune at the +time, being a merchant, he would, of course, make one in a few +years. But Mr. Taylor's son-in-law was a man of very different +character from himself; he was a quiet, prudent, unostentatious +young man, of good abilities, who had received by education +excellent principles, and moderate views, and who had fallen in +love with Adeline's pretty face. Mr. Hopkins, his uncle and +adopted father, was a very worthy man, though a little eccentric, +and rather too much given to snuff, and old coats, and red +handkerchiefs. No one stood better on Change than John Hopkins, +whose word had been as good as his bond, throughout a long life. +He was a man of some property too, but he had only given his +nephew enough to begin life very moderately. Even with the very +liberal allowance which Mr. Taylor freely gave his children, +Adeline, when she married, was obliged to live in a much plainer +and quieter way than she had done for the last five or six years. + +{"Change" = the stock exchange} + +Altogether, however, the young couple seemed to agree very well, +in spite of the difference in their characters: a pretty, +good-natured wife was all the young merchant had wished for; and +Adeline was really attached to her husband, whose chief fault +seemed to be in his coats, which were rather too much after the +fashion of those of Uncle Hopkins. + +Jane's fate had proved less happy than that of her friend +Adeline. Tallman Taylor's habits of extravagance had led them +into difficulties in more ways than one. He had spent far more +than his income, and his carelessness in business had proved a +great disadvantage to the house with which he was connected. +During the last year, matters had grown worse and worse; he had +neglected his wife, and lost large sums at the gambling-table. +Poor Jane had passed some unhappy months, and traces of sorrow +were to be seen on her pale face. Towards the last of the winter, +young Taylor had been dangerously ill with a malignant fever +prevailing in New Orleans; and as a long convalescence interfered +with his dissipated habits, and confined him for some time to his +own house, his friends hoped that he would have time and leisure +to make some useful reflections. But they were deceived; sickness +and suffering only made him more selfish and irritable: poor Jane +had already paid a heavy penance for her duplicity, and her +obstinacy in marrying him. Mr. Taylor had quarrelled with his +partners; and it was the object of his present visit to New York, +to persuade his father to make some heavy advances in his behalf, +as otherwise he would be ruined. Jane, it is true, knew but +little of her husband's affairs; still, she saw and heard enough +to make her anxious for the future, and she gave herself up to +melancholy repining, while her manner lost all cheerfulness. Her +father's family were in Charleston, and she had not seen them for +more than a twelvemonth; but Mr. Robert Hazlehurst, Miss Agnes, +and Elinor had done all that was possible to supply their place, +since she had been in their neighbourhood. Adeline, too, was well +enough disposed towards her sister-in-law, but she had neither +the good sense nor the delicacy of Miss Wyllys and Elinor, and +was far less successful in her friendly efforts. The society of +her aunt and cousin seemed a relief to Jane; and it was at their +request that she was going to pass a fortnight with them at +Saratoga, where Miss Agnes had been ordered by her physician. + +Elinor, on joining her cousin in the cabin, tried to persuade +Jane to have the sick child carried on deck, for the sake of the +fresh air, but she did not succeed; and not wishing to leave Mrs. +Taylor, she took off her hat, and remained some time in the +cabin--a piece of good-nature which Mr. Ellsworth seemed to think +ill-timed. As they drew near the Highlands, however, she returned +to her seat on deck; for the morning was lovely, and she did not +wish to lose the scenery. She found Mrs. Hilson sitting near her +aunt. + +"Ah, Miss Elinor!--how do you do?" exclaimed the city lady. "It +is the first time I have had a chance of seeing you since you +returned from the West Indies. You have not been much in New +York, I believe, since you arrived?" + +"Only for a day or two." + +"And how did you like the West Indies? Is there much aristocracy +at Havana?" + +"We found it very pleasant there; and the climate was of so much +service to my aunt, that I shall always remember Havana with +gratitude." + +"You did not go into society, then?" + +"0h, yes; we made many pleasant acquaintances." + +"Well, if I go abroad, I hope it will be to England; though I +should like very well to visit the stores of Paris." + +"Have you seen your cousin, Charles Hubbard, since he arrived +from Italy?" inquired Elinor. + +"Yes; he called at our boarding-house. He is at Longbridge now, +but he is coming to Saratoga, shortly; for he told me he had +engaged to take several views of Lake George." + +"I am sorry be did not come to see us in town; but I am delighted +to hear he is going to Saratoga. Grandpapa, Mrs. Hilson tells me +Charles Hubbard will be at Saratoga, with us!" + +"I am very glad to hear it, my child; I want to see Charlie." + +"Has he brought home many pictures?" continued Elinor. + +"I really don't know; I did not think of asking him." + +"I should suppose you would be anxious to see your cousin's +paintings." + +"Oh, no; portraits are the only pictures that interest me. I +always have the 'Book of Beauty,' whenever it comes out; you know +they are likenesses of the Peeresses of the English Nobility." + +{"Book of Beauty" = "Heath's Book of Beauty" an annual volume +with engravings of famous British women, sponsored by Charles +Heath (1785-1848) (London: Longmans, 1833-1847)} + +Elinor bowed. "Yes, I have seen the book." + +"I have the 'Children of the Nobility,' too, bound in crimson +silk; it is a very fascinating collection. My friend, Mrs. +Bagman, tells me they are excellent likenesses, particularly the +children of his Royal Highness, the Lord-Mayor." + +{"Children of the Nobility" = "Portraits of the Children of the +Nobility," A similar publication, also sponsored by Charles Heath +(Longmans: London, 1838)} + +Absurd as such a mistake in heraldry may seem, one might vouch +for having heard others quite as extraordinary. + +"They may be like," said Elinor, smiling in spite of herself; +"but I cannot agree with you as to their beauty. I have seen the +volume, and it struck me the artists must have made caricatures +of many of the children, who, no doubt, were pretty in reality." + +"I was looking at those engravings only yesterday," said Mr. +Ellsworth, anxious to engage Elinor's attention; "they almost +amount to a libel on childhood; they give the idea of mincing, +affected little creatures, at the very age when children are +almost invariably natural and interesting. I should quarrel very +much with a portrait of my little girl, in the same fashion." + +"But it is very seldom you see portraits of children, that are +really child-like," observed Elinor. "And then what a trial, to +paint a pretty, innocent little creature, in full dress, starched +and trim!" + +"Children are charming subjects when properly treated; I delight +in such pictures," said Mary Van Alstyne. + +"You would have been often delighted then, in Italy, Miss Van +Alstyne. Raphael's cherubs are as perfect in their way, as his +men and women." + +{"Raphael's cherubs" = While living in Florence in 1829, James +Fenimore Cooper and his family admired the "Madonna del +Baldacchino" (sometimes called "La Madonna del Trono") by Raphael +(Italian painter, 1483-1520), at the Pitti Palace, and especially +the two singing angels ("perhaps I should call them cherubs) at +the foot of the throne. He commissioned the American sculptor +Horatio Greenough (1805-1852) to sculpt for him a group called +"The Chanting Cherubs," based the angels or cherubs} + +Mrs. Hilson, unwilling to be thrown out of the conversation, +again addressed Elinor. + +"When you joined us, Miss Wyllys, we were speaking of the fire +opposite your hotel. Were you not dreadfully alarmed? I hear you +were there; although I did not find you at home when I called." + +"We were disturbed, of course; but I can't say that we were +personally alarmed. The wind, you may remember, carried +everything in the opposite direction." + +"Did it? Well, I was too much frightened to notice anything; you +know it was in the same block as our boarding-house." + +"Yes; you were nearer the danger than we were." + +"Oh, I was dreadfully frightened. There was one of our ladies +wanted to persuade me to look at Trinity Church, lighted up by +the fire; I believe she really thought it a fascinating sight. +Here comes a gentleman who was staying at your hotel, and has not +got over his fright yet; it is one of my escorts--I have two, the +Baron and this gentleman; but the Baron is not on deck now--let +me introduce you; Monsieur Bonnet, Miss Wyllys. I do believe, +Monsieur Bonnet, you were as much alarmed as I was." + +"Alarm--Ah, Madame, I was ebloui by the fire. In all my life, I +never saw real incendie before; though, of course, I saw the +Panorama of the incendie de Moscou--I was not in Russie with +l'Empereur. At the spectacle we have incendies sometimes; but +never in the street. Ah, I did not see that house until the roof +fall, when light burst through my volets, and I spring to the +window." + +{"ebloui" = dazzled; "incendie de Moscou" = the fire which +destroyed Moscow in 1812, while it was being occupied by the +Emperor Napoleon; "spectacle" = theater; "volets" = shutters +(French)} + +"I should have thought the noise would have called you out before +that." + +"Du tout; when I hear cries, and people marching, I think tout +bonnement it was an emeute, and I turn round to finish my sleep; +I think myself happy not to belong to the Garde Nationale of New +York, and not be afraid of the rappel." + +{"du tout" = not at all; "tout bonnement" = simply; "emeute" = +riot; "rappel" = call to arms (French)} + +"What did you think it was?" + +"An emeute, sans doute, say I to myself. It was un tintamarre +epouvantable." + +{"un tintamarre epouvantable" = a frightful uproar (French)} + +"Emeute; pray, what is that?" + +"Emeute? A little revolution, as we have in Paris constamment." + +"Why, my dear sir, our revolutionary war took place more than +fifty years ago. Did you expect to find us fighting now?" + +"Certainement; I thought the wheel I hear was cannon. But mon ami +Eel-SUN tell me next day, there is incendie every night somewhere +in New York. Un drole de divertisement, vraiment. It is a great +desagrement, of a city otherwise so beautiful, with so many +charming ladies." + +{"un drole de divertisement, vraiment" = truly, a strange form of +entertainment. "desagrement" = unpleasant feature (French)} + +"Thank you, sir; you are very polite. I believe, Miss Wyllys, +that French gentlemen, no matter what they talk about, always +find an opportunity to pay a compliment." + +"C'est tout naturel; cela va sans dire; it is only our devoir, +Madame, to exprimer to the ladies some of the many agreeable +things they inspire." + +{"C'est tout naturel..." = it's only natural; it goes without +saying; it is only our duty, Madame, to express to the ladies... +(French)} + +"Worse and worse," said Mrs. Hilson, laughing. "How different you +are from Captain Kockney; he never said a civil thing to me, all +the time he was in New York." + +"Le capitaine Coquenais was an Anglais, who cannot feel the true +politesse Francaise." + +"He used to say it is not aristocratic to be polite to other +people; he belongs to the English aristocracy, you know." + +"L'aristocratie! Oh, that is a vile state of things. La vieille +aristocratie of France, Madame, was the cause of our revolution. +But in France now, and in America, those happy countree, the +spirit of aristocracy is extinct." + +"I beg your pardon, Monsieur Bonnet," said Mrs. Hilson, quite +indignantly. "It is true there are many plebeians in this +country; but we have also many people of the highest +aristocracy." + +"Ah, vous plaisantez avec tant de grace, Madame!" + +{"vous plaisantez...." = You joke so gracefully, Madame (French)} + +"It is pleasant, certainly, to me; though some people may not +appreciate it. I am a very aristocratic spirit." + +"Ah, sans doute, Madame; you have so much esprit, you laugh at +me," said the Frenchman, who took Mrs. Hilson's protestation as a +joke. + +{"esprit" = wit (French)} + +"No, indeed; I never was more serious in my life. I should +suppose you would have been struck with the high state of +aristocracy at our boarding-house, for instance." + +Monsieur Bonnet could only shrug his shoulders, being quite at a +loss for the lady's meaning. + +"Yes; I am thoroughly patrician and aristocratic; if we only had +a despotic government, to take away all privileges from +plebeians, I should be perfectly happy. My language surprises +you, I perceive; but it is quite natural that a descendant of a +Scotch Baronet, the Duke of Percy, should have similar feelings." + +More and more bewildered, Monsieur Bonnet was reduced to a bow. +Happily, as he thought, the warning bell was rung; and the usual +cry, "Passengers for West Point please look out for their +baggage!" changed the current of Mrs. Hilson's ideas, or rather +the flow of her words. + +In another moment, Mrs. Hilson and Monsieur Bonnet, with a score +or two of others, were landed at West Point, and the ladies of +Mr. Wyllys's party felt it no little relief to be rid of so much +aristocracy. + +The boat had soon reached Poughkeepsie, and much to Mr. +Ellsworth's regret, Mr. Wyllys and his family went on shore. Mr. +Ellsworth had been introduced to Elinor at Jane's wedding. He was +a man of thirty, a widower, with an only child, and had for +several years been thinking of marrying again. After having made +up his mind to take the step, he next determined that he would +not marry in a hurry. He was not a man of quick passions, and was +sometimes accused of being fastidious in his tastes. He thought +Elinor's manner charming, and soon discovered that she had every +recommendation but beauty, the want of which was her only +drawback; he liked her family, and probably was not sorry to hear +that she would have a large property. But, unfortunately, he +seldom met Miss Elinor Wyllys; she was a great part of her time +in the country, and he knew nobody in the immediate +neighbourhood. He had not been asked to Wyllys-Roof; nor was he, +a very recent acquaintance, on terms sufficiently intimate, to +present himself at the door, bag and baggage, without an +invitation. More than a twelvemonth intervened, in the mean time; +but he was still thinking enough of Elinor to make him wish for a +meeting, when, accidentally, they passed a few days together at +Old Point Comfort, and afterwards met again, not exactly by +accident it is believed, at the Sulphur Springs, in Virginia. His +good opinion of Elinor was not only confirmed by this +intercourse, but his admiration very much increased. It was only +natural it should be so; the more one knew Elinor, the more one +loved her; good sense, intelligence, sweetness of disposition +like her's, united to the simple grace of manner, peculiarly her +own, were best appreciated by those who saw her daily. Quite +unaware of Mr. Ellsworth's views, and unconsciously influenced at +first, perhaps, by the fact that he was an old friend of Harry's, +she soon liked him as a companion, and received him with +something more than mere politeness. "It is always pleasant to +meet with an agreeable, gentlemanly, well-informed man," thought +Elinor: a train of reflection which has sometimes carried young +ladies farther than they at first intended. Under such +circumstances, some ardent spirits would have settled the +question during a fortnight passed with the lady they admired; +but Mr. Ellsworth, though he thought Elinor's manner encouraging, +did not care to hazard a hasty declaration; he preferred waiting +a few weeks, until they should meet again in Philadelphia, where +the Wyllyses intended passing the winter. But unfortunately, +shortly after the family returned home, Miss Agnes was taken ill, +and on her partial recovery, was ordered to a warm climate before +the cold weather; and Elinor merely passed through Philadelphia +on her way to the West Indies, with her aunt and grandfather. Mr. +Ellsworth was, of course, disappointed; he expressed his regrets +as warmly as he dared, during a morning visit, in a room +half-full of company; and he hinted in terms so pointed at his +hopes of a happy meeting in the spring, that Elinor's suspicions +were for the first time excited, while those of Mr. Wyllys and +Miss Agnes were only confirmed. Since then, Mr. Ellsworth and +Elinor had only seen each other once, in the street, until they +met on board the steamboat, on their way to Saratoga. + +{"Old Point Comfort" = a sea-side resort near Hampton, Virginia} + + + +CHAPTER III. {XXVI} + +"Who comes here?" +As You Like It. + +{William Shakespeare, "As You Like It", II.vii.87 or III.iv.46} + +THERE was to be a Temperance meeting at Longbridge, one of more +importance than usual, as a speaker of note was to be heard on +the occasion. + +"Are you ready, Catherine?" inquired Mr. Clapp of his wife, +appearing at the parlour-door, holding his hat and cane in one +hand, and running the other through his brown curls. + +"Wait one minute, dear, until I have put a clean collar on +Willie." + +Little Willie, who had been hopping about the room, delighted +with the importance of sitting up later than his younger brothers +and sisters, was persuaded to stand still for a few seconds, +while his mother tied on the clean collar; when Mr. Clapp, his +wife, and eldest boy set out for the meeting-house, which they +found already half-filled. They were beckoned into a pew near to +one already occupied by the Van Hornes, Miss Patsey, and Charlie. +As the evening was very pleasant, men, women, and children +crowded in, until a large audience was brought together, urged, +as usual, by different motives; some came from curiosity, others +from always preferring an evening in public to an evening at +home; some, from sincere respect for the object of the meeting, +many for the sake of the speeches, and many others merely because +they were ever ready to follow the general example. Mr. Clapp had +no sooner found seats for his wife and child, than he began to +look about him; his eye wandered over the heads around, +apparently in quest of some one; at length his search seemed +successful; it rested on a man, whose whole appearance and dress +proclaimed him to be a sailor. + +The meeting was opened by prayer, two different ministers +officiating on the occasion; one, a venerable-looking old man, +offered a simple, fervent, Christian prayer; the second, a much +younger person, placing one hand in his waistcoat pocket, the +other under the flaps of his coat, advanced to the front of the +staging, and commenced, what was afterwards pronounced one of the +"most eloquent prayers ever addressed to a congregation." + +The speeches then followed. The first speaker, who seemed the +business-man of the evening, gave some account of the statistics +of the Society, concluding with a short address to those present, +hoping they would, upon that occasion, enrol their names as +Members of the Longbridge Temperance Society. + +The principal orator of the evening, Mr. Strong, then came +forward; he made a speech of some length, and one that was very +impressive. Nothing could be more clear, more just, more true, +than the picture he drew of the manifold evils of intemperance; a +vice so deceitful in its first appearance, so treacherous in its +growth; so degrading, so brutalizing in its enjoyments; so +blasting and ruinous in its effects--ruinous to body and mind, +heart and soul--blasting all hopes for this life and for the +next, so long as it remains unconquered. He entreated his friends +to count the cost of indulgence in this vice; loss of property, +loss of health, loss of character, loss of intellect and feeling, +loss of conscience, until roused in those fearful moments of +terror and fury, the peculiar punishment of drunkenness. He +begged his hearers to look at this evil under all its aspects, +from the moment it destroys the daily peace of its miserable +victims and all connected with them, until it leaves them, in +death, without a hope, exposed to the fearful penalty of sin. As +he went on, the heart of many a wretched wife and mother +acknowledged the bitter truth of his observations; many a guilty +conscience shrunk under the probe. He then made a just and +reasonable estimate of the difficulties to be resisted in +conquering this evil; he did not attempt to deny that there were +obstacles to be overcome; he showed all the force of bad habit, +all the danger of temptation--but if there were difficulties in +the way, it was equally true that the power to subdue them was +fully within the reach of every man. He went on to represent the +happy effects of a change from evil to good; a restoration to +usefulness, peace, comfort, and respectability, which has happily +been seen in many an instance. He concluded by appealing to his +hearers as men, to shake off a debasing slavery; as Christians, +to flee from a heinous sin; and he entreated them, if they had +not done so before, to take, on that evening, the first step in +the cheering, honourable, blessed course of temperance. + +Mr. Strong's speech was, in fact, excellent; all he said was +perfectly true, it was well-expressed, and his manner was easy, +natural, and dignified. + +He was followed by William Cassius Clapp; the lawyer had been +very anxious to speak at this meeting. Temperance societies were +very popular at that time in Longbridge, and he was, of course, +desirous of not losing so good an opportunity of appearing before +the public on such an occasion; he thought it would help him on +in his road towards the Assembly. Running his fingers through his +curls, he took his place on the stage, and commenced. He was very +fluent by nature, and in animation, in fanatical zeal for the +cause, he far surpassed Mr. Strong: any other cause, by-the-bye, +had it been popular, would have suited him just as well. In +assertion, in denunciation, he distinguished himself +particularly; he called upon every individual present to come +forward and sign the pledge, under penalty of public disgrace; it +was the will of the community that the pledge should be signed, +public opinion demanded it, the public will required it; every +individual present who neglected to sign the pledge of total +abstinence, he pronounced to be "instigated by aristocratic +pride," and would leave that house, stigmatized as +"anti-Christian, and anti-republican;" and in conclusion he threw +in something about "liberty." + +Mr. Clapp sat down amid much applause; his speech was warmly +admired by a portion of his hearers. All did not seem to agree on +the subject, however, to judge, at least, by their manner and +expression; for, during the delivery of their brother-in-law's +oration, Miss Patsey Hubbard seemed to be generally looking down +at the floor, while Charlie was looking up at the ceiling: and +there were many others present, who thought Mr. Clapp's fluency +much more striking than his common sense, or his sincerity. It is +always painful to hear a good cause injured by a bad defence, to +see truth disgraced by unworthy weapons employed in her name. It +would have been quite impossible for Mr. Clapp to prove half his +bold assertions, to justify half his sweeping denunciations. +Still, in spite of the fanatical character of some of the +advocates of Temperance, who distort her just proportions as a +virtue--lovely in her own true character--yet drunkenness is a +vice so hateful, that one would never wish to oppose any society, +however imperfectly managed, whose object is to oppose that +dangerous and common evil. Let it not be forgotten, however, that +total abstinence from spirituous liquors is not the one great +duty of man; intemperance is not the only sin to which human +nature is inclined. + +Mr. Clapp's speech was the last for the evening. + +"I wish you joy, Mrs. Clapp," said Mrs. Tibbs, leaning forward +from the seat behind the lawyer's pretty little wife, and nodding +as she spoke. + +"I really congratulate you; Mr. Clapp has surpassed himself; such +animation, such a flow of eloquence!" added Mrs. Bibbs. + +Kate smiled, and looked much gratified; she evidently admired her +husband's speeches as much as she did his hair. + +The moment for enrolling new names had now come; numbers of the +audience went forward to sign the Total Abstinence Pledge. There +was one worthy woman, a widow, sitting near Miss Patsey, whose +only son had, during the last year or two, fallen into habits of +intemperance; his attention had quite lately been attracted to +the Temperance Societies, he had read their publications, had +been struck by a short speech of Mr. Strong on a former occasion; +and his mother's joy may possibly be imagined, as she saw him +rise and add his name to the list of members engaging to abstain +from intoxicating liquors. There were several others whose hearts +were cheered, on the same occasion, by seeing those they loved +best, those over whom they had often mourned, take this step +towards reformation. Among the rest, a man dressed as a sailor +was seen approaching the table; when his turn came he put down +his name, and this was no sooner done, than Mr. Clapp advanced +and shook him warmly by the hand. + +"Who is that man, Catherine, speaking to Mr. Clapp?--he looks +like a sailor," inquired Miss Patsey. + +"I don't know who it is; some client I suppose; William seemed +very much pleased at his signing." + +Mr. Clapp, after shaking hands with his friend, the sailor, made +his way through the crowd, until he reached the pew where his +wife and little boy were sitting. Taking Willie by the hand, he +led him to the table, placed the pen in his fingers, and left him +to write William C. Clapp, jr. as well as he could--no easy +matter, by-the-bye, for the child was not very expert in capital +letters. As Willie was the youngest individual on the list, his +signature was received by a burst of applause. The little fellow +was extremely elated by being made of so much consequence; to +tell the truth, he understood very little of what he was about. +If respect for temperance were implanted in his mind on that +evening, it was also accompanied by still more decided ideas of +the great importance of little boys, with the germ of a confused +notion as to the absolute necessity of the approbation of a +regularly organized public meeting, to foster every individual +virtue in himself, and in the human race in general. Miss Patsey +very much doubted the wisdom of making her little nephew play +such a prominent part before the public; she had old-fashioned +notions about the modesty of childhood and youth. The mother, her +sister Kate, however, was never disposed to find fault with +anything her husband did; it was all right in her eyes. Mr. Clapp +himself took the opportunity to thank the audience, in a short +but emphatic burst, for their sympathy; concluding by expressing +the hope that his boy would one day be as much disposed to +gratitude for any public favours, and as entirely submissive, +body and soul, to the public will of his own time, as he +himself--the father--was conscious of being at that +moment--within a few weeks of election. + +The meeting was shortly after concluded by a temperance song, and +a good prayer by the elder minister. + +As the audience crowded out of the door, Mr. Clapp nodded again +to the sailor, when passing near him. + +"Who is that man, William?" asked Mrs. Clapp, as they reached the +street. + +"It is a person in whom I am warmly interested--an injured man." + +"Indeed!--one of your clients I suppose." + +"Yes; I am now pledged to serve him to the best of my ability." + +"He looks like a sailor." + +"He is a sailor, just returned from a three years' whaling +voyage. You will be surprised, Catherine, when you hear that +man's story; but the time has come when it must be revealed to +the world." + +"You quite excite my curiosity; I hope you will tell me the +story?" + +"Yes; you shall hear it. But where are your sister and Charles; +are they going home with us?" + +"No; I am very sorry; but they told me at the meeting they could +not stay, as they had come over in Mrs. Van Horne's carriage. It +is a pity, for I had made some ice-cream, and gathered some +raspberries, expressly for them; and we have hardly seen Charles +since he arrived. But Patsey wants us to spend the day at the +grey house, to-morrow, children and all." + +Mr. Clapp assented to this arrangement; although he said he +should not be able to do more than go over himself for his family +in the evening, on account of business. + +Kate had only her husband and Willie to share her excellent +ice-cream and beautiful raspberries, on that warm evening; the +trio did justice, however, to these nice refreshments; and little +Willie only wished he could sign a temperance pledge every +evening, if he could sit up later than usual, and eat an +excellent supper after it. + +After the little fellow had been sent to bed, and his mother had +taken a look at her younger children, who were sleeping sweetly +in their usual places, the lawyer and his wife were left alone in +the parlour. It was a charming moon-light evening, though very +warm; and Kate having lowered the lamp, threw herself into a +rocking-chair near the window; while Mr. Clapp, who had had +rather a fatiguing day, was stretched out on the sofa. + +"It is early yet, William; suppose you tell the story you +promised me, about your client, the sailor." + +"I don't much like to tell it, Catherine; and yet it is time you +knew something about it, for we must proceed to action +immediately." + +"Oh, tell me, by all means; you have really made me quite +curious. You know very well that I can keep a secret." + +"Certainly; and I request you will not mention the facts I shall +relate, to any one, for some time; not until we have taken the +necessary legal steps." + +"Of course not, if you wish it; and now for the story. You said +this poor man had been injured." + +"Grossly injured." + +"In what manner?" + +"He has been treated in the most unjustifiable manner by his +nearest relatives. His reputation has been injured, and he has +been tyrannically deprived of a very large property." + +"Is it possible!--poor fellow! Can nothing be done for him?" + +"That is what we shall see. Yes, I flatter myself if there is law +in the land, we shall yet be able to restore him to his rights!" + +"Does he belong to this part of the country?" + +"He does not himself; but those who are revelling in his wealth +do." + +"What is his name?--Do I know his family?" + +"You will be distressed, Catherine, when you hear the name; you +will be astonished when you learn the whole story; but the time +for concealment has gone by now. Several years ago that poor +sailor came to me, in ragged clothing, in poverty and distress, +and first laid his complaint before me. I did not believe a word +of what he told me; I thought the man mad, and refused to have +anything to do with the cause. He became disgusted, and went to +sea again, and for some time gave up all hope of being reinstated +in his rights; the obstacles seemed too great. But at length a +very important witness in his favour was accidentally thrown in +his way: at the end of his cruise he came to me again, and I +confess I was astounded at the evidence he then laid before me. +It is conclusive, beyond a doubt, to any unprejudiced mind," said +Mr. Clapp, rousing himself from his recumbent position. + +"But you have not told me the man's name." + +"His name is Stanley--William Stanley." + +"You said I knew him; but I never heard of him; I don't know the +family at all." + +"Yes, you do; you know them only too well; you will be as much +surprised as I was myself--as I am still, whenever I allow myself +to dwell on the subject. Mr. Stanley is the cousin-german of your +friend, Miss Elinor Wyllys. Mr. Wyllys himself, Mrs. Stanley, the +step-mother, and young Hazlehurst, are the individuals who stand +between him and his rights," continued Mr. Clapp, rising, and +walking across the room, as he ran his fingers through his brown +curls. + +"Impossible!" exclaimed Kate, as the fan she held dropped from +her hand. + +"Just what I said myself, at first," replied Mr. Clapp. + +"But surely you are deceived, William--how can it be?" continued +the wife, in amazement. "We always thought that Mr. Stanley was +lost at sea, years ago!" + +"Exactly--it was thought so; but it was not true." + +"But where has he been in the mean time?--Why did he wait so long +before he came to claim his inheritance?" + +"The same unhappy, reckless disposition that first sent him to +sea, kept him roving about. He did not know of his father's +death, until four years after it had taken place, and he heard at +the same time that he had been disinherited. When he came home, +after that event, he found that he was generally believed to have +been lost in the Jefferson, wrecked in the year 18--. He was, in +fact, the only man saved." + +"How very extraordinary! But why has he never even shown himself +among his friends and connexions until now?" + +"Why, my dear, his habits have been unhappily very bad in every +way for years; they were, indeed the cause of his first leaving +his family. He hated everything like restraint--even the common +restraints of society, and cared for nothing but a sailor's life, +and that in the worst shape, it must be confessed. But he has now +grown wiser--he has determined to reform. You observed he signed +the temperance pledge this evening?" + +"It all sounds so strangely, that I cannot yet believe it, +William." + +"I dare say not--it took me four years to believe it." + +"But what do you mean to do? I hope you are not going to +undertake a law-suit against two of our best friends, Mr. Wyllys +and Mr. Hazlehurst?" + +"That must depend on Mr. Wyllys and Mr. Hazlehurst, themselves. I +have undertaken, Catherine, to do my best towards restoring this +injured man to his property." + +"Oh, William; suppose this man is in the wrong, after all! Don't +think of having anything to do with him." + +"My dear, you talk like a woman--you don't know what you say. If +I don't act in the premises, do you suppose he won't find another +lawyer to undertake his cause?" + +"Let him have another, then: but it seems too bad that we should +take sides against our best friends; it hardly seems honourable, +William, to do so." + +"Honour, alone, won't make a young lawyer's pot boil, I can tell +you." + +"But I had rather live poorly, and work hard all my life, than +that you should undertake a dishonest cause." + +"It is all very pretty talking, but I have no mind to live +poorly; I intend to live as well as I can, and I don't look upon +this Stanley cause as a bad one at all. I must say, Catherine, +you are rather hard upon your husband, and seem to think more of +the interests of your friends, than of his own." + +"How can you talk so, William, when you know you can't think it," +said the wife reproachfully, tears springing to her eyes. + +"Well, I only judge from what you say yourself. But in my opinion +there is no danger of a law-suit. As Mr. Stanley's agent, I shall +first apply to Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Hazlehurst to acknowledge his +claim; and when the evidence is laid before them, I have no kind +of doubt but they will immediately give up the property; as they +are some of your very honourable people, I must say I think they +are bound to do so." + +"Certainly, if the evidence is so clear; but it seems to me, from +all I have heard since I have been a lawyer's wife, that evidence +never is so very clear, William, but that people disagree about +it." + +"Well, I flatter myself that people will be staggered by the +proofs we can bring forward; I feel sure of public opinion, at +least." + +Kate was silenced; but though she could think of nothing more to +urge, she was very far from feeling easy on the subject. + +"I hope with all my heart it will be settled amicably," she added +at length. + +"There is every probability that it will. Though the story sounds +so strangely to you now--just as it did to me, at first--yet when +you come to hear all the facts, you will find there is scarcely +room for a shadow of doubt." + +"How sorry mother and Patsey will be when they hear it!" + +"I can't see why they should be sorry to see a man reinstated in +his rights, after having been deprived of them for eighteen +years. If they are not blinded by their partiality for the +Wyllyses and Hazlehursts, they cannot help being convinced by the +evidence we can show." + +"How old is this man--this sailor--this Mr. Stanley?" + +"Just thirty-six, he tells me. Did you remark his likeness to Mr. +Stanley's portrait at Wyllys-Roof? that was the first thing that +struck me." + +"No; I hardly looked at him." + +"You must expect to see him often now; I have invited him to +dinner for to-morrow." + +"For to-morrow? Well, Uncle Dozie has sent me this afternoon a +beautiful mess of green peas, and you will have to get something +nice from market, in the way of poultry and fish. Though, I +suppose as he has been a common sailor so long, he won't be very +particular about his dinner." + +"He knows what is good, I can tell you. You must give him such a +dinner as he would have had at his father's in old times." + +"Well, just as you please, William; only, if you really care for +me, do not let the man deceive you; be sure you sift the matter +thoroughly--what you call cross-examine him." + +"Never you fear; I know what I am about, Katie; though if I was +to follow your advice in law matters, I reckon we should all of +us starve together." + +"I hope it will all turn out well, but I seem to feel badly about +it," said Kate with a sigh, as she rose to light a candle; "only +don't be too hasty--take time." + +"We have taken time enough I think, as it is. We are only waiting +now for Mr. Hazlehurst to arrive in Philadelphia, when we shall +put forward our claim." + + + +CHAPTER IV. {XXVII} + +"They call thee rich." +COWPER. + +{William Cowper (English poet, 1731-1800), "Translations of Greek +Verses: On A Miser" line 1} + +WHEN the Wyllyses arrived at Saratoga, after having paid their +promised visit to their friends at Poughkeepsie, the first +persons they saw in the street, as they were driving to Congress +Hall, were Mrs. Creighton, Mr. Ellsworth, and Mr. Stryker, who +were loitering along together. It seemed the excursion to Nahant +had been postponed, or given up. + +The brother and sister soon discovered that the Wyllyses were +among that afternoon's arrivals, and in the course of an hour or +two called at their rooms. + +"Here am I, Miss Wyllys," said Mrs. Creighton, "the best of +sisters, giving up my own private plans to gratify this brother +of mine, who would not let me rest unless I promised to pass +another week here." + +"Josephine makes the most of her complaisance; but I don't think +she was so very much averse to giving up Nahant. I am sure at +least, she did not care half so much about going, as I did about +staying." + +Mr. Stryker also appeared, to make his bow to the ladies. This +gentleman had indeed come to Saratoga, with the express intention +of making himself particularly agreeable to Miss Elinor Wyllys. +As long ago as Jane's wedding, he had had his eye on her, but, +like Mr. Ellsworth, he had seldom been able to meet her. Mr. +Stryker was a man between forty and fifty, possessing some little +property, a very good opinion of himself, and quite a reputation +for cleverness and knowledge of the world. He was one of those +men who hang loose on society; he seemed to have neither +relations nor connexions; no one knew his origin: for years he +had occupied the same position in the gay world of New York, with +this difference, that at five-and-twenty he was known as Bob +Stryker; at five-and-thirty he was Colonel Stryker, the +traveller; and at five-and-forty he had returned to New York, +after a second long absence, as Mr. Stryker, tout court. He +prided himself upon being considered a gentleman at large, a man +of the world, whose opinion on all subjects was worth hearing. +Since his last return from Europe, he had announced that he was +looking about for that necessary encumbrance, a wife; but he took +good care not to mention what he called his future intentions, +until he had actually committed himself more than once. He had +several times kindly offered to rich and beautiful girls, to take +charge of themselves and their fortunes, but his services had +been as often politely declined. He was not discouraged, however, +by these repulses; he still determined to marry, but experience +had taught him greater prudence--he decided that his next +advances should be made with more caution. He would shun the +great belles; fortune he must have, but he would adopt one of two +courses; he would either look out for some very young and very +silly girl, who could be persuaded into anything, or he would try +to discover some rich woman, with a plain face, who would be +flattered by the attentions of the agreeable Mr. Stryker. While +he was making these reflections he was introduced to Elinor, and +we are sorry to say it, she appeared to him to possess the +desirable qualifications. She was certainly very plain; and he +found that there was no mistake in the report of her having +received two important legacies quite lately. Miss Elinor Wyllys, +thanks to these bequests, to her expectations from her +grandfather and Miss Agnes, and to the Longbridge railroad, was +now generally considered a fortune. It is true, common report had +added very largely to her possessions, by doubling and +quadrupling their amount; for at that precise moment, people +seemed to be growing ashamed of mentioning small sums; thousands +were invariably counted by round fifties and hundreds. Should any +gentleman be curious as to the precise amount of the fortune of +Miss Elinor Wyllys, he is respectfully referred to William +Cassius Clapp, Attorney at Law, Longbridge, considered excellent +authority on all such subjects. Lest any one should be disposed +to mistrust this story of Elinor's newly-acquired reputation as +an heiress, we shall proceed at once to prove it, by evidence of +the most convincing character. + +{"tout court" = by itself; "period" (French)} + +One morning, shortly after the arrival of the Wyllyses at +Saratoga, Mr. Wyllys entered the room where Miss Agnes and Elinor +were sitting together, with a handful of papers and letters from +the mail. Several of these letters were for Elinor, and as she +reads them we shall take the liberty of peeping over her +shoulder--their contents will speak for themselves. The first +which she took up was written on very handsome paper, perfumed, +and in an envelope; but neither the seal nor the handwriting was +known to Elinor. It ran as follows: + +"CHARMING MISS WYLLYS:-- + +"It may appear presumptuous in one unknown to you, to address you +on a subject so important as that which is the theme of this +epistle; but not having the honour of your acquaintance, I am +compelled by dire necessity, and the ardent feelings of my heart, +to pour forth on paper the expression of the strong admiration +with which you have inspired me. Lovely Miss Wyllys, you are but +too well known to me, although I scarcely dare to hope that your +eye has rested for a moment on the features of your humble +adorer. I am a European, one who has moved in the first circles +of his native land, and after commencing life as a military man, +was compelled by persecution to flee to the hospitable shores of +America. Chequered as my life has been, happy, thrice happy shall +I consider it, if you will but permit me to devote its remaining +years to your service! Without your smiles, the last days of my +career will be more gloomy than all that have gone before. But I +cannot believe you so cruel, so hard-hearted, as to refuse to +admit to your presence, one connected with several families of +the nobility and gentry in the north of England, merely because +the name of Horace de Vere has been sullied by appearing on the +stage. Let me hope--" + +Elinor read no farther: she threw the letter aside with an +expression of disgust and mortification. It was but one of +half-a-dozen of similar character, which she had received during +the last year or two from utter strangers. She took up another, a +plain, honest-looking sheet. + +"MADAM:-- + +"If the new store, being erected on your lot in Market Street, +between Fourth and Fifth, is not already leased, you will confer +an obligation if you will let us know to whom we must apply for +terms, &c., &c. The location and premises being suitable, we +should be glad to rent. The best of references can be offered on +our part. + +"Begging you will excuse this application, as we are ignorant of +the name of your agent in Philadelphia, we have the honour to be, +Madam, + +"Your most obedient servants, + +"McMUNNY & CO., + +"Grocers, Market, between Front and Second." + +A business letter, it appears, to be attended to accordingly. Now +for the third--a delicate little envelope of satin paper, blue +wax, and the seal "semper eadem." + +{"semper eadem" = always the same (Latin)} + +"MY SWEET MISS ELINOR:-- + +"When shall we see you at Bloomingdale? You are quite too cruel, +to disappoint us so often; we really do not deserve such shabby +treatment. Here is the month of June, with its roses, and +strawberries, and ten thousand other sweets, and among them you +must positively allow us to hope for a visit from our very dear +friends at Wyllys-Roof. Should your venerable grandpapa, or my +excellent friend, Miss Wyllys be unhappily detained at home, as +you feared, do not let that be the means of depriving us of your +visit. I need not say that William would be only too happy to +drive you to Bloomingdale, at any time you might choose; but if +that plan, HIS plan, should frighten your propriety, I shall be +proud to take charge of you myself. Anne is not only pining for +your visit, but very tired of answering a dozen times a day, her +brother's questions, 'When shall we see Miss Wyllys?'--'Is Miss +Wyllys never coming?' + +"I do not think, my sweet young friend, that you can have the +heart to disappoint us any longer--and, therefore, I shall +certainly look for one of your charming little notes, written in +an amiable, complying mood. + +"Anne sends her very best love; William begs to be very +PARTICULARLY remembered to Miss Elinor Wyllys. + +"With a thousand kind messages to your grandfather and Miss +Wyllys, I remain as ever, my dear young friend, + +"Yours, most devotedly and partially, + +"ARABELLA HUNTER." + +{"Bloomingdale" = a fashionable and still rural area of Manhattan +Island, though technically part of New York City} + +Elinor read this note with a doubtful smile, which seemed to say +she was half-amused, half-provoked by it. Throwing it carelessly +on the sofa, she opened the fourth letter; it was in a childish +hand. + +"MY DEAR MISS WYLLYS:-- + +"My mother wishes me to thank you myself, for your last act of +goodness to us--but I can never tell you all we feel on the +subject. My dear mother cried with joy all the evening, after she +had received your letter. I am going to school according to your +wish, as soon as mother can spare me, and I shall study very +hard, which will be the best way of thanking you. The +music-master says he has no doubt but I can play well enough to +give lessons, if I go on as well as I have in the last year; I +practise regularly every day. Mother bids me say, that now she +feels sure of my education for the next three years, one of her +heaviest cares has been taken away: she says too, that although +many friends in the parish have been very good to us, since my +dear father was taken away from us, yet 'no act of kindness has +been so important to us, none so cheering to the heart of the +widow and the fatherless, as your generous goodness to her eldest +child;' these are her own words. Mother will write to you herself +to-morrow. I thank you again, dear Miss Wyllys, for myself, and I +remain, very respectfully and very gratefully, + +"Your obliged servant and friend, + +"MARY SMITH." + +This last letter seemed to restore all Elinor's good humour, +acting as an antidote to the three which had preceded it. The +correspondence which we have taken the liberty of reading, will +testify more clearly than any assurance of ours, to the fact that +our friend Elinor now stands invested with the dignity of an +heiress, accompanied by the dangers, pleasures, and annoyances, +usually surrounding an unmarried woman, possessing the reputation +of a fortune. Wherever Elinor now appeared, the name of a fortune +procured her attention; the plain face which some years before +had caused her to be neglected where she was not intimately +known, was no longer an obstacle to the gallantry of the very +class who had shunned her before. Indeed, the want of beauty, +which might have been called her misfortune, was now the very +ground on which several of her suitors founded their hopes of +success; as she was pronounced so very plain, the dandies thought +it impossible she could resist the charm of their own personal +advantages. Elinor had, in short, her full share of those +persecutions which are sure to befall all heiresses. The peculiar +evils of such a position affect young women very differently, +according to their various dispositions. Had Elinor been weak and +vain, she would have fallen into the hands of a fortune-hunter. +Had she been of a gloomy temper, disgust at the coarse plots and +manoeuvres, so easily unravelled by a clear-sighted person, might +have made her a prey to suspicion, and all but misanthropic. Had +she been vulgar-minded, she would have been purse-proud; if +cold-hearted, she would have become only the more selfish. Vanity +would have made her ridiculously ostentatious and conceited; a +jealous temper would have become self-willed and domineering. + +Change of position often produces an apparent change of +character; sometimes the effect is injurious, sometimes it is +advantageous. But we trust that the reader, on renewing his +acquaintance with Elinor Wyllys, will find her, while flattered +by the world as an heiress, essentially the same in character and +manner, as she was when overlooked and neglected on account of an +unusually plain face. If a shade of difference is perceptible, it +is only the natural result of four or five years of additional +experience, and she has merely exchanged the first retiring +modesty of early youth, for a greater portion of self-possession. + +In the first months of her new reputation as an heiress, Elinor +had been astonished at the boldness of some attacks upon her; +then, as there was much that was ridiculous connected with these +proceedings, she had been diverted; but, at length, when she +found them rapidly increasing, she became seriously annoyed. + +"What a miserable puppet these adventurers must think me--it is +cruelly mortifying to see how confident of success some of them +appear!" she exclaimed to her aunt. + +"I am very sorry, my child, that you should be annoyed in this +way--but it seems you must make up your mind to these +impertinences--it is only what every woman who has property must +expect." + +"It is really intolerable! But I am determined at least that they +shall not fill my head with suspicions--and I never can endure to +be perpetually on my guard against these sort of people. It will +not do to think of them; that is the only way to keep one's +temper. If I know myself, there never can be any danger to me +from men of that kind, even the most agreeable." + +"Take care," said Miss Agnes, smiling, and shaking her head. + +"Well, I know at least there is no danger at present; but as we +all have moments of weakness, I shall therefore very humbly beg +that if you ever see me in the least danger, you will give me +warning, dear Aunt; a very sharp warning, if you please." + +"In such a case I should certainly warn you, my dear. It strikes +me that several of your most disagreeable admirers--" + +"How call you call them ADMIRERS, Aunt Agnes?" + +"Well, several of your pursuers, then, are beginning to discover +that you are not a young lady easily persuaded into believing +herself an angel, and capable of fancying them the most +chivalrous and disinterested of men." + +This was quite true; there was a quiet dignity, with an +occasional touch of decision in Elinor's manner, that had already +convinced several gentlemen that she had more firmness of +character than suited their views; and they had accordingly +withdrawn from the field. + +"Suppose, Elinor, that I begin by giving you a warning, this +morning?" continued Miss Agnes, smiling. + +"You are not serious, surely, Aunt?" replied Elinor, turning from +some music she was unpacking, to look at Miss Wyllys. + +"Yes, indeed; I am serious, so far as believing that you are at +this moment exposed to the manoeuvres of a gentleman whom you do +not seem in the least to suspect, and who is decidedly +agreeable." + +"Whom can you mean?" said Elinor, running over in her head the +names of several persons whom she had seen lately. "You surely do +not suspect--No; I am sure you have too good an opinion of him." + +"I am very far from having a particularly good opinion of the +person I refer to," said Miss Agnes; "I think him at least, +nothing better than a fortune-hunter; and although it is very +possible to do many worse things than marrying for money, yet I +hope you will never become the wife of a man whose principles are +not above suspicion in every way." + +"I am disposed just at present, I can assure you, dear Aunt, to +have a particularly poor opinion of a mere fortune-hunter." + +"Yes; you do not seem to feel very amiably towards the class, +just now," said Miss Agnes, smiling. + +"But who is the individual who stands so low in your opinion?" + +"It is your opinion, and not mine, which is the important one," +replied Miss Agnes. + +"Ah, I see you are joking, Aunt; you half frightened me at first. +As far as having no fears for myself, I am really in an alarming +state." + +"So it would seem. But have you really no suspicions of one of +our visiters of last evening?" + +Elinor looked uneasy. + +"Is it possible," she said, lowering her voice a little, "that +you believe Mr. Ellsworth to be a common fortune-hunter? I +thought you had a very different opinion of him." + +"You are right, my child," said Miss Agnes, apparently pleased by +this allusion to their friend; "I have, indeed, a high opinion of +Mr. Ellsworth; but he was not our only visiter last evening," + +"Is it Mr. Stryker? I have half-suspected some such thing myself, +lately; I cannot take credit for so much innocence as you gave +me. But it is not worth while to trouble oneself about Mr. +Stryker; he is certainly old enough, and worldly-wise enough to +take care of himself. If he actually has any such views, his time +will be sadly thrown away. But it is much more probable that he +is really in love with Mrs. Creighton; and it would be very +ridiculous in me, to imagine that he is even pretending to care +for me, when he is attached to some one else." + +"He may flirt with Mrs. Creighton, but, if I am not mistaken, he +intends to offer himself before long to Miss Wyllys; and I +thought you had not remarked his advances." + +"I fancy, dear Aunt, that men like Mr. Stryker seldom commit +themselves unless they feel pretty sure of success." + +The conversation was here interrupted, Elinor was engaged to ride +with Mr. Wyllys, who now returned from the reading-room for his +grand-daughter. Mrs. Creighton was also going out with her +brother, and proposed the two parties joining; an invitation +which Mr. Wyllys had very readily accepted. The horses were +ordered, Elinor was soon equipped, and on joining Mrs. Creighton +at the door, she was assisted to mount by Mr. Ellsworth. Mr. +Stryker had also been invited to ride with them by the pretty +widow. + +It was a lovely morning, and they moved off gaily on one of the +roads leading to Saratoga Lake; Elinor enjoying the air and the +exercise, Mr. Ellsworth at her side, doing his best to make his +society agreeable, Mrs. Creighton engaged in making a conquest of +the two gentlemen between whom she rode. Yes, we are obliged to +confess the fact; on her part at least, there was nothing wanting +to make up a flirtation with Mr. Wyllys. The widow belonged to +that class of ladies, whose thirst for admiration really seems +insatiable, and who appear anxious to compel all who approach +them to feel the effect of their charms. Elinor would have been +frightened, had she been aware of the attack made that morning by +Mrs. Creighton, on the peace of her excellent grandfather, now in +his seventy-third year. Not that the lady neglected Mr. +Stryker--by no means; she was very capable of managing two +affairs of the kind at the same moment. All the remarks she +addressed particularly to Mr. Wyllys, were sensible and +lady-like; those she made to Mr. Stryker, were clever, worldly, +and piquant; while the general tone of her conversation was +always a well-bred medley of much fashionable levity, with some +good sense and propriety. Mr. Stryker scarcely knew whether to be +pleased, or to regret that he was obliged to ride at her side. He +had lately become particularly anxious to advance in the good +graces of Miss Elinor Wyllys, for two reasons; he had lost money, +and was very desirous of appropriating some of Elinor's to his +own use; and he had also felt himself to be in imminent danger of +falling in love with Mrs. Creighton, and he wished to put it out +of his own power to offer himself to her in a moment of weakness. +Much as he admired the beauty, the wit, and the worldly spirit of +the pretty widow, he was half-afraid of her; he judged her by +himself; he knew that she was artful, and he knew that she was +poor; for her late husband, Mr. Creighton, during a short married +life, had run through all his wife's property, as well as his +own, and his widow was now entirely dependent upon her brother. + +The attention of the two gentlemen was not, however, entirely +engrossed by Mrs. Creighton. Mr. Stryker was by no means willing +to resign the field to his rival, Mr. Ellsworth; and Mr. Wyllys +was not so much charmed by the conversation of his fair +companion, but that his eye could rest with pleasure on the +couple before him, as he thought there was every probability that +Elinor would at length gratify his long-cherished wish, and +become the wife of a man he believed worthy of her. As the party +halted for a few moments on the bank of the Lake, Mr. Wyllys was +particularly struck with the expression of spirit and interest +with which Elinor was listening to Mr. Ellsworth's description of +the lakes of Killarney, which he had seen during his last visit +to Europe; and when the gentleman had added a ludicrous account +of some Paddyism of his guide, she laughed so gaily that the +sound rejoiced her grandfather's heart. + +Elinor had long since regained her former cheerfulness. For a +time, Harry's desertion had made her sad, but she soon felt it a +duty to shake off every appearance of gloom, for the sake of her +grandfather and aunt, whose happiness was so deeply interwoven +with her own. Religious motives also strengthened her +determination to resist every repining feeling. The true spirit +of cheerfulness is, in fact, the fruit of two of the greatest +virtues of Christianity--steadfast faith, and unfeigned humility; +and it is akin to thankfulness, which is only the natural +consequence of a sense of our own imperfections, and of the +unmerited goodness of Providence. + +"We have had a charming ride, Miss Wyllys!" said Mrs. Creighton, +as the party returned to the hotel. + +"Very pleasant," said Elinor. + +"Delightful!" exclaimed Mr. Ellsworth. "I hope we shall have such +another every day." + +"Then I must try and find an animal, with rather better paces +than the one which has the honour of carrying me at present," +said Mr. Stryker. + +"But Mrs. Creighton has been so very agreeable, that I should +think you would have been happy to accompany her on the worst +horse in Saratoga," observed Mr. Wyllys. + +"Only too agreeable," replied Mr. Stryker, as he helped the lady +to dismount, while Mr. Ellsworth performed the same service to +Elinor. + + + +CHAPTER V. {XXVIII} + +"I do beseech your grace, for charity, +If ever any malice in your heart +Were hid against me, now to forgive me frankly." +Henry VIII. + +{William Shakespeare, "Henry VIII", II.i.79-81} + +ONE evening, about a week after the arrival of the Wyllyses, +there was a dance at Congress Hall, where they were staying. Mrs. +Creighton, with her brother, who were already engaged to meet +some friends there, urged Elinor very much to join them; but she +declined, not wishing to leave Jane. Mr. Ellsworth, who had been +very devoted, of late, seemed particularly anxious she should go. +But although Elinor's manner betrayed some little embarrassment, +if not indecision, as the gentleman urged her doing so, still she +persisted in remaining with her cousin. + +{"Congress Hall" = the most fashionable hotel in Saratoga Springs +-- built in 1811, the original building burned in 1866} + +"Well, I am sorry we cannot persuade you, Miss Wyllys; though I +dare say you will have a very pleasant evening in your own +parlour." + +"We must put, off our game of chess until to-morrow, Mrs. +Creighton," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"Yes, unfortunately for me; for I have fully determined to beat +you, sir, at our next trial. Well, Frank, we cannot stay here all +the evening; I dare say, our friends, the Stevensons, are looking +for us in the ball-room already." + +"Mrs. Creighton is a very pretty woman," observed Mr. Wyllys, as +he seated himself at the chess-board, opposite his daughter, +after the brother and sister had left the room. + +"Yes, a very pretty woman; and she always looks well in her +evening-dress," replied Miss Agnes. + +Elinor devoted herself to Jane's amusement. Ever since they had +been together, she had given up a great part of her time to Mrs. +Taylor, whom she was very anxious to cheer and enliven, that she +might persuade her to throw off the melancholy and low spirits, +which her cousin seemed purposely to encourage. The sick baby was +better, and Elinor was in hopes that before they parted, she +should succeed in awakening Jane to a somewhat better frame of +mind. She was very desirous that the time they were together +should not be lost; and her kindness was so unwearied, her manner +was so affectionate and soothing, and the advice she sometimes +allowed herself to give, was so clear and sensible, that at last +Jane seemed to feel the good effects of her cousin's efforts. + +After Mr. Ellsworth and his sister had left the room to join the +dancers, Jane suddenly turned to Elinor, with tears in her eyes. +"How kind you are!" she said. "I daresay you would like to go +down-stairs;--but you are too good to me, Elinor!" + +"Nonsense, Jenny; I can't help it if I would. Do you think I +should enjoy dancing, if I knew you were sitting alone in this +dark corner, while grandpapa and Aunt Agnes are playing chess! +You are looking a great deal more woe-begone than you ought to, +now baby is so much better." + +"You spoil me," said Jane, shaking her head, and smiling with +more feeling than usual in her unexpressive face. + +"I shall spoil you a great deal more before we get through. Next +week, when Mr. Taylor comes, I intend to talk him into bringing +you over to Wyllys-Roof, to pay a good long visit, like old +times." + +"I had much rather think of old times, than of what is to come. +There is nothing pleasant for me to look forward to!" + +"How can you know that, Jane? I have learned one lesson by +experience, though I am only a year older than you, dear--and it +is, that if we are often deceived by hope, so we are quite as +often misled by fear." + +"I believe, Elinor, you are my best friend," said Jane, holding +out her hand to her cousin. + +"Oh, you have more good friends than you think for, and much good +of every kind, though you will shut your eyes to the fact." + +"It may be so," said Jane; "I will try to follow your advice, if +I can." + +"Try hard, then," said Elinor, "and all will go well. And now, +shall I sing you the song Mrs. Creighton cut short?" + +She began to sing "Auld Lang Syne;" but the song was interrupted +before she had finished the second verse. Several persons were +heard approaching their room, which was in a retired, quiet part +of the house; the door soon opened, and in walked Robert +Hazlehurst. + +"Well, good people," he exclaimed, "you take the world as quietly +as anybody I know! We supposed, of course, you were at the ball, +but Elinor's voice betrayed you. This way, Louisa," he said, +returning to the door, after having shaken hands with Mr. Wyllys +and Miss Agnes. + +"How glad I am to see you!" exclaimed Elinor--"you are as good as +your word; but we did not expect you for several days;" and Jane +and herself went to the door to meet Mrs. Hazlehurst. + +"And, pray, what reason had you to suppose that we should not +keep our word?" said the latter, as she appeared. + +"We thought Harry would probably detain you," said Elinor. + +"Not at all; we brought him along with us." + +"That was a good arrangement we had not thought of," observed +Miss Agnes. + +Harry entered the room. He was not entirely free from +embarrassment at first; but when Mr. Wyllys met him with +something of the cordial manner of old times, he immediately +recovered himself. He kissed the hand of Miss Agnes, as in former +days, and saluted Elinor in the same way, instead of the more +brotherly greetings with which he used to meet her of old. + +"And here is Jane, too, Harry," said Mrs. Hazlehurst, who had +just embraced her sister. "You have been so long away, that I +dare say you have forgotten half your old friends." + +"Not at all," said Harry, crossing the room to Jane. "I think +myself a very lucky fellow, at finding them all collected here +together, for my especial benefit. I met Mr. Taylor for a moment +in New York," he continued, addressing Jane. + +"Did he say when he was coming for me?" replied Mrs. Taylor, +offering her hand to her kinsman. + +"He told me that he should be at Saratoga very shortly." + +"I have a letter for you in my trunk, Jane," said Mrs. Robert +Hazlehurst. + +"Don't you think our invalid much better, already, Louisa?" asked +Elinor. + +"Yes; she does credit to your nursing." + +"No wonder," said Jane; "for during the last month I have been +petted all the time--first by Mrs. Taylor, then by Aunt Agnes and +Elinor." + +"It's very pleasant to be petted," said Harry; "that's precisely +what I came home for. I give you my notice, Louisa, I expect a +great deal from you in the next three months." + +"Is that the length of your holiday?" inquired Miss Agnes. + +"So says my master, Mr. Henley. I understand," he added, turning +to Elinor, "that you have all the agreeable people in the country +collected here." + +"There are some thousands of us, agreeable and disagreeable, +altogether. They say the place has never been more crowded so +early in the season." + +"So I'm told. I was warned that if I came, I should have to make +my bed in the cellar, or on the roof. Are Ellsworth and Mrs. +Creighton at this house, or at the other?" + +"They are staying at the United States. They are here this +evening, however, at the dance." + +{"United States" = the other major hotel in Saratoga Springs, +less fashionable at this time than Congress Hall} + +"Indeed!--I have half a mind to take Ellsworth by surprise. Will +they admit a gentleman in travelling costume, do you think?" + +"I dare say they will; but here are your friends, coming to look +for you." + +At the same moment, Mr. Ellsworth and Mrs. Creighton joined the +party. + +"How d'ye do, Ellsworth?--Glad to see you, my dear fellow!" cried +the young men, shaking each other violently by the hand. + +"How do you do, Mr. Hazlehurst?" added the lady, "Welcome back +again. But what have you done with your sister-in-law?--for I did +not come to call upon you alone. Ah, here you are, Mrs. +Hazlehurst. My brother observed you passing through the hall, as +you arrived, and we determined that it would be much pleasanter +to pass half an hour with you, than to finish the dance. We have +been wishing for you every day." + +"Thank you. We should have set out before, if we had not waited +for Harry. Elinor tells me half Philadelphia is here, already." + +"Yes; the houses have filled up very much since I first came; for +I am ashamed to say how long I have been here." + +"Why, yes: I understood you were going to Nahant." + +"We ought to have been there long ago; but I could not move this +obstinate brother of mine. He has never found Saratoga so +delightful, Mrs. Hazlehurst," added the lady, with an expressive +smile, and a look towards Elinor. "I can't say, however, that I +at all regret being forced to stay, for many of our friends are +here, now. Mr. Hazlehurst, I hope you have come home more +agreeable than ever." + +"I hope so too, Mrs. Creighton; for it is one of our chief duties +as diplomatists, 'to tell lies for the good of our country,' in +an agreeable way. But I am afraid I have not improved my +opportunities. I have been very much out of humour for the last +six months, at least." + +"And why, pray?" + +"Because I wanted to come home, and Mr. Henley, my boss, insisted +upon proving to me it would be the most foolish thing I could do. +He was so much in the right, that I resented it by being cross." + +"But now he has come himself, and brought you with him." + +"No thanks to him, though. It was all Uncle Sam's doings, who +wants to send us from the Equator to the North Pole." + +"Are you really going to Russia, Hazlehurst?" asked Mr. +Ellsworth. + +"Certainly; you would not have me desert, would you?" + +"Oh, no; don't think of it, Mr. Hazlehurst; it must be a very +pleasant life!" exclaimed Mrs. Creighton. "I only wish, Frank, +that you were enough of a politician to be sent as minister +somewhere; I should delight in doing the honours for you; though +I dare say you would rather have some one else in my place." + +"We will wait until I am sent as ambassador to Timbuctoo, before +I answer the question." + +"You have grown half-a-dozen shades darker than you used to be as +a youngster, Harry; or else this lamp deceives me," observed Mr. +Wyllys. + +"I dare say I may have a fresh tinge of the olive. But I am just +from sea, sir, and that may have given me an additional coat." + +"Did you suffer much from heat, on the voyage?" asked Miss +Wyllys. + +"Not half as much as I have since I landed. It appeared to me +Philadelphia was the warmest spot I had ever breathed in; worse +than Rio. I was delighted when Louisa proposed my coming to +Saratoga to see my friends." + +"You will find it quite warm enough here," said Mr. Wyllys. "The +thermometer was 92 {degrees} in the shade, yesterday." + +"I don't expect to be well cooled, sir, until we get to St. +Petersburgh. After a sea-voyage, I believe one always feels the +cold less, and the heat more than usual. But where is Mrs. +Stanley?--we hoped to find her with you. Is she not staying at +this house?" + +"Yes; but she left us early, this evening, not feeling very well; +you will not be able to see her until to-morrow," said Miss +Agnes. + +"I am sorry she is not well; how is she looking?" + +"Particularly well, I think; she merely complained of a head-ache +from riding in the sun." + +"Mrs. Stanley has been very anxious for your return; but she will +be as agreeably surprised as the rest of us, to find you here," +said Elinor. + +"Thank you. I look upon myself as particularly fortunate, to find +so many old friends collected in one spot, instead of having to +run about, and hunt for each in a different place, just now that +I am limited for time." + +"You ought to be greatly indebted to Frank and myself, for +breaking our word and staying here; instead of keeping our +promise and going to Nahant, as we had engaged to do," said Mrs. +Creighton. + +"Certainly; I look upon it as part of my good luck; but I should +have made my appearance at Nahant, if you had actually run away +from me." + +"I shall believe you; for I make it a point of always believing +what is agreeable." + +"As I knew Mrs. Hazlehurst and your brother had engaged rooms +here, I hoped you would join us, soon after your arrival," said +Mr. Ellsworth. + +"It was much the best plan for you," said Mr. Wyllys. + +Harry looked gratified by this friendly remark. + +It was already late; and Mrs. Hazlehurst, who had been conversing +in a corner with Jane, complained of being fatigued by her day's +journey, which broke up the party. The Hazlehursts, like Mrs. +Creighton and her brother, were staying at the United States, and +they all went off together. + +When Elinor, as usual, kissed Mr. Wyllys before retiring to her +own room, she hesitated a moment, and then said: + +"I must thank you, grandpapa, for having granted my request, and +received Harry as of old. It is much better that the past should +be entirely forgotten. Self-respect seems to require that we +should not show resentment under the circumstances," she added, +colouring slightly. + +"I cannot forget the past, Elinor. Harry does not stand with me +where he once did, by the side of my beloved grandchild; but we +will not think of that any longer, as you say. I hope for better +things from the future. Bless you, dear!" + + + +CHAPTER VI. {XXIX} + +"The foam upon the waters, not so light." +COWPER. + +{William Cowper (English poet, 1731-1800), "Truth" line 43} + +As usual at Saratoga, early the next morning groups of people +were seen moving from the different hotels, towards the Congress +Spring. It was a pleasant day, and great numbers appeared +disposed to drink the water at the fountain-head, instead of +having it brought to their rooms. The Hazlehursts were not the +only party of our acquaintances who had arrived the night before. +The Wyllyses found Miss Emma Taylor already on the ground, +chattering in a high key with a tall, whiskered youth. The moment +she saw Elinor, she sprang forward to meet her. + +{"Congress Spring" = principal mineral water source at Saratoga +Springs} + +"How do you do, Miss Wyllys?--Are you not surprised to see me +here?" + +"One can hardly be surprised at meeting anybody in such a crowd," +said Elinor. "When did you arrive?" + +"Last night, at eleven o'clock. We made a forced march from +Schenectady, where we were to have slept; but I persuaded Adeline +and Mr. St. Leger to come on. You can't think how delighted I am +to be here, at last," said the pretty little creature, actually +skipping about with joy. + +"And where is Mrs. St. Leger?" + +"Oh, she will he here in a moment. She has gone to Jane's room. I +left her there just now." + +The platform round the spring was quite crowded. In one party, +Elinor remarked Mrs. Hilson and Miss Emmeline Hubbard, escorted +by Monsieur Bonnet and another Frenchman. They were soon followed +by a set more interesting to Elinor, the Hazlehursts, Mrs. +Creighton, and her brother. + +"I hope none of your party from Wyllys-Roof are here from +necessity," said Harry, after wishing Elinor good-morning. + +"Not exactly from necessity; but the physicians recommended to +Aunt Agnes to pass a fortnight here, this summer. You may have +heard that she was quite ill, a year ago?" + +"Yes; Robert, of course, wrote me word of her illness. But Miss +Wyllys looks quite like herself, I think. As for Mr. Wyllys, he +really appears uncommonly well." + +"Thank you; grandpapa is very well, indeed; and Aunt Agnes has +quite recovered her health, I trust." + +"Miss Wyllys," said Mr. Stryker, offering a glass of the water to +Elinor, "can't I persuade you to take a sympathetic cup, this +morning?" + +"I believe not," replied Elinor, shaking her head. + +"Do you never drink it"' asked Mrs. Creighton. + +"No; I really dislike it very much." + +"Pray, give it to me, Mr. Stryker," continued Mrs. Creighton. +"Thank you: I am condemned to drink three glasses every morning, +and it will be three hours, at this rate, before I get them." + +"Did you ever hear a better shriek than that, Miss Wyllys?" said +Mr. Stryker, lowering his voice, and pointing to Emma Taylor, who +was standing on the opposite side of the spring, engaged in a +noisy, rattling flirtation. After drinking half the glass that +had been given to her, she had handed it to the young man to whom +she was talking, bidding him drink it without making a face. Of +course, the youth immediately exerted himself to make a grimace. + +"Oh, you naughty boy!" screamed Miss Taylor, seizing another +half-empty glass, and throwing a handful of water in his face; +"this is the way I shall punish you!" + +There were two gentlemen, European travellers, standing +immediately behind Elinor at this moment, and the colour rose in +her cheeks as she heard the very unfavourable observations they +made upon Miss Taylor, judging from her noisy manner in a public +place. Elinor, who understood very well the language in which +they spoke, was so shut in by the crowd that she could not move, +and was compelled to hear part of a conversation that deeply +mortified her, as these travellers, apparently gentlemanly men +themselves, exchanged opinions upon the manners of certain young +ladies they had recently met. They began to compare notes, and +related several little anecdotes, anything but flattering in +their nature, to the delicacy of the ladies alluded to; actually +naming the individuals as they proceeded. More than one of these +young girls was well known to Elinor, and from her acquaintance +with their usual tone of manner and conversation, she had little +doubt as to the truth of the stories these travellers had +recorded for the amusement of themselves and their friends; at +the same time, she felt perfectly convinced that the +interpretation put upon these giddy, thoughtless actions, was +cruelly unjust. Could these young ladies have heard the +observations to which they had laid themselves open by their own +folly, they would have been sobered at once; self-respect would +have put them more on their guard, ESPECIALLY IN THEIR +INTERCOURSE WITH FOREIGNERS. It is, no doubt, delightful to see +young persons free from every suspicion; no one would wish to +impose a single restraint beyond what is necessary; but, surely, +a young girl should not only be sans peur, but also sans +reproche--the faintest imputation on her native modesty is not to +be endured: and, yet, who has not seen pretty, delicate +creatures, scarcely arrived at womanhood, actually assuming a +noisy, forward pertness, foreign to their nature, merely to +qualify them for the envied title of belles? There is something +wrong, certainly, wherever such a painful picture is exhibited; +and it may be presumed that in most cases the fault lies rather +with the parents than the daughters. Happily, the giddy, rattling +school to which Miss Emma Taylor belonged, is much less in favour +now, than it was some ten or fifteen years ago, at the date of +our story. + +{"sans peur, but also sans reproche" = without fear, but also +without reproach (French); the French national hero Bayard +(1476-1524), is traditionally called "Le Chevalier sans peur et +sans reproche"} + +"How little do Emma Taylor, and girls like her, imagine the cruel +remarks to which they expose themselves by their foolish +manners!" thought Elinor, as she succeeded at length, with the +assistance of Mr. Ellsworth, in extricating herself from the +crowd. + +As the Wyllys party moved away from the spring, to walk in the +pretty wood adjoining, they saw a young man coming towards them +at a very rapid pace. + +"Who is it--any one you know, Miss Wyllys?" asked Mr. Ellsworth. + +"He is in pursuit of some other party, I fancy," replied Elinor. + +"It is Charlie Hubbard coming to join us; did we forget to +mention that he came up the river with us?" said Harry, who was +following Elinor, with Mrs. Creighton and Mr. Stryker. + +The young painter soon reached them, as they immediately stopped +to welcome him; he was very kindly received by his old friends. + +"Well, Charlie, my boy," said Mr. Wyllys, "if Harry had not been +here to vouch for your identity, I am not sure but I should have +taken you for an exiled Italian bandit. Have you shown those +moustaches at Longbridge?" + +"Yes, sir;" replied Charlie, laughing. "I surprised my mother and +sister by a sight of them, some ten days since; it required all +their good-nature, I believe, to excuse them." + +"I dare say they would have been glad to see you, if you had come +back looking like a Turk," said Elinor. + +"I am determined not to shave for some months, out of principle; +just to show my friends that I am the same Charlie Hubbard with +moustaches that I was three years ago without them." + +"I suppose you consider it part of your profession to look as +picturesque as our stiff-cut broadcloth will permit," said Mr. +Wyllys. + +"If you really suspect me of dandyism, sir," said Charlie, "I +shall have to reform at once." + +"I am afraid, Mr. Hubbard, that you have forgotten me," observed +Mr. Ellsworth; "though I passed a very pleasant morning at your +rooms in New York, some years since." + +Charlie remembered him, however; and also made his bow to Mrs. +Creighton and Mr. Stryker. + +"And how did you leave the Mediterranean, sir?" asked Mr. +Stryker, in a dry tone. "Was the sea in good looks?" + +"As blue as ever. I am only afraid my friends in this country +will not believe the colour I have given it in my sketches." + +"We are bound to believe all your representations of water," +remarked Mr. Wyllys. + +"I hope you have brought back a great deal for us to see; have +you anything with you here?" asked Elinor. + +"Only my sketch-book. I would not bring anything else; for I must +get rid of my recollections of Italy. I must accustom my eye +again to American nature; I have a great deal to do with Lake +George, this summer." + +"But you must have something in New York," said Miss Wyllys. + +"Yes; I have brought home with me samples of water, from some of +the most celebrated lakes and rivers in Europe." + +"That is delightful," said Elinor; "and when can we see them?" + +"As soon as they are unpacked, I shall be very happy to show them +to my friends. They will probably interest you on account of the +localities; and I have endeavoured to be as faithful to nature as +I could, in every instance. You will find several views familiar +to you, among the number," added Charlie, addressing Hazlehurst. + +"I have no doubt that you have done them justice." + +"They are far from being as good as I could wish; but I did my +best. You will find some improvement, sir, I hope," added +Charlie, turning to Mr. Wyllys, "since my first attempt at +Chewattan Lake, in the days of Compound Interest." + +"You have not forgotten your old enemy, the Arithmetic," said Mr. +Wyllys, smiling. "I am afraid Fortune will never smile upon you +for having deserted from the ranks of trade." + +"I am not sure of that, sir; she is capricious, you know." + +"I should think you would do well, Charlie, to try your luck just +now, by an exhibition of your pictures." + +"My uncle has already proposed an exhibition; but I doubt its +success; our people don't often run after good pictures," he +added, smiling. "If I had brought with me some trash from Paris +or Leghorn, I might have made a mint of money." + +A general conversation continued until the party returned towards +the hotels. They were met, as they approached Congress Hall, by +several persons, two of whom proved to be Mrs. Hilson, and Miss +Emmeline Hubbard. Charlie had already seen his cousins in New +York, and he merely bowed in passing. Miss Emmeline was leaning +on the arm of M. Bonnet, Mrs. Hilson on that of another +Frenchman, whose name, as the "Baron Adolphe de Montbrun," had +been constantly on her lips during the last few weeks, or in +other words, ever since she had made his acquaintance. Charlie +kept his eye fixed on this individual, with a singular expression +of surprise and vexation, until he had passed. He thought he +could not be mistaken, that his cousin's companion was no other +than a man of very bad character, who had been in Rome at the +same time with himself, and having married the widow of an +Italian artist, a sister of one of Hubbard's friends, had +obtained possession of her little property, and then deserted +her. The whole affair had taken place while Charlie was in Rome; +and it will readily be imagined that he felt no little +indignation, when he met a person whom he strongly suspected of +being this very chevalier d'industrie, flourishing at Saratoga, +by the side of his uncle Joseph's daughter. + +{"chevalier d'industrie" = con man; swindler; man who lives by +his wits (French)} + +Charlie had no sooner left the Wyllyses on the piazza at Congress +Hall, than he proceeded to make some inquiry about this +Frenchman. He found his name down in the books of the hotel, as +the Baron Adolphe de Montbrun, which with the exception of +ALPHONSE for the first name, was the appellation of the very man +who had behaved so badly at Rome. He went to Mrs. Hilson, and +told her his suspicions; but they had not the least effect on the +"city lady;" she would not believe them. Charlie had no positive +proof of what he asserted; he could not be confident beyond a +doubt as to the identity of this person and the Montbrun of the +Roman story, for he had only seen that individual once in Italy. +Still, he was convinced himself, and he entreated his cousin to +be on her guard; the effect of his representations may be +appreciated from the fact, that Mrs. Hilson became more amiable +than ever with the Baron, while she was pouting and sulky with +Charlie, scarcely condescending to notice him at all. Hubbard +only remained twenty-four hours at Saratoga, for he was on his +way to Lake George; before he left the Springs, however, he +hinted to Mr. Wyllys his suspicions of this Montbrun, in order to +prevent that individual's intruding upon the ladies of the Wyllys +party; for Mrs. Hilson delighted in introducing him right and +left. As for her other companion, M. Bonnet, he was known to be a +respectable merchant in New York. + +Several days passed, during which our friends at Saratoga, like +the rest of the world there, walked, and rode, and drank the +waters, and seemed to pass their time very pleasantly; although +the ladies did not either dress or flirt as much as many of their +companions, who seemed to look upon these two occupations as the +peculiar business of the place. Jane's spirits improved very +much; there was much curiosity to see her, on account of her +reputation as a beauty; but, like the rest of her party, she was +only occasionally in the public rooms. + +"Have you seen the beautiful Mrs. Taylor?"--"I caught a glimpse +of Mrs. Taylor, the great beauty, this morning--"What, the +beautiful Jane Graham that was? is she as lovely as ever?"--were +remarks that were frequently heard in the crowd. + +Elinor also came in for her share of the public notice, and the +attention she attracted was, of course, of a directly opposite +character. There happened to be staying at Congress Hall, just +then, a very pretty young lady, from Savannah, who was also +considered a great fortune; she was known as the "lovely +heiress," while Elinor, in contradistinction, was spoken of as +the "ugly heiress." + +"Do you know," said a young lady, standing on the piazza one +evening, "I have not yet seen the ugly heiress. I should like to +get a peep at her; is she really so very ugly?" she continued, +addressing a young man at her side. + +"Miss Wyllys, you mean; a perfect fright--ugly as sin," replied +the gentleman. + +Elinor, at the very moment, was standing immediately behind the +speakers, and Mr. Ellsworth, who was talking to her, was much +afraid she had heard the remark. To cut short the conversation, +he immediately addressed her himself, raising his voice a little, +and calling her by name. + +The young lady was quite frightened, when she found the "ugly +heiress" was her near neighbour, and even the dandy was abashed; +but Elinor herself was rather amused with the circumstance, and +she smiled at the evident mortification of the speakers. Never +was there a woman more free from personal vanity than Elinor +Wyllys; and she was indifferent to remarks of this kind, to a +degree that would seem scarcely credible to that class of young +ladies, who think no sound so delightful as that of a compliment. +On the evening in question, the piazzas were crowded with the +inmates of the hotels; those who had feeling for the beauties of +nature, and those who had not, came out alike, to admire an +unusual effect of moonlight upon a fine mass of clouds. Elinor +was soon aware that she was in the neighbourhood of Mrs. Hilson +and her sister, by the silly conversation they were keeping up +with their companions. These Longbridge ladies generally kept +with their own party, which was a large one. The Wyllyses were +not sorry that they seldom met; for, little as they liked the +sisters, they wished always to treat them civilly, on account of +their father. The English art of "cutting" is, indeed, little +practised in America; except in extreme cases; all classes are +too social in their feelings and habits to adopt it. It is, +indeed, an honourable characteristic of those who occupy the +highest social position in America--those who have received, in +every respect, the best education in the country--that, as a +class, they are free from the little, selfish, ungenerous feeling +of mere exclusiveism. + +"Oh, here you are, Miss Wyllys!" exclaimed Emmeline Hubbard to +Elinor, who was talking to Mrs. Creighton. "I have been wishing +to see you all the afternoon--I owe you an apology." + +"An apology to me, Miss Hubbard?--I was not at all aware of it." + +"Is it possible? I was afraid you would think me very rude this +morning, when I spoke to you in the drawing-room, for there was a +gentleman with you at the time. Of course I ought not to have +joined you at such a moment, but I was anxious to give you the +Longbridge news." + +"Certainly; I was very glad to hear it: the conversation you +interrupted was a very trifling one." + +"Oh, I did not wish to insinuate that you were conversing on a +PARTICULARLY interesting subject. But, of course, I am too well +acquainted with the etiquette of polished circles, not to know +that it is wrong for one young lady to intrude upon another while +conversing with a gentleman. + +"If there be such a point of etiquette, I must have often broken +it very innocently, myself. I have never practised it, I assure +you." + +"Ah, that is very imprudent, Miss Wyllys!" said the fair +Emmeline, shaking her fan at Elinor. "Who knows how much mischief +one may do, in that way? You might actually prevent a +declaration. And then a young lady is, of course, always too +agreeably occupied in entertaining a beau, to wish to leave him +for a female friend. It is not everybody who would be as +good-natured as yourself at such an interruption." + +"I have no merit whatever in the matter, I assure you; for I was +very glad to find that--" + +Just at that moment one of Miss Hubbard's admirers approached +her, and without waiting to hear the conclusion of Elinor's +remark, she turned abruptly from the lady, to meet the gentleman, +with a striking increase of grace, and the expression of the +greatest interest in her whole manner. + +Elinor smiled, as the thought occurred to her, that this last act +of rudeness was really trying to her good-nature, while she had +never dreamed of resenting the interruption of the morning. But +Miss Hubbard was only following the code of etiquette, tacitly +adopted by the class of young ladies she belonged to, who never +scrupled to make their manner to men, much more attentive and +flattering than towards one of themselves, or even towards an +older person of their own sex. + +Elinor, however, had seen such manoeuvres before, and she would +scarcely have noticed it at the moment, had it not been for Miss +Emmeline's previous apology. + +Mrs. Hilson soon approached her. "Has Emmeline been communicating +our Longbridge intelligence, Miss Wyllys? Do you think it a good +match?" + +"I hope it will prove so; we were very glad to hear of it. Mary +Van Horne is a great favourite of my aunt's, and Mr. Roberts, I +hear, is highly spoken of." + +"Yes; and he is very rich; too; she has nothing at all herself; I +believe.'' + +"Do you know whether they are to live in New York? I hope they +will not go very far from us." + +"I suppose they will live in the city, as he is so wealthy; Mary +will have an opportunity of tasting the fascinations of high +life. I shall introduce her to a clique of great refinement at +once. Don't you think Saratoga the most delightful place in the +world, Miss Wyllys? I am never so happy as when here. I delight +so much in the gay world; it appears to me that I breathe more +freely in a crowd--solitude oppresses me; do you like it?" + +"I have never tried it very long. If you like a crowd, you must +be perfectly satisfied, just now." + +''And so I am, Miss Wyllys, perfectly happy in these fashionable +scenes. Do you know, it is a fact, that I lose my appetite unless +I can sit down to table with at least thirty or forty fashionably +dressed people about me; and I never sleep sounder than on board +a steamboat, where the floor is covered with mattresses. I am not +made for retirement, certainly. Ah, Monsieur Bonnet, here you are +again, I see; what have you done with the Baron?--is not the +Baron with you?" + +"No, Madame; he has not finish his cigar. And where is Mlle. +Emmeline?--I hope she has not abandonne me!" said M. Bonnet, who, +to do him justice, was a sufficiently respectable man, a French +merchant in New York, and no way connected with the Baron. + +"Oh, no; she is here; we were waiting for the Baron and you to +escort us to the drawing-room; but we will remain until the Baron +comes. I have heard something that will put you in good-humour, +another of those marriages you admire so much--one of the parties +rolling in wealth and luxury, the other poor as Job's turkey." + +"Ah, vraiment; that is indeed delightful; cela est fort touchant; +that show so much sensibilite, to appreciate le merite, though +suffering from poverty. A marriage like that must be beau comme +un reve d'Amour!" + +{"vraiment" = truly; "cela est fort touchant" = that is very +touching; "beau comme un reve d'Amour" = as beautiful as a dream +of Love (French)} + +"You are quite romantic on the subject; but don't people make +such matches in France?" + +"Ah, non, Madame; le froid calcul dominates there at such times. +I honour the beautiful practice that is common in votre jeune +Amerique; cela rappelle le siecle d'or. Can there be a tableau +more delicieux than a couple unis under such circonstances? The +happy epoux, a young man perhaps, of forty, and la femme a +creature angelique;" here M. Bonnet cast a glance at Miss +Emmeline; "une creature angelique, who knows that he adores her, +and who says to him, 'mon ami je t'aime, je veux faire ton +bonheur,' and who bestows on him her whole heart, and her whole +fortune; while he, of course, oppressed with gratitude, labours +only to increase that fortune, that he may have it in his power +to make the life of his bien aimee beautiful comme un jour de +fete." + +{"froid calcul" = cold calculation; "votre jeune..." = your young +America; it reminds one of the golden age; "tableau more +delicieux than a couple unis under such circonstances" = a +prettier picture than a couple united under such circumstances; +"epoux" = husband. "la femme a creature angelique" = the wife an +angelic creature; "mon ami, je t'aime, je veux faire ton bonheur" += my friend, I love you, I wish to make you happy; "bien aimee +beautiful comme un jour de fete" = beloved as beautiful as a day +of festival (mixed French and English)} + +"You are eloquent, Mr. Bonnet." + +"N'est ce pas un sujet, Madame, to toucher le coeur de l'homme in +a most delicate point; a man who could be insensible to such +delicacy, to such aimable tendresse, would be no better than one +of your sauvages, one of your Mohicans!" + +{"N'est ce pas un sujet, Madame, to toucher le coeur de +l'homme..." = Is this not a subject, Madame, which touches the +heart of man...; "to such aimable tendresse" = to such pleasant +affection (mixed French and English)} + +"Well, I don't think so much of it, because it is very common +here; such matches happen every day." + +"And who are the happy couple you refer to at present?" + +"'Tis a young gentleman of New York city, Mr. Roberts, who is +going to marry a young lady, whose father is a neighbour of +pa's." + +"And what is the sum the young lady has bestowed upon her +grateful adorateur?" + +"Oh, the lady has not anything to bestow in this case; it is the +gentleman, who is very wealthy, and doing a very handsome +business in New York." + +"Ah," said M. Bonnet, taking a pinch of snuff; "that is not so +interesting I think, as when the mari is the favoured party. The +heart of man is more susceptible of lasting gratitude for un tel +bienfait." + +{"mari" = husband; "un tel bienfait" = such a favor (French)} + +"The gentleman has all the money, this time; I don't think Mary +Van Horne will have a cent; do you, Miss Wyllys?" + +But Elinor was gone. As the Baron appeared, however, Mrs. Hilson +did not regret it. + +"Ah, Baron, I thought you were never coming. You ought to be much +obliged to me, for I had just told Monsieur Bonnet, we must not +move till the Baron comes; the Baron will not know where to find +us." + + + +CHAPTER VII. {XXX} + +"They sit conferring ------------------." +Taming the Shrew. + +{William Shakespeare, "The Taming of the Shrew", V.ii.102} + +THE usual evening circle had collected in Miss Wyllys's parlour, +with the addition of Mary Van Alstyne, who had just arrived from +Poughkeepsie, and Mrs. St. Leger. Miss Emma Taylor had gone to a +concert with her good-natured brother-in-law, and a couple of her +admirers. Jane and her sister-in-law, Adeline, were sitting +together in a corner, talking partly about their babies, partly +about what these two young matrons called "old times;" that is to +say, events which had transpired as far back as three or four +years previously. To them, however, those were "old times;" for, +since then, the hopes and fears, cares and pleasures, of the two +friends were much changed. + +Among the rest of the party the conversation became more general; +for Elinor had just finished a song, and Mr. Wyllys had just +beaten Mrs. Creighton at a game of chess. + +"Mr. Hazlehurst, pray what have you done with my saya y manto?" +asked the pretty widow, taking a seat at the side of Elinor, on a +sofa. "Here have you been, three, four, five days, and I have not +even alluded to it, which, you must observe is a great act of +forbearance in a lady, when there is a piece of finery in +question." + +{"saya y manto" = skirt and cloak (Spanish)} + +"I am really ashamed of myself for not having reported it safe at +Philadelphia, before. I would not send it to your house, when I +heard you were here, for I wished to deliver it in person; and I +did not bring it with me, because Mrs. Hazlehurst told me it was +too warm for a fashionable lady to wear anything as heavy as +black silk for the next three months." + +"Well, of course I am very much obliged to you for the trouble +you have had with it; but I shall defer thanking you formally, +until I find out whether it is becoming or not." + +"Do you expect to make a very captivating Spaniard?" asked Mr. +Stryker. + +"I shall do my best, certainly; but I shall leave you to decide +how far I succeed, Mr. Stryker. Are the Brazilian women pretty, +Mr. Hazlehurst?--what do they look like?" + +"Very like Portuguese," was the answer. + +"More than the Americans look like the English?" inquired Elinor. + +"Far more," said Harry; "but you know there is less difference +between the climates of Brazil and Portugal, than between ours +and that of England." + +"For my part," observed Mr. Ellsworth, "I do not think we look in +the least like the English--neither men nor women. We are getting +very fast to have a decided physiognomy of our own. I think I +could pick out an American from among a crowd of Europeans, +almost as soon as I could a Turk." + +"You always piqued yourself, Ellsworth, upon having a quick eye +for national characteristics. We used to try him very often, when +we were in Europe, Mrs. Creighton, and I must do him the justice +to say he seldom failed." + +"Oh, yes; I know all Frank's opinions on the subject," replied +Mrs. Creighton: "it is quite a hobby with him." + +"What do you think are the physical characteristics of the +Americans, as compared with our English kinsmen?" inquired Mr. +Wyllys. + +"We are a darker, a thinner, and a paler people. The best +specimens of the English have the advantage in manliness of form +and carriage; the American is superior in activity, in the +expression of intelligence and energy in the countenance. The +English peculiarities in their worst shape are, coarseness and +heaviness of form; a brutal, dull countenance; the worst +peculiarities among the Americans are, an apparent want of +substance in the form, and a cold, cunning expression of +features. I used often to wonder, when travelling in Europe, +particularly in France and Germany, at the number of heavy forms +and coarse features, which strike one so often there, even among +the women, and which are so very uncommon in America." + +"Yes; that brutal coarseness of features, which stood for the +model of the old Satyrs, is scarcely to be met in this country, +though by no means uncommon in many parts of Europe," observed +Hazlehurst. + +"I was very much struck the other evening, at the dance, with the +appearance of the women," continued Mr. Ellsworth. "Not that they +are so brilliant in their beauty--one sees beautiful women in +every country; but they are so peculiarly feminine, and generally +pretty, as a whole. By room-fulls, en masse, they appear to more +advantage I think, than any other women; the general effect is +very seldom broken by coarseness of face, or unmanageable +awkwardness of form." + +"Yes, you are right," said Mr. Stryker. "There is a vast deal of +prettiness, and very little repulsive ugliness among the women in +this country. But it strikes me they are inclining a little too +much to the idea, just now, that all the beauty in the world is +collected in these United States, which, as we all know is rather +a mistaken opinion." + +"Certainly; that would be an extremely ridiculous notion." + +"You think delicacy then, the peculiar characteristic of American +beauty?" said Mr. Wyllys. + +"Yes, sir; but I could point out others, too. Brown hair and +hazel eyes are another common feature in American beauty. If you +look over the pretty women of your acquaintance, you will find +that the case I think." + +"Like Mrs. Creighton's," said Elinor, smiling. + +"No; Josephine's features are not sufficiently regular for a +beauty," said her brother, good-naturedly. + +"I shan't get a compliment from Frank, Miss Wyllys," replied the +widow, shaking her head. "I agree with him, though, about the +brown-haired beauties; for, I once took the trouble to count over +my acquaintances, and I found a great many that answered his +description. I think it the predominating colour among us. I am +certainly included in the brown tribe myself, and so are you, +Miss Wyllys." + +"As far as the colour of my hair goes," replied Elinor, with a +smile which seemed to say, talk on, I have no feeling on the +subject of my plain face. One or two persons present had actually +paused, thinking the conversation was taking an unfortunate turn, +as one of the ladies present was undeniably wanting in beauty. To +encourage the natural pursuit of the subject, Elinor remarked +that, "light hair and decidedly blue eyes, like Mrs. St. Leger's, +are not so very common, certainly; nor true black hair and eyes +like your's, Jane." + +"You are almost as much given to compliments, Miss Wyllys, as I +am," said Mrs. Creighton; "I have to say a saucy thing now and +then, by way of variety." + +"The saucy speeches are for your own satisfaction, no doubt, and +the compliments for that of your friends, I suppose," replied +Elinor, smiling a little archly; for she had very good reasons +for mistrusting the sincerity of either mode of speech from the +lips of the gay widow; whom, for that very reason, she liked much +less than her brother. + +"Do you really think me too severe?--wait till we are better +acquainted!" + +"I shall always think you very charming," replied Elinor, with +her usual frank smile; for, in fact, she admired Mrs. Creighton +quite as much as the rest of the world. And then observing that +Mr. Ellsworth was listening to their conversation, she turned to +him and asked, if the true golden hair, so much admired by the +Italian poets, and so often sung by them, were still common in +Italy? + +"Judging from books and pictures, I should think it must have +been much more common some centuries ago than at the present day; +for, certainly, there is not one Italian woman in a hundred, who +has not very decidedly black hair and eyes. I remember once in a +translation from English into Italian, I used the expression +'grey eyes,' which diverted my master very much: he insisted upon +it, there was no 'such thing in nature;' and even after I had +reminded him of Napoleon, he would not believe the Emperor's eyes +were not black. He was a thorough Italian, of course, and knew +nothing of the northern languages, or he would have met with the +expression before." + +"Let me tell you, Ellsworth," said Harry, after a short pause in +the conversation, "that it is very pleasant to pass an agreeable +evening in this way, chatting with old friends. You have no idea +how much I enjoy it after a three years' exile!" + +"I can readily believe it." + +"No, I don't think you understand it at all. It is true you were +roving about the world several years, but you were not alone, my +dear sir. You had indeed the advantage of particularly agreeable +companions with you: in Paris you had Mrs. Creighton, and in +Egypt you had your humble servant. And then, in the next place, +your mind was constantly occupied; you lived with the past while +in Italy and Greece, and with the present in Paris. Now, at Rio, +there is no past at all, and not much of a present." + +"Is there no general society at Rio?" inquired Miss Wyllys. + +"Oh, yes; society enough, in the usual meaning of the word. I was +very fortunate in meeting with some very agreeable people, and +have really a strong regard for Manezes {sic}--a good fellow he +is, and I hope to see him here one of these days. But they were +all new acquaintances. You cannot think how much I wanted to see +a face I had known all my life; I was positively at one time on +the verge of being home-sick." + +"You found out that you were more tender-hearted than you had +believed yourself," said Mr. Ellsworth. + +"So it seems," replied Harry; a shade of embarrassment crossing +his face as he spoke. + +"I should have thought some old acquaintance or other would have +gone straggling towards Rio, in these travelling days," observed +Mr. Ellsworth. + +"No, I was particularly unfortunate: once when the American +squadron lay at Rio for some weeks, and I had several friends on +board the Macedonian, I happened at that very time to be absent +on an excursion in the interior. For six months, or so it did +very well; it takes one as long as that to enjoy the lovely +scenery, to say nothing of the novelty; but after admiring the +bay and the Corcovado under every possible aspect, I got at last +to be heartily tired of Rio. I should have run away, if we had +not been recalled this summer." + +{"Macedonian" = a United States warship, commanded during the +early 1840s by Commodore William Branford Shubrick (1790-1874), a +life-long close friend of James Fenimore Cooper. Susan Fenimore +Cooper wrote a biography of him in 1876; "Corcovado" = a famous +mountain peak overlooking the bay of Rio de Janeiro} + +"You should have fallen in love," said Mrs. Creighton. + +"I don't think I succeeded in that; perhaps I did not try very +hard." + +"But is not the state of society pleasant at Rio?" inquired Mr. +Wyllys. + +"Not particularly, sir; it is too much like our own for that; +something provincial lingering about it, although they have an +emperor of their own. We cannot do without the other hemisphere +yet, in spite of our self-important airs. We Yankees have coaxed +Time out of a great deal, but he is not to be cheated for all +that. People were not busy for thousands of years in the Old +World, merely to qualify them for discovering America, whatever +some of our patriots may say on the subject." + +"Yes, you are right, Harry; I have often wished that our people +would remember what they seem to forget, that Time has a +prerogative beyond their reach. There is a wide difference +between a blind reverence for Time, and an infatuated denial of +his power; and I take it to be one of the duties of your +generation to find out the dividing line in this and other +points, and shape your practice accordingly." + +"Yes, sir; it appears to me high time that the civilized world +set about marking more distinctly a great many boundary lines, on +important moral questions; and it is to be presumed, that with so +much experience at our command, we shall at last do something +towards it. It is to be hoped that mankind will at length learn +not always to rush out of one extreme into the other; and when +they feel the evil of one measure, not to fly for relief to its +very opposite, but set about looking for the true remedy, which +is generally not so far off." + +"You don't believe in moral homoeopathy?" said Mrs. Stanley. + +"Not in the least." + +"Well, we are very much obliged to you for getting tired of Rio," +said Mrs. Creighton; "and thinking that the gay world of +Philadelphia was quite as agreeable as the Imperial Court." + +"I take it for granted, however, that it was not exactly the gay +world that you regretted," said Ellsworth. + +"Not exactly, no; general society is not sufficiently perfect in +its way among us, for a man to pine after." + +"I have often thought," observed Elinor, "that the spirit of mere +dissipation must be less excusable in this country than in +Europe. Society must have so many attractions there--more general +finish--more high accomplishment." + +"Yes; we want more of the real thing; we have smatterers enough +as it is," replied Mr. Ellsworth. + +"And then the decorations are so well got up in Europe!" +exclaimed Mrs. Creighton. "I must confess myself enough of a +woman, to be charmed with good decorations." + +"Something far better than mere decoration; however, is requisite +to make society at all agreeable," continued Mr. Ellsworth. +"There is luxury enough among us, in eating and drinking, +dressing and furniture, for instance; and yet what can well be +more silly, more puerile, than the general tone of conversation +at common parties among us? And how many of the most delightful +soirees in Paris, are collected in plain rooms, au second, or au +troisieme, with a brick floor to stand on, and a glass of orgeat, +with a bit of brioche to eat!" + +{"au second, or au troisieme" = on the third or fourth floor; +"orgeat" = a syrup flavored drink; "brioche" = a simple pastry +(French)} + +"Lots and Love--Speculation and Flirtation, are too entirely the +order of the day, and of the evening, with us," said Harry; +"whether figuring on Change, or on a Brussels carpet." + +{"on Change" = at the stock market} + +"I have often been struck, myself, with the excessive silliness +of the conversation at common parties, especially what are called +young parties; though I have never seen anything better," said +Elinor. + +"Those young parties are enough to spoil any society," said +Harry. + +"Perhaps, however, you have too high an idea of such scenes in +Europe, precisely because you have not seen them, Miss Wyllys," +observed Mr. Ellsworth. + +"That may very possibly be the case." + +"There are always silly and ignorant people to be met with +everywhere," remarked Harry; "but the difference lies in the +general character of the circle, which is not often so insipid +and so puerile in Europe." + +"It is the difference, I suppose, between a puppet-show and +genteel comedy," said Elinor. + +"Precisely, Miss Wyllys," said Mr. Ellsworth, smiling. + +"We have very pretty puppets, though," observed Mrs. Creighton; +"quite well-dressed, and sufficiently graceful, too; that is to +say, the young lady puppets. As for the gentlemen, I shall not +attempt to defend them, en masse, neither their grace nor their +coats." + +"You won't allow us to be either pretty or well-dressed?" said +Mr. Stryker. + +"Oh, everybody knows that Mr. Stryker's coat and bow are both +unexceptionable." + +"Why don't you go to work, good people, and improve the world, +instead of finding fault with it?" said Mr. Wyllys, who was +preparing for another game of chess with Mrs. Robert Hazlehurst. + +"A labour of Hercules, sir!" exclaimed Mr. Stryker, shrugging his +shoulders. "The position of a reformer is not sufficiently +graceful to suit my fancy." + +"It is fatiguing, too; it is much easier to sit still and find +fault, sir," observed Robert Hazlehurst, smiling. + +"Sauve qui peut, is my motto," continued Mr. Stryker. "I shall +take care of myself; though I have no objection that the rest of +the world should profit by my excellent example; they may improve +on my model, if they please." + +{"sauve qui peut" = everyone for himself (French)} + +"The fact is, that manners, and all other matters of taste, ought +to come by instinct," said Mrs. Robert Hazlehurst; "one soon +becomes tired of beings regularly tutored on such points." + +"No doubt of that," replied Harry; "but unfortunately, though +reading and writing come by nature, as Dogberry says, in this +country, yet it is by no means so clear that good taste follows +as a consequence." + +{"Dogberry" = a constable in Shakespeare's comedy, "Much Ado +About Nothing": "To be a well-favor'd man is the gift of fortune, +but to write and read comes by nature." III.iii.14-16} + +"Good taste never came by nature, anywhere but in old Greece, I +take it," said Ellsworth. "In a new state of society, such things +must force themselves upon one." + +"Certainly," said Mr. Wyllys; "and you young people, who have had +so many advantages of education and leisure, are very right to +give the subject some attention, for the sake of the community in +which you live. Manners in their best meaning, as a part of +civilization, are closely connected at many different points, +with the character and morals of a nation. Hitherto in this +country, the subject has been too much left to itself; but in +many respects there is a good foundation to work upon--some of +our national traits are very creditable." + +"That is true, sir," replied Mr. Ellsworth; "and Americans are +naturally very quick in taking a hint, and in fitting it to their +own uses. They are a good-natured, sociable race, too, neither +coarse nor unwieldy in body or mind. All they want is, a little +more reflection on the subject, and a sufficiently large number +of models, to observe, and compare together; for they are too +quick and clever, not to prefer the good to the bad, when the +choice lies before them." + +"Remember too," said Mr. Wyllys, "that if you cannot do +everything, you must not suppose you can do nothing." + +"There is one point in American manners, that is very good," said +Harry: "among our very best people we find a great deal of true +simplicity; simplicity of the right sort; real, not factitious." + +"Sweet simplicity, oh, la!" exclaimed Mr. Stryker. "Well, I am a +bad subject to deal with, myself. I am too old to go to school, +and I am too young yet, I flatter myself, to give much weight to +my advice. Not quite incorrigible, however, I trust," he added, +endeavouring to smile in a natural way, as he turned towards +Elinor and Mrs. Creighton. "I shall be most happy to learn from +the ladies, and try to improve under their advice. Have you no +suggestions to make, Miss Wyllys?" + +"I am afraid I could not be of much use in that way." + +"There are only a thousand-and-one hints that I should give you," +said Mrs. Creighton, laughing. + +"You must be frightfully particular!" exclaimed Mr. Stryker; +"pray, what is hint No. 1?" + +"Oh, I should not have time to make even a beginning; it is +growing very late, and I shall defer your education until the +next time we meet. Mr. Hazlehurst, that is my scarf, I believe, +on your chair." + +The party separated; Harry offering his arm to Mrs. Creighton. + + + +CHAPTER VIII. {XXXI} + +"Verily +You shall not go--a lady's verily is +As potent as a lord's. Will you go yet?" +Winter's Tale. + +{William Shakespeare, "A Winter's Tale", I.ii.50-51} + +MRS. STANLEY had joined the Wyllyses at Saratoga, a few days +after they arrived, and the meeting between Hazlehurst and +herself had been very cordial. She had always felt a warm +interest in Harry, looking upon him as her husband's chosen +representative, and all but an adopted son; the intercourse +between them had invariably been of the most friendly and +intimate nature. + +Mr. Stanley's will had placed the entire control of his large +estate in the hands of his widow, and his old friend, Mr. Wyllys. +Mrs. Stanley, herself, was to retain one half of the property, +for life; at her death it was to be divided in different +legacies, to relatives of her own, and to charitable +institutions, according to her own discretion. The other half was +also to be kept in the hands of the executors until his own son +returned, and had reached the age of five-and-twenty; or, in case +the report of William Stanley's death, which had just reached his +family, were to be confirmed, then Harry Hazlehurst was to take +his place, and receive his son's portion, on condition that his, +Hazlehurst's, second son should take the name of Stanley. +Hazlehurst was a nephew by marriage; that is to say, his father, +after the death of a first wife, Harry's mother, had married Mr. +Stanley's only sister: this lady died before her brother, leaving +no children. At the time this will was made, Mr. Stanley had +given up all, but the faintest, hope of his son's being alive; +still, he left letters for him, containing his last blessing, and +forgiveness, in case the young man were to return. He also +expressed a wish that an easy allowance, according to Mrs. +Stanley's discretion, should be given, after the age of +one-and-twenty, to his son, or to Harry, whichever were to prove +his heir; on condition that the recipient should pursue some +regular profession or occupation, of a respectable character. +Hazlehurst was to receive a legacy of thirty thousand dollars, in +case of William Stanley's return. + +Such was Mr. Stanley's will; and circumstances having soon showed +that the report of his son's death was scarcely to be doubted, +Hazlehurst had been for years considered as his heir. As Harry +grew up, and his character became formed, his principles proving, +in every respect, such as his friends could wish, Mrs. Stanley +had made very ample provision for him. The allowance he had +received for his education was very liberal, and during his visit +to Europe it had been increased. At different times considerable +sums had been advanced, to enable him to make desirable +purchases: upon one occasion, a portion of the property upon +which his ancestors had first settled, as colonists, was offered +for sale by a distant relative, and Harry wished to obtain +possession of it; twenty thousand dollars were advanced for this +purpose. Then, Hazlehurst was very desirous of collecting a +respectable library, and, as different opportunities offered, he +had been enabled, while in Europe, to make valuable acquisitions +of this kind, thanks to Mrs. Stanley's liberality. As every +collector has a favourite branch of his own, Harry's tastes had +led him to look for botanical works, in which he was particularly +interested; and he had often paid large sums for rare or +expensive volumes connected with this science. Since he had +reached the age of five-and-twenty, or, during the last two +years, he had been in full possession of the entire half of Mr. +Stanley's property, amounting, it was generally supposed, to some +ten thousand a year. According to a codicil of the will, +Hazlehurst was also to take possession of Greatwood, at his +marriage: this was a pleasant country-house, surrounded by a +place in fine order; but Mrs. Stanley, who preferred living in +town, had already given him possession. + +"I wish, Harry, we could keep you at home, now," said Mrs. +Stanley to her young friend, one morning, as he was sitting with +herself, Mary Van Alstyne, and Elinor, in her rooms at Congress +Hall. "I think Mr. Henley could spare you better than we can. Is +it quite decided that you go to Russia?" + +"You are very kind to express so much interest in my movements. +But you must permit me to remind you of a piece of advice I have +often received, as a youngster, from your own lips, dear Mrs. +Stanley; and that is, never to abandon merely from caprice, the +path of life I might choose." + +"Certainly; but I think you might find very good reasons for +staying at home, now; your affairs would go on all the better for +some personal attention; I should be sorry to have you a rover +all your life, Harry." + +"I have no, intention, Ma'am, I assure you, of being a vagrant +all my days. And if there is nothing else to keep me at home, it +is highly probable that I shall be thrown on the shelf before +long by Uncle Sam. When a man has served his apprenticeship, and +is fully qualified to fill his office creditably, he may prepare +to be turned out; and, very likely, some raw backwoodsman, who +knows nothing of the world in general, or of diplomacy in +particular, will be put in his place. That is often the way +things are managed among us, you know. + +{Susan Fenimore Cooper is reflecting the views of her father, +based on his experience with American diplomacy in Europe from +1826-33. The United States Foreign Service did not become a fully +professional, career organization until 1946} + +"For that very reason, I would not have anything to do with +public life, if I were a young man!" exclaimed Mrs. Stanley, +earnestly. "So many men who are ill-qualified for either public +or private confidence, get into office, that I should think no +man of high principles and honourable views, would care to belong +to the body of public servants." + +"There is all the more need, then, that every honest man, who has +an opportunity of serving his country, should do so," observed +Harry. "I do not believe, however, that as regards principles, +the public men among us are any worse than the public men +elsewhere," he added. + +"Where all are chosen, they ought to be better," said Mary Van +Alstyne. + +"That I grant," said Hazlehurst; "the choice by election, or by +appointment, might often be more creditable; whenever it is bad, +it is disgraceful to the community." + +"Look at A-----, B-----, and C-----, whom you and I happen to +know!" exclaimed Mrs. Stanley. + +"No doubt they are little fit for the offices they hold," replied +Harry. + +"The worst of it is this, Harry: that the very qualities which +ought to recommend you, will probably keep you back in the career +you have chosen," said Mrs. Stanley. "Your principles are too +firm for public life." + +"I shall try the experiment, at least," said Harry. "Mr. Henley +urges me to persevere, and with his example before me, I ought +not to be discouraged; he is a proof that a public man is not +necessarily required to be a sycophant, and a time-server; that +he is not always neglected because he is an upright man, and a +gentleman. I shall follow his example; and I am convinced the +experiment would succeed much oftener, provided it were fairly +tried." + +"Mrs. Stanley shook her head. She was a woman of rather a +peculiar character, though very warm in her feelings, and firm in +her principles. She had become disgusted with the world, from +seeing much that was evil and disgraceful going on about her; +forgetting to observe the good as well as the bad. Of late years, +she had withdrawn entirely within a narrow circle of old friends, +among whom the Wyllyses and Hazlehursts held a conspicuous place. +She was disposed to mistrust republican institutions, merely +because she attributed every evil of the society about her, to +this one cause: her opinions on this subject were, however, of no +value whatever; for she knew nothing of other countries, their +evils and abuses. If warmly attached to her friends, she was +certainly too indifferent to the community in which she lived. +She was very decided in all her actions and opinions: thus, for +instance, she would never allow a newspaper, of any character +whatever, to appear in her house--she held every sheet alike, to +be loose in principles, and vulgar in tone; because, +unfortunately, there are many to be found which answer such a +description. An office-holder, and a speculator, she would never +trust, and avoided every individual of either class as much as +possible. Her friends would have wished her more discriminating +in her opinions, but she never obtruded these upon others. +Personally, no woman could be more respected by her intimates; +there was nothing low or trivial in her character and turn of +mind--no shadow of vacillation in her principles or her feelings. +Mrs. Stanley and her young friend Hazlehurst, much as they +esteemed and respected each other, disagreed on many subjects. +Harry made a point of looking at both sides of a question; he was +loyal to his country, and willing to serve it to the best of his +ability--not at all inclined to be an idler, and play the drone +in the bee-hive, whether social or political. Mrs. Stanley had +much regretted his being in any way connected with public life, +but she seldom attempted to influence him. + +"What do you say, young ladies?" asked Harry, at length, turning +towards Elinor and Mary Van Alstyne, who had hitherto thought the +conversation of too personal a nature, to speak much themselves. +"Do you think I had better stay at home, and look after the stock +at Greatwood, or go to St. Petersburg, and set up my droschky?" + +{"droschky" = a four-wheeled open carriage used in Russia} + +"I should never have the least fancy for going to Russia," +replied Mary; "and, therefore, I am not much disposed to admire +your constancy in adhering to Mr. Henley." + +"Oh, go, by all means," said Elinor; "you will see so much! And +be sure you go to the Crimea before you come home." + +"The Crimea is certainly a temptation," observed Harry. "I beg, +ladies, you will honour me with your commands for St. Petersburg, +some time during the next three months. I refer you to Mrs. +Creighton for a certificate of good taste; her saya y manto is +perfect in its way, I am told." + +"Perhaps I ought to have engaged Mrs. Creighton on my side, +before I tried to coax you into staying at home," said Mrs. +Stanley, smiling. + +We are obliged to confess that Harry coloured at this remark, in +spite of a determination not to do so; and a great misdemeanour +it was in a diplomatist, to be guilty of blushing; it clearly +proved that Hazlehurst was still in his noviciate. Happily, +however, if the Department of State, at Washington, be sometimes +more particular in investigating the party politics of its agents +in foreign countries, than other qualifications, it is also +certain, on the other hand, that they do not require by any +means, as much bronze of countenance as most European cabinets. + +{"bronze of countenance" = unblushingness, brazen lying} + +"Oh, Mrs. Creighton strongly recommends me to persevere in +diplomacy," said Harry. + +Just at that moment, a note was brought in from this very lady. + +"With Mrs. Creighton's compliments," said the man who brought it. + +Harry's colour rose again, and for a second he looked a little +embarrassed. Mrs. Stanley smiled, and so did the young ladies, +just a little. + +"I will look for the book immediately,'' was Harry's reply; and +turning to the ladies, he communicated the fact, that Mrs. +Creighton had asked for the volume of engravings which he had +shown to Mr. Wyllys, two or three evenings before. The book was +in Miss Wyllys's room, and Elinor went for it. + +"Will you dine with us to-day, Harry, or at the other house?" +asked Mrs. Stanley. + +{"other house" = i.e., other hotel, Congress Hall and the United +States being the two fashionable hotels in Saratoga Springs} + +"Thank you, ma'am; I am engaged to dine with Mr. Henley, who is +only here for the day, and wishes to have a little business-talk +with me. We are to eat a bachelor's dinner together, in his +room." + +Elinor returned with the book, and Harry made his bow. + +As he left the room, Mary Van Alstyne observed that Mr. +Hazlehurst seemed quite attentive to his friend's sister. "He +admires the pretty widow, I fancy," she said. + +"No wonder," said Elinor; "Mrs. Creighton is so very pretty, and +very charming." + +"Yes; she is very pretty, with those spirited brown eyes, and +beautiful teeth. She is an adept in the art of dressing, too, and +makes the most of every advantage. But though she is so pretty, +and so clever, and so agreeable, yet I do not like her." + +"People seem to love sometimes, men especially, where they do not +LIKE," said Mrs. Stanley. "I should not be surprised, at any +time, to hear that Harry and Mrs. Creighton are engaged. I wish +he may marry soon." + +"The lady is, at least, well-disposed for conquest, I think," +said Mary Van Alstyne. + +"She will probably succeed," replied Elinor, in a quiet, natural +voice. + +Miss Agnes, who had just entered the room, heard the remark, and +was gratified by the easy tone in which Elinor had spoken. Since +Hazlehurst's return, Elinor's manner towards him had been just +what her aunt thought proper under the circumstances; it was +quite unembarrassed and natural, though, of course, there was +more reserve than during the years they had lived so much +together, almost as brother and sister. We are obliged to leave +the ladies for the present, and follow Hazlehurst to his +tete-a-tete dinner with Mr. Henley. + +We pass over the meal itself, which was very good in its way; nor +shall we dare to raise the curtain, and reveal certain +communications relating to affairs of state, political and +diplomatic, which were discussed by the minister and his +secretary. Harry heard some Rio Janeiro news too, which seemed to +amuse him, but would scarcely have any interest for the reader. +At length, as Mr. Henley and Harry were picking their nuts, the +minister happened to enquire the day of the month. + +"It is the twentieth, I believe, sir; and by the same token, +to-morrow will be my birth-day," + +"Your birth-day, will it?--How old may you be?" + +"Twenty-seven, if I remember right." + +"I had thought you two or three years younger. Well, I wish you a +long life and a happy!" + +"Thank you, sir; I am much obliged to you for the interest you +have always shown me." + +"No need of thanks, Harry; it is only what your father's son had +a right to expect from me." + +A silence of a moment ensued, when Mr. Henley again spoke. + +"You are seven-and-twenty, you say, Hazlehurst?--let me give you +a piece of advice--don't let the next ten years pass without +marrying." + +"I was just about making up my mind, at Rio, to be a gay +bachelor, my dear sir," said Harry. + +"Yes; I remember to have heard you say something of the kind; but +take my advice, and marry, unless you have some very good reason +for not doing so." + +Hazlehurst made no answer, but helped himself to another supply +of nuts. "More easily said than done, perhaps," he observed. + +"Nonsense!--There are many amiable young women who would suit +you; and it would be strange if you could not meet with one that +would have you. Some pretty, lady-like girl. I dare say you know +twenty such, in Philadelphia, or even here, at Saratoga." + +"Five hundred, no doubt," replied Harry; "but suppose the very +woman I should fancy, would not fancy me." Whether he was +thinking of his past experience with Jane, or not, we cannot say. + +"I don't see that a woman can find any reasonable fault with +you--you do well enough, my good fellow, as the world goes; and I +am sure there are, as you say, five hundred young women to choose +from. In that point a man has the best of it; young girls of a +certain class, if not angels, are at least generally +unexceptionable; but there are many men, unhappily, whose moral +reputations are, and should be obstacles in a woman's eyes." + +'A regular old bachelor's notion, a mere marriage of +convenience,' thought Harry, who rather resented the idea of the +five hundred congenial spirits, in the shape of suitable young +ladies. + +"You are surprised, perhaps, to hear this from me," continued Mr. +Henley. + +"No, sir: for I once before heard you express much the same +opinion." + +"Did you?--I don't often think or speak on such matters; but I +remember to have heard you talk about a single life occasionally, +at Rio; and I always intended to give this piece of advice to my +nephews, and to you, Harry. If I were to live my life over again, +I should marry myself; for of late years I have felt the want of +a home, and one can't have a pleasant home without the women." + +"There I agree with you, sir, entirely." + +"That is more than some gay, rattling young fellows would admit. +Since you think so," continued Mr. Henley, smiling, "perhaps you +have also fixed upon some amiable young girl, who would be a +pleasant companion for you." + +Hazlehurst was silent. + +"I dare say you have, and I might have spared you the advice. If +that is the case, you must make the most of the next three +months; persuade her to marry you, and we can take her to Russia, +to do the honours for us." + +"Things have not gone quite so far as that, yet," said Harry, +just a little embarrassed. + +"Well, my good fellow, settle the matter your own way; I have at +least satisfied my conscience, by telling you not to follow my +own bad example," said the minister, as he rose from table. + +It seemed that Mr. Henley, like most old bachelors, regretted not +having married; though he thought that his habits had all become +too confirmed, to make it worth while to attempt a change. As a +general rule, it will be found that your decidedly old maid is +contented with her lot, while your very old bachelor is +dissatisfied with his. The peculiar evils of a single life--for +every life must have its own--are most felt by women early in the +day; by men, in old age. The world begins very soon to laugh at +the old maid, and continues to laugh, until shamed out of the +habit by her good nature, and her respectable life. The bachelor, +on the contrary, for a long time finds an ally in the world; he +goes on enjoying the pleasures it offers, until old age makes him +weary of them--and then, as his head grows grey, when he finds +himself going out of favour, he begins to feel the want of +something better--a home to retreat to. He looks about him, and +he finds that his female contemporary has outlived her peculiar +annoyances; "the world forgetting, by the world forgot;" she has +long since found some collateral home; or, in her right as a +woman, has made a home for herself, where she lives as pleasantly +as her neighbours. Perhaps he sets about imitating her example; +but, poor fellow, he finds it an awkward task; he can never +succeed in making his household gods smile with a good will, on a +home where no female voice is heard at the fire-side. + +{"the world forgetting...." = Alexander Pope (English poet, +1688-1744), "Eloisa to Abelard" I.207-208: "How happy is the +blameless Vestal's lot! The world forgetting, by the world +forgot."} + +So thought Mr. Henley, and he had been intending to recommend to +Harry to look out for a wife, for some time past. The minister's +ideas on the subject of love and matrimony were, to be sure, +rather matter of fact, and statesmanlike; he would have been +quite satisfied if Hazlehurst had married the first young girl, +of a respectable family, that he met with; the hundredth part of +Mrs. Creighton's attractions he would have thought sufficient. +Harry forgave him, however, for the sake of the kindness intended +by the advice he had given; and the minister had the satisfaction +of seeing his secretary, that evening, at a concert, quite +gallant and attentive to a party of ladies, several of whom were +young and pretty, although one was young and ugly. + +"Who is that?" he asked of a friend; "that lady to whom +Hazlehurst is talking? Half the young people here have grown up, +since I was last at home." + +"That is Mrs. Creighton." + +"No; not Mrs. Creighton; I know her--a charming woman; the lady +on the right." + +"That is Miss Van Alstyne. Mrs. St. Leger is next to her; the +young girl before her is Miss Emma Taylor." + +"A pretty girl--but noisy, it seems." + +"On the next bench, with Ellsworth, are Mrs. Tallman Taylor, the +great beauty, and Miss Wyllys, the heiress." + +"Yes, I know the family very well; but I never saw Mr. Wyllys's +granddaughter before." + +"She is quite plain," observed one gentleman. + +"Very plain," replied the other, turning away. + +The evening proved very sultry, and after accompanying the ladies +home from the concert, Mr. Ellsworth proposed to Harry a stroll +in the open air. The friends set out together, taking the +direction of the spring; and, being alone, their conversation +gradually became of a confidential nature. They touched upon +politics, Mr. Henley's character and views, and various other +topics, concluding with their own personal affairs. At length, +when they had been out some little time, Mr. Ellsworth, after a +moment's silence, turned to Harry and said: + +"Hazlehurst, I have a confession to make; but I dare say you will +not give me much credit for frankness--you have very probably +guessed already what I have to tell." + +"I certainly have had some suspicions of my own for the last few +days; but I may be mistaken; I am not very good at guessing." + +"I can have no motive," continued Mr. Ellsworth, "in concealing +from you my regard for Miss Wyllys, and I hope you will wish me +success." + +"Certainly," replied Harry; who was evidently somewhat prepared +for the disclosure. + +"It is now some time since I have been attached to her, but it is +only lately that I have been able to urge my suit as I could +wish. The better I know Elinor Wyllys, the more anxious I am for +success. I never met with a woman of a more lovely character." + +"You only do her justice." + +"There is something about her that is peculiar; different from +the common-place set of young ladies one meets with every day; +and yet she is perfectly feminine and womanly." + +And Mr. Ellsworth here ran over various good qualities of +Elinor's. It is impossible to say, whether Harry smiled or not, +at this lover-like warmth: if he did, it was too dark for his +friend to observe it. + +"In a situation like mine, with a daughter to educate, the choice +of a wife is particularly important. Of course I feel much +anxiety as to the decision of a woman like Miss Wyllys, one whose +good opinion is worth the wooing: and yet, if I do not deceive +myself, her manner is not discouraging." + +"Is she aware of your feelings?" asked Harry. + +"Yes; I have only proposed in form quite lately, however, a day +or two after you arrived. Miss Wyllys scarcely seemed prepared +for my declaration, although I thought I had spoken sufficiently +distinctly to be understood, some time since. She wished for time +to consider: I was willing to wait as long as she pleased; with +the hope of eventually succeeding. Her friends are quite well +disposed towards me, think. Mr. Wyllys's manner to me has always +been gratifying, and I hope her aunt is in my favour. To speak +frankly, there have been times when I have felt much encouraged +as regards Miss Wyllys herself. You will not think me a coxcomb, +Hazlehurst, for opening my heart to you in this way." + +"Certainly not; you honour me by your confidence." + +"I should like to have your honest opinion as to my future +prospects; for, of course, one can never feel sure until +everything is settled. Josephine is hardly a fair judge--she is +very sanguine; but like myself she is interested in the affair." + +"Mrs. Creighton has so much discernment, that I should think she +could not be easily deceived. If my kinswoman knows your views, I +should say that you have reason to be encouraged by her manner. +There is nothing like coquetry about her; I am convinced she +thinks highly of you." + +"Thank you; it gives me great pleasure to hear you say so. The +question must now be decided before long. I was only prevented +from explaining myself earlier, by the fear of speaking too soon. +For though I have known Miss Wyllys some time, yet we have seldom +met. I dare say you are surprised that I did not declare myself +sooner; I am inclined to think you would have managed an affair +of the kind more expeditiously; for you are more rapid in most of +your movements than myself. But although I might imagine love at +first sight, I never could fancy a declaration worth hearing, the +first day." + +"Do you insinuate that such is the practice of your humble +servant?" asked Hazlehurst, smiling. + +"Oh, no; but I was afraid you might disapprove of my +deliberation. My chief hope rests upon Miss Wyllys's good sense +and the wishes of her friends, who, I think, are evidently +favourable to me. She has no silly, high-flown notions; she is +now of an age--three or four-and-twenty I think--to take a +reasonable view of the world; and I hope she will find the +sincere affection of a respectable man, whose habits and position +resemble her own, sufficient for her." + +"You wish, I suppose, to hear me repeat, that such will +undoubtedly be the result," said Harry, smiling again. + +"Perhaps I do," replied Mr. Ellsworth, in the same tone. "I +suppose you are discerning enough to be aware that I have a rival +in Mr. Stryker." + +"Stryker attentive to Elinor? It has not struck me; I had fancied +him rather an admirer of Mrs. Creighton's." + +"Of Josephine? Oh, no; she can't endure him, they are quarrelling +half the time when together. No, it is very evident that Stryker +is courting Miss Wyllys's favour. But I confess I feel encouraged +by her conduct towards him; there is a quiet civility in it, +which speaks anything but very decided approbation." + +"I know Elinor too well, not to feel assured she must despise a +man of Stryker's character," said Harry, with some indignation. +"He can't appreciate her; it can be nothing more, on his part, +than downright fortune-hunting." + +"No doubt; there you mention another motive I have, for not being +too hasty in my declaration to Miss Wyllys. I could wish to +convince her that my attachment is sincere." + +"Certainly. I forget twenty times a day that she is now a +fortune, until I see some fellow, like William Hunter, or +Stryker, paying their court to her. I have never been accustomed +to consider her in that light, of old. In fact I had no idea of +her reputation as an heiress, until I found it so well +established when I arrived here. But Saratoga is just the place +to make such discoveries. I was quite behind the age in every +respect, it seems; for although it did not require much +penetration to find out your secret, Ellsworth, yet I was taken +entirely by surprise. You never made any allusion to anything of +the kind, in your letters to me." + +"It was so seldom that I met Miss Wyllys, that for a time my mind +was undecided. But, of course, I should have written you word, if +anything had been finally settled; even if you had not come to +look after me in propria persona." + +Having reached their hotel, the gentlemen parted. Mr. Ellsworth +would, in all probability, have been less communicative with his +friend Hazlehurst, on the subject of their recent conversation, +had he been aware of the state of things which formerly existed +between Elinor and himself. He had only heard some vague stories +of an engagement between them, but had always supposed it mere +gossip, from having seen Harry's attention to Jane, when they +were all in Paris together; while he knew, on the other hand, +that Hazlehurst had always been on the most intimate terms with +the Wyllyses, as a family connexion. He was aware that Harry had +been very much in love with Miss Graham, for he had remarked it +himself; and he supposed that if there had ever been any +foundation for the report of an engagement with Elinor, it had +probably been a mere childish caprice, soon broken, and which had +left no lasting impression on either party. + + + +CHAPTER IX {XXXII}. + +"Nor have these eyes, by greener hills +Been soothed, in all my wanderings." +WORDSWORTH. + +{William Wordsworth (English poet, 1770-1850), "Yarrow Visited, +September 1814" lines 11-12} + +CHARLIE HUBBARD had been at Lake George for some days; and it was +a settled thing, that after he had established himself there, and +fixed upon a point for his picture, his friends from Saratoga +were to pay him a visit. Accordingly, the Wyllyses, with a party +large enough to fill a coach, set out for the excursion, leaving +Mrs. Stanley, Jane, her sister, Mrs. Hazlehurst, and their +children, at the Springs. The weather was fine, and they set out +gaily, with pleasant prospects before them. + +Charlie was very glad to see them, and as he had already been +some time on the ground, he thought himself qualified to play +cicerone. Most of the party had a relish for natural scenery, and +of course they were prepared to enjoy very much, a visit to such +a lovely spot. Robert Hazlehurst, it is true, was indifferent to +everything of the kind; he acknowledged himself a thorough +utilitarian in taste, and avowed his preference for a muddy +canal, running between fields, well covered with corn and +pumpkins, turnips and potatoes, rather than the wildest lake, +dotted with useless islands, and surrounded with inaccessible +Alps; but as he frankly confessed his want of taste, and assured +his friends that he accompanied them only for the sake of their +society, they were bound to overlook the defect. Mr. Stryker also +said a great deal about his indifference towards les ormeaux, les +rameaux, et les hameaux, affecting much more than he felt, and +affirming that the only lakes he liked, were the ponds of the +Tuileries, and the parks of London; the only trees, those of the +Boulevards; and as for villages, he could never endure one, not +even the Big Village of Washington. He only came, he said, +because he must follow the ladies, and was particularly anxious +to give Mrs. Creighton an opportunity of finishing his education, +and--to fish. Some of the party were: sorry he had joined them; +but Mrs. Creighton had asked him. + +{"cicerone" = guide (Italian); "les ormeaux, les rameaux, et les +hameaux..." = elms, branches, and hamlets (French)} + +"Are Mrs. Hilson and her sister still at Saratoga?" inquired +Charlie Hubbard of Hazlehurst, the evening they arrived at +Caldwell. + +{"Caldwell" = village at the southern end of Lake George in New +York State; the village has since been renamed Lake George} + +"I believe so; they were there the day before, yesterday, for +Mrs. Hilson asked me to a pic-nic, at Barkydt's {sic} --but I was +engaged. I think I saw Miss Hubbard in the street, yesterday." + +{"Barkydt's" = Barhydt's Pond, a "little ear-shaped +lake...surrounded by pyramidal firs, pines and evergreens," once +famous for its trout fishing, owned by Jacobus Barhydt (often +spelled Barhyte). A pleasure spot two miles east of Saratoga +Springs, it was, in the 1830s, the site of a popular tavern and +restaurant. Jacobus Barhydt died in 1840, and the property was +dispersed; to be reassembled in 1881 by New York banker Spencer +Trask as a summer estate After many changes, it is now owned by +the Corporation of Yaddo, and run as a world-famous summer center +for creative artists and writers} + +"Had they the same party with them still?" + +"Yes; it seemed to be very much the same party." + +Hubbard looked mortified; but he was soon busy answering +inquiries as to the projected movements for the next day. + +The following morning the whole party set out, in two skiffs, to +pass the day on the lake. Under Charlie's guidance, they rowed +about among the islands, now coasting the shores, now crossing +from one point to another, wherever the views were finest; +generally keeping near enough, as they moved leisurely along, for +conversation between the two boats. + +"How beautifully clear the water is!" exclaimed Elinor. + +"The water in the Swiss lakes is limpid I suppose, Charlie, like +most mountain streams?" observed Mr. Wyllys. + +"It is clear, sir; and in the heart of the Alps it has a very +peculiar colour--a blueish tinge--from the glaciers, like molten +lapis lazuli; entirely different from the deep, ultra-marine blue +of the Mediterranean." + +"Have you any views of the Swiss lakes?" asked Elinor." + +"Yes; I can show you several--and, as usual, there is a +difference in their colouring: from Lugarn; a little bit of lapis +lazuli, lying like a jewel, in the green pastures, half way up +the Alps, just below the ice and snow, to the reedy lake of +Morat, on the plains of Neufchatel, more like an agate," added +Charlie, smiling. + +"We shall hope to see them, when we pass through New York," said +Elinor, listening with interest. + +"I will show them to you with great pleasure, faute de mieux, +Miss Elinor; but I hope you will one day see the originals." + +{"faute de mieux" = for want of something better (French)} + +"In the mean time, however, we shall be very glad to enjoy your +pictures. Have you any Italian views?" + +"Yes, quite a number; wherever I went, I made sketches at least; +though I have not yet had time to finish them all as pictures. In +my boxes there are Venetian lagoons, and Dutch canals; a view of +the Seine, in the heart of Paris, and the Thames, at London; the +dirty, famous Tiber, classic Arno, and classic Avon." + +"You make our eyes water, Charlie, with such a catalogue," said +Mr. Wyllys. "You must certainly get up an exhibition, and add +several of your American pictures to those you have just brought +home." + +"I really hope you will do so," said Elinor. "The transparent +amber-like water of the Canada, and the emerald colour of +Niagara, would appear finely in such a collection." + +{"Canada" = from the context, probably Trenton Falls on the West +Canada Creek, a major tourist attraction during the 19th century} + +"I shall never dare attempt Niagara," exclaimed Charlie. "All the +beauties of all the other waters in the world are united there. +It will not do to go beyond the rapids; I should be lost if I but +ventured to the edge of the whirlpool itself." + +"I have no doubt you will try it yet," said Harry. + +The young artist shook his head. "I am sometimes disposed to +throw aside the brush in disgust, at the temerity of man, which +can attempt to copy even what is most noble, in the magnificent +variety, and the simple grandeur of nature." + +"You have been sufficiently successful in what you have attempted +hitherto," said Harry. "I saw your view of Lake Ontario, in +Philadelphia, just after I arrived; and I can never forget the +impression it produced on me. Of all your pictures that I have +seen, that is my favourite." + +"It is indeed a noble picture," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"And few men but yourself, Charlie, could have given so deep an +interest to a broad field of water, with only a strip of +common-place shore in the fore-ground, and a bank of clouds in +the distance. A common painter would have thrown in some +prettiness of art, that would have ruined it; but you have given +it a simple dignity that is really wonderful!" said Hazlehurst. + +"You mortify me," said Charlie; "it is so much inferior to what I +could wish." + +"Captain C-----," continued Harry, "who was stationed at Oswego +for several years, told me he should have known your picture +without the name, for a view of one of the great lakes; there was +so much truth in the colour and movement of the water; so much +that was different from the Ocean." + +"Ladies and gentlemen, it is cruel in you to flatter a poor young +artist at this rate," said Charlie. + +"If it is criticism you want," said Hazlehurst, "I can give you a +dose. You were very severely handled in my presence, a day or two +since, and on the very subject of your picture of Lake Ontario." + +"Pray, let me hear the criticism; it will sober me." + +"What was the fault?" said Elinor; "what was wanting?" + +"A few houses and a steamboat, to make it lively." + +"You are making up a good story, Mr. Hazlehurst," said Mrs. +Creighton, laughing. + +"I give you the critic's words verbatim. I really looked at the +young lady in astonishment, that she should see nothing but a +want of liveliness in a picture, which most of us feel to be +sublime. But Miss D----- had an old grudge against you, for not +having made her papa's villa sufficiently prominent in your view +of Hell-Gate." + +"But, such a villa!" said Hubbard. "One of the ugliest within ten +miles of New York. It is possible, sometimes, by keeping at a +distance, concealing defects, and partially revealing columns +through verdure, to make one of our Grecian-temple houses appear +to advantage in a landscape; but, really, Mr. D-----'s villa was +such a jumble, so entirely out of all just proportion, that I +could do nothing with it; and was glad to find that I could put a +grove between the spectator and the building: anybody but its +inmates would have preferred the trees." + +"Not at all; Miss D----- thought the absence of the portico, with +its tall, pipe-stem columns, the row of dormer windows on the +roof, and the non-descript belvidere crowning all, a loss to the +public." + +{"belvidere" = as used here, a raised turret on top of a house +(Italian)} + +"The miserable architecture of this country is an obstacle to a +landscape painter, quite too serious to be trifled with, I can +assure you," said Charlie. + +"It must be confessed," said Mr. Ellsworth, "that the order of +things has been reversed here. Architecture is usually called the +parent of the fine arts; but with us she is the youngest of the +family, and as yet the worst endowed. We had respectable +pictures, long before we had a single building in a really good +style; and now that we have some noble paintings and statuary, +architecture still lags behind. What a noise they made in New +York, only a few years since, about St. Thomas's Church!" + +{St. Thomas's Church" = St. Thomas Episcopal Church was erected +at the corner of Broadway and Houston Street, in New York City, +in 1826, in the Gothic style which was only beginning to replace +the Greek Revival. Susan Fenimore Cooper shared her father's +dislike of Greek Revival houses that imitated Grecian temples, +and his love of the Gothic} + +"Yes," said Mr. Stryker; "the curse of the genius of +architecture, which Jefferson said had fallen upon this country, +has not yet been removed." + +"Some of the most ludicrous objects I have ever laid my eyes on," +said Hazlehurst, "have been pretending houses, and, I am sorry to +say, churches too, in the interior of the country; chiefly in the +would-be Corinthian and Composite styles. They set every rule of +good taste and good sense at defiance, and look, withal, so +unconscious of their absurdity, that the effect is as thoroughly +ridiculous, as if it had been the object of the architect to make +them so." + +"For reason good," observed Mr. Wyllys; "because they are wanting +in simplicity and full of pretension; and pretension is the root +of all absurdity." + +They had now reached the spot Charlie had selected for his +picture; the young artist pointed it out to Miss Wyllys, who was +in the other boat. + +"This is the spot I have chosen," he said, "and I hope you will +agree with me in liking the position; it commands some of the +finest points on the lake: that is the Black mountain in the +back-ground." + +His friends admired his choice, acknowledging that the view was +one of the most beautiful they had seen. + +"It must be difficult to choose, where every view is charming," +said Elinor. "How beautiful those little islands are; so much +variety, and all so pleasing!" + +"You will see hundreds of them, Miss Wyllys, when you have been +over the lake," said Hubbard. + +"There are just three hundred and sixty-five, marm," added one of +the boatmen, the guide of the party; "one for every day in +the-year." + +"This must be May-day island," said Elinor, pointing to an islet +quite near them. "This one, half wood, half meadow, which shows +so many flowers." + +"May-day island it shall be for the next six weeks," said +Charlie, smiling. "I have chosen it for another view." + +"Well, good people!" exclaimed Robert Hazlehurst, from the other +boat; "you may be feasting on the beauties of nature; but some of +us have more substantial appetites! Miss Wyllys is a little +fatigued, Mr. Stryker all impatient to get out his handsome +fishing-rod, and your humble servant very hungry, indeed!" + +As they had been loitering about for several hours, it was agreed +that they should now land, and prepare to lunch. + +"We will put into port at May-day island," said Charlie; "I have +been there several times, and there is a pretty, grassy bank, +where we may spread a table-cloth." + +They soon reached the little island pointed out by Elinor, and +having landed with their baskets of provisions, the meal was +prepared, and only waiting for the fish which Mr. Stryker had +promised to catch, and for a supply of salt which one of the +boatmen had gone for, to a farm-house on the shore; this +necessary having been forgotten, when the provisions were laid +in. There never was a pic-nic yet, where nothing was forgotten. + +Mr. Stryker soon prepared himself for action; he was a famous +fisherman, and quite as proud of his rod as of his reputation, +which were both Dublin-made, he said, and, therefore, perfect in +their way. Mr. Wyllys and Mrs. Creighton admired the apparatus +contained in his ebony walking-stick, to the owner's full +satisfaction: he had a great deal to say about its perfections, +the beauty of his flies, the excellence of his hooks and lines, +and so forth; and the ladies in general, Mrs. Creighton +especially, listened as flatteringly as the gentleman could +desire. As he was to supply the perch for luncheon, however, he +was obliged to begin his labours; and taking a boat, he rowed off +a stone's throw from the shore. In turning a little point, he was +surprised, by coming suddenly upon a brother fisherman: in a +rough, leaky boat, with a common old rod in his hand, sat our +acquaintance, Mr. Hopkins, wearing the usual rusty coat; his red +silk handkerchief spread on his knee, an open snuff-box on one +side of him, a dirty tin pail on the other. The party on shore +were not a little amused by the contrast in the appearance, +manners, and equipments of the two fishermen; the fastidious Mr. +Stryker, so complete, from his grey blouse to his fishing-basket; +the old merchant, quite independent of everything like fashion, +whether alone on Lake George, or among the crowd in Wall-Street. +Charlie, who did not know him, said that he had met the same +individual on the lake, at all hours, and in all weathers, during +the past week; he seemed devoted to fishing, heart and soul, +having left the St. Legers at Saratoga, and come on to Lake +George immediately, to enjoy his favourite pastime. It was a +pleasure to see how honestly and earnestly he was engaged in his +pursuit: as for Mr. Stryker, we strongly suspect that his fancy +for fishing was an acquired taste, like most of those he +cherished; we very much doubt whether he would ever have been a +follower of Izaak Walton, had there not been a fashionable +accoutrement for brothers of the rod, at the present day. + +{"Isaak Walton" = Isaak Walton (1593-1683), author of "The +Compleat Angler"} + +Several of the ladies also fished for half an hour; Mrs. +Creighton begging for a seat in Mr. Stryker's boat, that she +might profit by his instructions. While they were out, a small +incident occurred, which amused the spectators not a little. Mrs. +Creighton had risen, to look at a fish playing about Mr. +Stryker's line, when she accidentally dropped a light shawl, +which fell from her arm into the water; an involuntary movement +she made as it fell, also threw a basket of her companion's flies +overboard, at the same instant: he had just been showing them +off. + +"Oh, Mr. Stryker, my shawl!" exclaimed the lady. + +But the fashionable fisherman was already catching eagerly at his +own precious flies; he succeeded in regaining the basket, and +then, bethinking him of his reputation for gallantry, turned to +Mrs. Creighton, to rescue the shawl; but he had the mortification +to see old Mr. Hopkins already stretching out an arm with the +cachemere, which he had caught almost as soon as it touched the +water, and now offered to its fair owner, with the good-natured +hope that it had not been injured, as it was hardly wet. The lady +received it very graciously, and bestowed a very sweet smile on +the old merchant; while Mr. Stryker, quite nettled at his own +flagrant misdemeanour, had to face a frown from the charming +widow. It was decidedly an unlucky hour for Mr. Stryker: he only +succeeded in catching a solitary perch; while Mr. Hopkins, who +had been invited to join the party, contributed a fine mess. The +fault, however, was all thrown on the sunshine; and Mr. Hopkins +confessed that he had not had much sport since the clouds had +broken away, earlier in the morning. Everybody seemed very ready +for luncheon, when hailed from the island, for that purpose. The +meal was quite a merry one; Mrs. Creighton was the life of the +party, saying a great many clever, amusing things. She looked +charmingly, too, in a little cap, whose straw-coloured ribbons +were particularly becoming to her brown complexion. Mr. Stryker +gradually recovered from the double mortification, of the shawl, +and the solitary perch, and soon began talking over different +fishing excursions, with his friend A-----, in Ireland, and his +friend B-----, in Germany. The rest of the party were all +cheerful and good-humoured. Mr. Ellsworth was quite devoted to +Elinor, as usual, of late. Mary Van Alstyne amused herself with +looking on at Mrs. Creighton's efforts to charm Harry, pique Mr. +Stryker, and flatter Mr. Wyllys into admiring her; nor did she +disdain to throw away several arch smiles on Mr. Hopkins. "She +seems successful in all her attempts," thought Mary. Harry was +quite attentive to her; and it was evident that Mr. Stryker's +admiration had very much increased since they had been together +at the Springs. He had set out for Saratoga, with the firm +determination to play the suitor to Elinor; he resolved that he +would not fall in love with the pretty widow; but a clever +coquette and a man of the world, are adversaries well matched; +and, as usual in such encounters, feminine art and feminine +flattery seemed likely to carry the day. Mr. Stryker, in spite of +himself, often forgot to be properly attentive to Elinor, who +appeared to great disadvantage in his eyes, when placed in +constant contrast with Mrs. Creighton. He scarcely regretted now, +his little prospect of favour with the heiress, for the poorer +widow had completely fascinated him by her graceful flatteries, +the piquancy of her wit, and her worldliness, which, with Mr. +Stryker, passed for her wisdom. Even Mary Van Alstyne, though +prejudiced against her, was obliged to confess, as she watched +Mrs. Creighton, that she admired her. The lady had thrown herself +on the grass in a graceful position; excited by admiration, she +had a brilliant colour; her dress was always studiously +fashionable and becoming, in its minutest details; her amusing +remarks flowed freely from a conscience under no other restraints +than those of policy or good-breeding; and her manner, though +always studied for effect, was particularly well studied and +agreeable. Her companions thought her charming. Elinor, at the +same moment, was standing by her side, in a simple dress, with no +attempt to disguise a plain face under finery, and in a perfectly +quiet position, which was graceful without her knowing it. Her +whole manner, indeed, was always natural; its simplicity was its +great charm, for one felt confident that her grace and sweetness, +her ease and quiet dignity, flowed readily from her character +itself. Whether these ideas occurred to any of the party besides +Miss Van Alstyne, we cannot say; it is certain, however, that +Mrs. Creighton was all prepared for observation, Elinor, as +usual, quite regardless of it. + +"We must carry off some flowers from May-day island," said Mr. +Ellsworth, preparing to gather a bouquet for Elinor. He had soon +succeeded in collecting quite a pretty bunch, composed of wild +roses, blue hare-bells, the white blossoms of the wild clematis, +the delicate pink clusters of the Alleghany vine, and the +broad-leaved rose-raspberry, with several other varieties. + +{"Alleghany vine" = a flowering wild vine, which had been a +favorite of Susan Fenimore Cooper's paternal grandmother +Elizabeth Fenimore Cooper} + +Mr. Stryker offered a bouquet to Mrs. Creighton. + +"It is really quite pretty; but to make it complete, I must have +one of those scarlet lobelias, on the next island; they are the +first I have seen this season. Mr. Hazlehurst, do be +good-natured, and step into that boat, and bring me one." + +"I can do that without the boat, Mrs. Creighton, here is a +bridge," replied Harry, springing on the trunk of a dead tree, +which nearly reached the islet she had pointed out; catching the +branch of an oak on the opposite shore, he swung himself across. +The flowers were soon gathered; and, after a little difficulty in +reaching the dead tree, he returned to the ladies, just as they +were about to embark again. Perhaps he had caught a spark of the +spirit of coquetry from Mrs. Creighton, and resented her flirting +so much with Mr. Stryker; for he did not give her all the flowers +he had gathered, but offered a few to each lady as she entered +the boat. + +"Thank you, Mr. Hazlehurst, very gallantly done," said Mrs. +Creighton, placing one of the lobelias, with a sprig of Mr. +Stryker's, in her belt. + +As they rowed leisurely along, Charlie Hubbard pointed out some +of the localities to Miss Wyllys and Robert Hazlehurst. + +"These mountains are very different in their character, Mr. +Hubbard, from those you have recently been sketching in Italy and +Switzerland," observed Mr. Ellsworth. + +"Entirely different; their forms are much less bold and decided." + +"Yes; all the mountains in this country, east of the Mississippi, +partake, more or less, of the same character; forming rounded +ridges, seldom broken into those abrupt, ragged peaks, common in +other parts of the world." + +"But the elevation of these mountains is much less than that of +the Alps, or high Apennines," observed Mr. Wyllys; "do not the +mountains in Europe, of the same height, resemble these in +formation?" + +"No, sir, I think not," replied Ellsworth. "They are generally +more bold and barren; often mere masses of naked rock. I am no +geologist, but it strikes me that the whole surface of the earth, +in this part of the world, differs in character from that of the +eastern continent; on one hand, the mountains are less abrupt and +decided in their forms with us; and on the other, the plains are +less monotonous here. If our mountains are not grand, the general +surface of the country seems more varied, more uneven; there is +not so large a proportion of dead level in this country as in +France, Germany, Russia, for instance; we have much of what we +call a rolling country--even the prairies, which are the plains +of this region, show the same swelling surface." + +"The variety of character in the landscape of different +countries, must be a great charm to one of your profession, +Hubbard," observed Harry. "A landscape painter must enjoy +travelling more than any other man; nothing is lost upon +you--every time you look about you there is something new to +observe. How you must have enjoyed the change from the general +aspect of this country--fresh, full of life and motion, yet +half-finished in the details--to old Italy, where the scenery and +atmosphere are in perfect harmony with the luxurious repose of a +great antiquity!" + +"I did indeed enjoy the change beyond expression!" exclaimed +Charlie. "I have often felt thankful, in the best sense of the +word, that I have been enabled to see those great countries, +Italy and Switzerland; it has furnished me with materials for +thought and delight, during a whole lifetime." + +"It would be a good plan to get you appointed painting attache to +the Legation, Hubbard," said Harry. "As you have seen the south +of Europe, would you not like to take a look at the northern +regions?" + +"Not much," replied Charlie. "I should have nothing but ice to +paint there, for half the year." + +"Well, I suppose there is something selfish in my wish to carry +you to the North Pole; but when I was in Brazil, I had a very +disinterested desire that you should see the Bay of Rio." + +"Is it really so beautiful?" asked Elinor. + +"Yes; finer even than Naples, as regards scenery; though it +wants, of course, all the charm of recollection which belongs to +the old world." + +"You must forget everything like fine scenery when you go to St. +Petersburg," said Robert Hazlehurst. + +"Not at all; I hope to take a trip to the Crimea while I am in +Russia. I shall do my best to ingratiate myself with the owner of +some fine villa on the Black Sea." + +"And have you really made up your mind to be a regular +diplomatist?" asked Mr. Wyllys. + +"For a time, sir; so long as I can serve under Mr. Henley, or a +man like him." + +"I used to see a good deal of Henley, some twenty years since," +observed Mr. Wyllys. "I should think him particularly well fitted +for his duties." + +"I have the highest respect for him," replied Harry. + +"He is a good model for an American diplomatist," added Robert +Hazlehurst. "A man of ability, good education, and just +principles, with simple, gentlemanly manners; always manly in his +tone, and firm as a rock on all essential points." + +"But those are only a small portion of the qualifications of a +diplomatist," said Mr. Stryker. "According to the most approved +models, the largest half should be cunning." + +"Mr. Henley is particularly clear-sighted--not easily deceived +either by himself or by others; and that is all that American +diplomacy requires," said Harry. "I am proud to say that our +government does not give us any dirty work to do; we have chiefly +to act on the defensive." + +"Set a thief to catch a thief," said Mr. Stryker, with his usual +dry manner. "I don't believe in the full success of your virtuous +diplomatist. How is a man to know all the turnings and windings +of the road that leads to treaties, unless he has gone over it +himself?" + +"But an honest man, if he is really clear-headed and firm, has no +need of these turnings and windings; he goes more directly to the +point, and saves a vast deal of time and principle, by taking a +more honourable road." + +"Suppose a man has to make black look white, I should like to see +your honourable diplomatist manage such a job," said Mr. Stryker. + +"But our government has never yet had such jobs to manage. We +have never yet made a demand from a foreign power that we have +not believed just. Intrigue is unpardonable in American +diplomacy, for it is gratuitous; a man need not resort to it, +unless his own taste inclines him that way. It is an honourable +distinction of our government, AS A GOVERNMENT, that it has never +committed a single act of injustice against any other power, +either by open force, or underhand manoeuvres. We have been +wronged sometimes, and omitted to demand justice as firmly as we +might have done; but there is, probably, no other government +among the great powers of Christendom, that has been so free from +OFFENSIVE guilt, during the last sixty years, as that of this +country." + +{This was, of course, before the Mexican-American War, which the +Cooper family viewed with considerable misgivings. James Fenimore +Cooper was incensed that the United States did not pursue with +greater vigor American claims against France for damages caused +to American shipping during the Napoleonic wars} + +It was evident that Mr. Stryker was not in the least convinced by +Harry's defence of honest diplomacy. + +"The ladies must find great fault with Washington diplomacy," he +added, turning to Mrs. Creighton and Elinor: "they are never +employed; not a single fair American has ever figured among les +belles diplomats of European saloons, I believe." + +"Perhaps the ladies in this country would not condescend to be +employed," said Elinor. + +"Don't say so, Miss Wyllys!" exclaimed Mrs. Creighton, laughing; +"I should delight in having some delicate mission to manage: when +Mr. Stryker gets into the cabinet, he may send me as special +envoy to any country where I can find a French milliner." + +"You had better go to Russia with Mr. Henley and Mr. Hazlehurst; +I have not the least doubt but they would find your finesse of +great service," said the gentleman. + +Mrs. Creighton blushed; and Harry coloured, too. + +"The very idea of such an ally would frighten Mr. Henley out of +his wits," said the lady, recovering herself; "he is an +incorrigible old bachelor; that, you must allow, is a great fault +of his, Mr. Hazlehurst." + +"If he be incorrigible," said Harry. + +"But that is not clear," said Mr. Stryker to the lady; "he is a +great admirer of yours." + +"Come, a truce to diplomacy, Josephine; I am going to beg Miss +Wyllys for a song," said Ellsworth. + +Elinor sang very readily, and very sweetly; the Swiss airs +sounded charmingly among the hills; and she was accompanied by +Mary Van Alstyne, while Charlie, with the two Hazlehursts, made +up a respectable second for several songs. + +Some gathering clouds at length warned the party to turn inn-ward +again. + +"It is to be hoped the shower won't reach us, for your sake, +ladies," said Robert Hazlehurst. + +"I hope not, for the sake of my bibi!" said Mrs. Creighton. "It +is the prettiest little hat I have had these three years; it +would be distressing to have it spoilt before it has lost its +freshness." + +{"bibi" = a stylish hat of the 1830s} + +"There is no danger, marm," said one of the boatmen, with a +good-natured gravity, that made Mrs. Creighton smile. "Them 'ere +kind of clouds often goes over the lake, without coming up this +way." + +And so it proved; the party reached the hotel safely, all +agreeing that they had had a very pleasant day, and were not at +all more tired than was desirable after such an excursion. + + + +CHAPTER X. {XXXIII} + +"............................. Sebastian are you? +If spirits can assume both form and suit, +You come to fright us!" +SHAKSPEARE. {sic} + +{William Shakespeare, "Twelfh Night", V.i.221, 235-236} + +ON their return to Saratoga, the Wyllyses and Hazlehursts found +startling intelligence awaiting them. Letters had just arrived +for Harry, for Mrs. Stanley, and for Mr. Wyllys, all of a similar +nature, and all of a character that was astounding to those who +received them. They could scarcely credit their senses as they +read the fact, that the executors of the late John William +Stanley, Esquire, were called upon to account for all past +proceedings, to William Stanley, his son and heir. Hazlehurst was +also summoned to resign that portion of the property of which he +had taken possession two years since, when he had reached the age +of twenty-five. + +The letters were all written by Mr. Clapp, Charlie Hubbard's +brother-in-law, who announced himself as the attorney of William +Stanley, Esquire. + +"Here are the letters addressed to myself," said Mrs. Stanley, +who had immediately sent for Mr. Wyllys and Hazlehurst, as soon +as they returned from Lake George: she had not yet recovered from +the first agitation caused by this extraordinary disclosure. +"This is the letter purporting to come from my husband's son, and +this is from the lawyer," she added, extending both to +Hazlehurst. Harry read them aloud. The first ran as follows: + +"MADAM:-- + +"I have not the honour of being acquainted with you, as my late +father was not married to you when I went to sea, not long before +his death. But I make no doubt that you will not refuse me my +rights, now that I step forward to demand them, after leaving +others to enjoy them for nearly eighteen years. Things look +different to a man near forty, and to a young chap of twenty; I +have been thinking of claiming my property for some time, but was +told by lawyers that there was too many difficulties in the way, +owing partly to my own fault, partly to the fault of others. As +long as I was a youngster, I didn't care for anything but having +my own way--I snapped my fingers at all the world; but now I am +tired of a sea-faring life, and have had hardships enough for one +man: since there is a handsome property mine, by right, I am +resolved to claim it, through thick and thin. I have left off the +bottle, and intend to do my best to be respectable for the rest +of my days. I make no doubt but we shall be able to come to some +agreement; nor would I object to a compromise for the past, +though my lawyers advise me to make no such offer. I shall be +pleased, Madam, to pay my respects to you, that we may settle our +affairs at a personal meeting, if it suits you to do so. + +"Your obedient servant, and step-son, + +"WILLIAM STANLEY." + +"Can that be my husband's son!" exclaimed Mrs. Stanley, in an +agitated voice, as Harry finished reading the letter, and handed +it to Mr. Wyllys. + +"It will take more than this to convince me," said Mr. Wyllys, +who had been listening attentively. The handwriting was then +carefully examined by Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Wyllys, and both were +compelled to admit that it was at least a good imitation of that +of William Stanley. + +"A most extraordinary proceeding in either case!" exclaimed +Harry, pacing the room. + +Mr. Clapp's letter was then read: it began with the following +words: + +"MADAM:-- + +"I regret that I am compelled by the interests of my client, Mr. +William Stanley, Esquire, to address a lady I respect so highly, +upon a subject that must necessarily prove distressing to her, in +many different ways." + +Then followed a brief statement of his first acquaintance with +Mr. Stanley; his refusing to have anything to do with the affair; +his subsequent conviction that the ragged sailor was the +individual he represented himself to be; his reluctance to +proceed, &c., &c. But since he was now convinced, by the +strongest proofs, of the justice of Mr. Stanley's demand, and had +at length undertaken to assist him with his advice, he was, +therefore, compelled by duty to give the regular legal notice, +that Mrs. Stanley, as executrix, would be required to account for +her proceedings since her husband's death. His client, he said, +would much prefer an amicable arrangement, but, if necessary, +would proceed to law immediately. He wished to know what course +Mrs. Stanley was disposed to take, as his client's steps would +necessarily be guided by her own, and those of Mr. Wyllys and Mr. +Hazlehurst. He concluded with a civil hope that the case might be +privately adjusted. + +"Clapp all over," said Harry, as he finished reading the letter. + +"A most bare-faced imposition, depend upon it!" exclaimed Mr. +Wyllys, with strong indignation. + +Mrs. Stanley was listening with anxious eagerness for the opinion +of the two gentlemen. + +"I am strongly disposed to mistrust anything that comes through +Clapp's hands," said Harry, pacing the room thoughtfully, with +the letters in his hand. "Still, I think it behooves us, sir, to +act with deliberation; the idea that it is not impossible that +this individual should be the son of Mr. Stanley, must not be +forgotten--that possibility alone would make me sift the matter +to the bottom at once." + +"Certainly; it must be looked into immediately." + +"What has the lawyer written to you?" asked Mrs. Stanley. + +The letters to Mr. Wyllys and Harry were then read aloud; they +were almost identical in their contents with that to Mrs. +Stanley. The tone of each was civil and respectful; though each +contained a technical legal notice, that they would be required +to surrender to William Stanley, the property of his late father, +according to the will of the said John William Stanley; which the +said William, his son, had hitherto neglected to claim, though +legally entitled to it. + +"There: is certainly an air of confidence about those letters of +Clapp's," said Harry, "as if he felt himself on a firm foothold. +It is very extraordinary!" + +"Of course: he would never move in such a case, without some +plausible proof," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"But how could he get any proof whatever, on this occasion?" said +Mrs. Stanley. "For these eighteen years, nearly, William Stanley +has been lying at the bottom of the ocean. We have believed so, +at least." + +"Proofs have been manufactured by lawyers before now," said Mr. +Wyllys. "Do you suppose that if William Stanley had been living, +we never should have heard one trace of him during eighteen +years?--at a time, too, when his father's death had left him a +large property." + +"What sort of a man is this Mr. Clapp?" asked Mrs. Stanley. "His +manners and appearance, whenever I have accidentally seen him +with the Hubbards, struck me as very unpleasant: but is it +possible he can be so utterly devoid of all principle, as +wilfully to countenance an impostor?" + +"He is a man whom I do not believe to possess one just +principle!" said Mr. Wyllys. "Within the last year or two, I have +lost all confidence in his honesty, from facts known to me." + +"I have always had a poor opinion of him, but I have never had +much to do with him," said Harry; "still, I should not have +thought him capable of entering into a conspiracy so atrocious as +this must be, if the story be not true." + +"He would do any dirty work whatever, for money. I KNOW the man," +said Mr. Wyllys, with emphasis. + +"It is possible he may be deceived himself," observed Mrs. +Stanley. + +"Very improbable," replied Mr. Wyllys, shaking his head. + +"A shrewd, cunning, quick-witted fellow, as I remember him, would +not be likely to undertake such a case, unless he had some +prospect of success," said Harry, pacing the room again. "He must +know perfectly well that it is make or break with him. If he does +not succeed, he will be utterly ruined." + +"He will give us trouble, no doubt," said Mr. Wyllys. "He must +have got the means of putting together a plausible story. And yet +his audacity confounds me!" + +"Eighteen years, is it not, since William Stanley's death?" asked +Harry, turning to Mrs. Stanley. + +"It will be eighteen years next October, since he sailed. I was +married in November; and from that time we have never heard +anything from the poor boy, excepting the report that the +Jefferson, the ship in which he sailed, had been shipwrecked on +the coast of Africa, the following winter, and all hands lost. +That report reached us not long before my husband's death, and +caused him to word his will in the way it is now expressed; +giving to the son of his kinsman and old friend, half his +property, in case his son's death should be confirmed. The report +WAS confirmed, some months later, by the arrival of an American +vessel, which had ridden out the storm that wrecked the +Jefferson: she saw the wreck itself, sent a boat to examine it, +but could find no one living; although several bodies were picked +up, with the hope of reviving them. But you have heard the whole +sad story before, Harry." + +"Certainly; I merely wished to hear the facts again, ma'am, from +your own lips, lest I might have forgotten some important point." + +"Although you were quite a child at the time, Harry," said Mr. +Wyllys, "eight or ten I believe, still, I should think you must +remember the anxiety to discover the real fate of William +Stanley. I have numbers of letters in my hands, answers to those +I had written with the hope of learning something more positive +on the subject. We sent several agents, at different times, to +the principal sea-ports, to make inquiries among the sailors; it +all resulted in confirming the first story, the loss of the +Jefferson, and all on board. Every year, of course, made the +point more certain." + +"Still, we cannot say that is not impossible {sic} he should have +escaped," observed Harry. + +"Why should he have waited eighteen years, before he appeared to +claim his property?--and why should he not come directly to his +father's executors, instead of seeking out such a fellow as +Clapp? It bears on the very face every appearance of a gross +imposture. Surely, Harry, you do not think there is a shade of +probability as to the truth of this story?" + +"Only a possibility, sir; almost everything is against it, and +yet I shall not rest satisfied without going to the bottom of the +matter." + +"That, you may be sure, we shall be forced to do. Clapp will give +us trouble enough, I warrant; he will leave no stone unturned +that a dirty lawyer can move. It will be vexatious, but there +cannot be a doubt as to the result." + +"You encourage me," said Mrs. Stanley; "and yet the idea of +entering into a suit of this kind is very painful!" + +"If it be a conspiracy, there is no treatment too bad for those +who have put the plot together!" exclaimed Harry. "What a +double-dyed villain Clapp must be!" + +"He will end his career in the State-Prison," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"The Hubbards, too; that is another disagreeable part of the +business," said Harry. + +"I am truly sorry for them," replied Mr. Wyllys. "It will give +them great pain." + +"What steps shall we first take, sir?" inquired Harry. + +"We must look into the matter immediately, of course, and find +out upon what grounds they are at work." + +"I am utterly at a loss to comprehend it!" exclaimed Mrs. +Stanley. "Such a piece of bare-faced audacity!" + +"Clapp must rest all his hope of success on our want of positive +proof as to the death of William Stanley," observed Harry. "But +his having dared to bring forward an individual to personate the +dead man, is really a height of impudence that I should never +have conceived of." + +"If I did not know him to be an incarnation of cunning, I should +think he had lost his senses," replied Mr. Wyllys; "but happily +for honest men, rogues generally overreach themselves; after they +have spread their nets, made the mesh as intricate as possible, +they almost invariably fall into their own snare. Such will, +undoubtedly, be the result in this case." + +"Had you not better return to Longbridge at once," said Mrs. +Stanley, "in order to inquire into the matter?" + +"Certainly; we had better all be on the spot; though I am +confident we shall unmask the rogues very speedily. You were +already pledged to return with us, Mrs. Stanley; and I shall be +glad to see you at Wyllys-Roof, again, Harry." + +"Thank you, sir; you are very good," replied Hazlehurst, with +something more than the common meaning in the words; for he +coloured a little on remembering the occurrences of his last +visit to Longbridge, more than three years since. + + "We shall find it difficult," continued Mr. Wyllys, "to get an +insight into Clapp's views and plans. He will, no doubt, be very +wary in all he does; though voluble as ever in what he says. I +know his policy of old; he reverses the saying of the cunning +Italian, volto sciolto, bocca stretta." + +{"volto sciolto, bocca stretta" = open countenance, tight lips +(Italian)} + +"But his first step has not been a cautious one," observed Harry. +"It is singular he should have allowed his client to write to +Mrs. Stanley. Do you remember William Stanley's handwriting +distinctly?" he added, again handing the letter to Mr. Wyllys. + +"Yes; and it must be confessed this hand resembles his; they must +have got possession of some of young Stanley's handwriting." + +"But how could they possibly have done so?" said Mrs. Stanley. + +"That is what we must try to find out, my dear madam." + +"He must have been very confident that it was a good imitation," +said Hazlehurst; "for, of course, he knew you must possess +letters of William Stanley's. I don't remember to have seen +anything but his signature, myself." + +"Yes; it is a good imitation--very good; of course Clapp was +aware of it, or the letter would never have been sent." + +"William was very like his father in appearance, though not in +character," observed Mrs. Stanley, thoughtfully. "He was very +like him." + +"Should this man look like my poor husband, I might have some +misgivings," said Mrs. Stanley. "We must remember at least, my +dear Mr. Wyllys, that it is not impossible that William may be +living." + +"Only one of the most improbable circumstances you could name, my +dear friend. I wish to see the man, however, myself; for I have +little doubt that I shall be able at once to discover the +imposture, entirely to our own satisfaction at least--and that is +the most important point." + +"Should the case present an appearance of truth, sufficient to +satisfy a jury, though we ourselves were not convinced, it would +still prove a very serious thing to you, my dear Harry," observed +Mrs. Stanley. + +"No doubt: very serious to Hazlehurst, and a loss to all three. +But I cannot conceive it possible that such a daring imposture +can succeed so far. We shall be obliged, however, to proceed with +prudence, in order to counteract the cunning of Clapp." + +After a conversation of some length between the friends, it was +agreed that Hazlehurst should answer the letters, in the name of +Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Wyllys, as well as his own. It was also +decided that they should return to Longbridge immediately, and +not take any decided steps until they had seen the individual +purporting to be William Stanley. The bare possibility that Mr. +Stanley's son might be living, determined Mrs. Stanley and +Hazlehurst to pursue this course; although Mr. Wyllys, who had +not a doubt on the subject from the first, had felt no scruple in +considering the claimant as an impostor. We give Harry's letter +to Mr. Clapp. + +"Saratoga, June, 18--. + +"SIR:-- + +"The letters addressed by you to Mrs. Stanley, Mr. Wyllys and +myself, of the date of last Tuesday, have just reached us. I +shall not dwell on the amazement which we naturally felt in +receiving a communication so extraordinary, which calls upon us +to credit the existence of an individual, whom we have every +reason to believe has lain for nearly eighteen years at the +bottom of the deep: it will be sufficient that I declare, what +you are probably already prepared to hear, that we see no cause +for changing our past opinions on this subject. We believe +to-day, as we have believed for years, that William Stanley was +drowned in the wreck of the Jefferson, during the winter of 181-. +We can command to-day, the same proofs which produced conviction +at the time when this question was first carefully examined. We +have learned no new fact to change the character of these proofs. + +"The nature of the case is such, however, as to admit the +possibility--and it is a bare possibility only--of the existence +of William Stanley. It is not necessarily impossible that he may +have escaped from the wreck of the Jefferson; although the weight +of probability against such an escape, has more than a +hundred-fold the force of that which would favour a contrary +supposition. Such being the circumstances, Mr. Stanley's +executors, and his legatee, actuated by the same motives which +have constantly guided them since his death, are prepared in the +present instance to discharge their duty, at whatever cost it may +be. They are prepared to receive and examine any proofs, in the +possession of yourself and your client, as to the identity of the +individual purporting to be William Stanley, only son of the late +John William Stanley, of ----- county, Pennsylvania. They demand +these proofs. But, they are also prepared, sir, to pursue with +the full force of justice, and the law of the land, any +individual who shall attempt to advance a false claim to the name +and inheritance of the dead. This matter, once touched, must be +entirely laid bare: were duty out of the question, indignation +alone would be sufficient to urge them, at any cost of time and +vexation, to unmask one who, if not William Stanley, must be a +miserable impostor--to unravel what must either prove an +extraordinary combination of circumstances, or a base conspiracy. + +"Prepared, then, to pursue either course, as justice shall +dictate, Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Wyllys, executors of the late Mr. +Stanley, and myself, his legatee, demand: First, an interview +with the individual claiming to be William Stanley. Secondly, +whatever proofs of the identity of the claimant you may have in +your possession. And we here pledge ourselves to acknowledge the +justice of the claim advanced, if the evidence shall prove +sufficient to establish it; or in the event of a want of truth +and consistency in the evidence supporting this remarkable claim, +we shall hold it a duty to bring to legal punishment, those whom +we must then believe the guilty parties connected with it. + +"Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Wyllys wish you, sir, to understand this +letter as an answer to those addressed by you to themselves. They +are on the point of returning to Longbridge, where I shall also +join them; and we request that your farther communications to us, +on this subject, may be addressed to Wyllys-Roof. + +"HENRY HAZLEHURST" + +This letter was written, and approved by Mrs. Stanley and Mr. +Wyllys, before the consultation broke up; it was also signed by +them, as well as by Harry. + +The amazement of Miss Wyllys and Elinor, on hearing the purport +of Mr. Clapp's letters, was boundless. Had they seen William +Stanley rise from the ground before them, they could scarcely +have been more astonished; not a shadow of doubt as to his death +in the Jefferson, had crossed their minds for years. Like their +friends, they believed it a plot of Mr. Clapp's; and yet his +daring to take so bold a step seemed all but incredible. + +When some hours' consideration had made the idea rather more +familiar to the minds of our friends, they began to look at the +consequences, and they clearly saw many difficulties and +vexations before the matter could be even favourably settled; but +if this client of Mr. Clapp's were to succeed in establishing a +legal claim to the Stanley estate, the result would produce much +inconvenience to Mrs. Stanley, still greater difficulties to Mr. +Wyllys, while Harry would be entirely ruined in a pecuniary +sense; since the small property he had inherited from his father, +would not suffice to meet half the arrears he would be obliged to +discharge, in restoring his share of the Stanley estate to +another. Hazlehurst had decided, from the instant the claim was +laid before him, that the only question with himself would regard +his own opinion on the subject; the point must first be clearly +settled to his own judgment. He would see the man who claimed to +be the son of his benefactor, he would examine the matter as +impartially as he could, and then determine for himself. Had he +any good reason whatever for believing this individual to be +William Stanley, he would instantly resign the property to him, +at every cost. + +All probability was, however, thus far, against the identity of +the claimant; and unless Hazlehurst could believe in his good +faith and honesty, every inch of the ground should be disputed to +the best of his ability. Mr. Wyllys was very confident of +defeating one whom he seriously believed an impostor: it was a +dirty, disagreeable job to undertake, but he was sanguine as to +the result. Mrs. Stanley was at first quite overcome by agitation +and astonishment; she had some doubts and anxieties; misgivings +would occasionally cross her mind, in spite of herself, in spite +of Mr. Wyllys's opinion; and the bare idea of opposing one who +might possibly be her husband's son, affected all her feelings. +Like Hazlehurst, she was very desirous to examine farther into +the matter, without delay; scarcely knowing yet what to hope and +what to fear. + +Ellsworth and Mrs. Creighton soon learned the extraordinary +summons which Harry had received; he informed them of the facts +himself. + +"The man is an impostor, depend upon it, Mr. Hazlehurst!" +exclaimed Mrs. Creighton, with much warmth. + +"I have little doubt of it," replied Harry; "for I do not see how +he can well be anything else." + +"You know, Hazlehurst, that I am entirely at your service in any +way you please," said Ellsworth. + +"Thank you, Ellsworth; I have a habit of looking to you in any +difficulty, as you know already." + +"But I cannot conceive that it should be at all a difficult +matter to unravel so coarse a plot as this must be!" cried Mrs. +Creighton. "What possible foundation can these men have for their +story? Tell me all about it, Mr. Hazlehurst, pray!" continued the +lady, who had been standing when Harry entered the room, prepared +to accompany her brother and himself to Miss Wyllys's room. "Sit +down, I beg, and tell me at once all you choose to trust me +with," she continued, taking a seat on the sofa. + +Harry followed her example. "You are only likely to hear a great +deal too much of it I fear, if you permit Ellsworth and myself to +talk the matter over before you." He then proceeded to give some +of the most important facts, as far as he knew them himself, at +least. Judging from this account, Mr. Ellsworth pronounced +himself decidedly inclined to think with Mr. Wyllys, that this +claim was a fabrication of Clapp's. Mrs. Creighton was very warm +in the expression of her indignation and her sympathy. After a +long and animated conversation, Mr. Ellsworth proposed that they +should join the Wyllyses: his sister professed herself quite +ready to do so; and, accompanied by Harry, they went to the usual +rendezvous of their party, at Congress Hall. + +Robert Hazlehurst had already left Saratoga with his family, +having returned from Lake George for that purpose, a day earlier +than his friends; and when Mrs. Creighton and the two gentlemen +entered Miss Wyllys's parlour, they only found there the Wyllyses +themselves and Mary Van Alstyne, all of whom had already heard of +Harry's threatened difficulties. Neither Miss Agnes nor Elinor +had seen him since he had received the letters, and they both +cordially expressed their good wishes in his behalf; for they +both seemed inclined to Mr. Wyllys's opinion of the new claimant. + +"We have every reason to wish that the truth may soon be +discovered," said Miss Agnes. + +"I am sorry you should have such a painful, vexatious task before +you," said Elinor, frankly offering her hand to Harry. + +"Have you no sympathies for this new sailor cousin of yours, Miss +Wyllys?--I must say I have a very poor opinion of him myself," +said Mrs. Creighton. + +"Whoever he be, I hope he will only receive what is justly his +due," replied Elinor. + +"I am happy, Miss Wyllys, that you seem favourably inclined +towards Hazlehurst," said Mr. Ellsworth. "On the present occasion +I consider him not only as a friend but as a client, and that is +the dearest tie we lawyers are supposed to feel." + +"One would naturally incline rather more to a client of yours ex +officio, Mr. Ellsworth, than to one of Mr. Clapp's, that very +disagreeable brother-in-law of Miss Patsey Hubbard's," said Mary +Van Alstyne, smiling. + +It was soon decided that the party should break up the next day. +The Wyllyses, with Mrs. Stanley and Mary Van Alstyne, were to +return to Longbridge. Mrs. Creighton and Mr. Ellsworth were +obliged to pay their long deferred visit to Nahant, the gentleman +having some business of importance in the neighbourhood; but it +was expected that they also should join the family at Wyllys-Roof +as early as possible. Jane was to return to New York with her +sister-in-law, Mrs. St. Leger, leaving Miss Emma Taylor flirting +at Saratoga, under the charge of a fashionable chaperon; while +Mr. Hopkins was still fishing at Lake George. + + + +CHAPTER XI. {XXXIV} + +"'Whence this delay?--Along the crowded street +A funeral comes, and with unusual pomp.'" +ROGERS. + +{Samuel Rogers (English poet, 1763-1855), "Italy: A Funeral" +lines 1-2} + +IT is a common remark, that important events seldom occur singly; +and they seem indeed often to follow each other with startling +rapidity, like the sharpest flashes of lightning and the loudest +peals of thunder from the dark clouds of a summer shower. On +arriving in New York, the Wyllyses found that Tallman Taylor had +been taken suddenly and dangerously ill, during the previous +night, the consequence of a stroke of the sun; having exposed +himself imprudently, by crossing the bay to Staten-Island for a +dinner party, in an open boat, when the thermometer stood at 95 +{degrees} in the shade. He was believed in imminent danger, and +was too ill to recognize his wife when she arrived. Miss Wyllys +and Elinor remained in town, at the urgent request of Jane, who +was in great distress; while Mr. Wyllys returned home with Mrs. +Stanley and Mary Van Alstyne. + +{Susan's father, James Fenimore Cooper, twice suffered from +sunstroke, in 1823 and 1825, while sailing a small boat near New +York City, and she later wrote of the attacks of delirium that +followed} + +After twenty-four hours of high delirium, the physicians +succeeded in subduing the worst symptoms; but the attack took the +character of a bilious fever, and the patient's recovery was +thought very doubtful from the first. Poor Jane sat listlessly in +the sick-room, looking on and weeping, unheeded by her husband, +who would allow no one but his mother to come near him, not even +his wife or his sisters; he would not, indeed, permit his mother +to leave his sight for a moment, his eyes following every +movement of her's with the feverish restlessness of disease, and +the helpless dependence of a child. Jane mourned and wept; +Adeline had at least the merit of activity, and made herself +useful as an assistant nurse, in preparing whatever was needed by +her brother. These two young women, who had been so often +together in brilliant scenes of gaiety, were now, for the first +time, united under a roof of sorrow and suffering. + +"That lovely young creature is a perfect picture of helpless +grief!" thought one of the physicians, as he looked at Jane. + +For a week, Tallman Taylor continued in the same state. +Occasionally, as he talked with the wild incoherency of delirium, +he uttered sentences painful to hear, as they recalled deeds of +folly and vice; words passed his lips which were distressing to +all present, but which sunk deep into the heart of the sick man's +mother. At length he fell into a stupor, and after lingering for +a day or two in that state, he expired, without having fully +recovered his consciousness for a moment. The handsome, reckless, +dashing son of the rich merchant lay on his bier; a career of +selfish enjoyment and guilty folly was suddenly closed by the +grave. + +Miss Agnes's heart sunk within her as she stood, silent, beside +the coffin of Jane's husband, remembering how lately she had seen +the young man, full of life and vigour, thoughtlessly devoting +the best energies of body and soul to culpable self-indulgence. +It is melancholy indeed, to record such a close to such a life; +and yet it is an event repeated in the gay world with every year +that passes. It is to be feared there were companions of Tallman +Taylor's, pursuing the same course of wicked folly, which had +been so suddenly interrupted before their eyes, who yet never +gave one serious thought to the subject: if they paused, it was +only for a moment, while they followed their friend to the grave; +from thence hurrying again to the same ungrateful, reckless abuse +of life, and its highest blessings. + +Jane was doubly afflicted at this moment; her baby sickened soon +after its return to town, and died only a few days after her +husband; the young father and his infant boy were laid in the +same grave. + +Jane herself was ill for a time, and when she partially +recovered, was very anxious to accompany Miss Agnes and Elinor to +Wyllys-Roof--a spot where she had passed so many peaceful hours, +that she longed again to seek shelter there. She had loved her +husband, as far as it was in her nature to love; but her +attachments were never very strong or very tender, and Tallman +Taylor's neglect and unkindness during the past year, had in some +measure chilled her first feelings for him. She now, however, +looked upon herself as the most afflicted of human beings; the +death of her baby had indeed touched the keenest chord in her +bosom--she wept over it bitterly. + +Adeline thought more seriously at the time of her brother's death +than she had ever done before: and even Emma Taylor's spirits +were sobered for a moment. Mr. Taylor, the father, no doubt felt +the loss of his eldest son, though far less than many parents +would have done; he was not so much overwhelmed by grief, but +what he could order a very handsome funeral, and project an +expensive marble monument--a FASHIONABLE TOMB-STONE of Italian +marble. He was soon able to resume all his usual pursuits, and +even the tenor of his thoughts seemed little changed, for his +mind was as much occupied as usual with Wall-Street affairs, +carrying out old plans, or laying new schemes of profit. He had +now been a rich man for several years, yet he was in fact less +happy than when he began his career, and had everything to look +forward to. Still he continued the pursuits of business, for +without the exciting fears and hopes of loss and gain, life would +have appeared a monotonous scene to him; leisure could only prove +a burthen, for it would be merely idleness, since he had no +tastes to make it either pleasant or useful. His schemes of late +had not been so brilliantly successful as at the commencement of +his course of speculation; fortune seemed coquetting with her old +favourite; he had recently made several investments which had +proved but indifferent in their results. Not that he had met with +serious losses; on the contrary, he was still a gainer at the +game of speculation; but the amount was very trifling. He had +rapidly advanced to a certain distance on the road to wealth, but +it now seemed as if he could not pass that point; the brilliant +dreams in which he had indulged were only half realized. There +seemed no good way of accounting for this pause in his career, +but such was the fact; he was just as shrewd and calculating, +just as enterprising now as he had been ten years before, but +certainly he was not so successful. + +On commencing an examination of his son's affairs, he found that +Tallman Taylor's extravagance and folly had left his widow and +child worse than penniless, for he had died heavily in debt. +Returning one afternoon from Wall-Street, Mr. Taylor talked over +this matter with his wife. Of all Tallman Taylor's surviving +friends, his mother was the one who most deeply felt his death; +she was heart-stricken, and shed bitter tears over the young man. + +"There is nothing left, Hester, for the child or her mother," +said the merchant, sitting down in a rocking-chair in his wife's +room. "All gone; all wasted; five times the capital I had to +begin with. I have just made an investment, of which I shall give +the profits to Tallman's lady; four lots that were offered to me +last week; if that turns out well, I shall go on, and it may +perhaps make up a pretty property for the child, in time." + +"Oh, husband, don't talk to me about such things now; I can't +think of anything but my poor boy's death!" + +"It was an unexpected calamity, Hester," said the father, with +one natural look of sorrow; "but we cannot always escape trouble +in this world." + +"I feel as if we had not done our duty by him!" said the poor +mother. + +"Why not?-he was very handsomely set up in business," +remonstrated Mt. Taylor. + +"I was not thinking of money," replied his wife, shaking her +head. "But it seems as if we only took him away from my +brother's, in the country, just to throw him in the way of +temptation as he was growing up, and let him run wild, and do +everything he took a fancy to." + +"We did no more than other parents, in taking him home with us, +to give him a better education than he could have got at your +brother's." + +"Husband, husband!--it is but a poor education that don't teach a +child to do what is right! I feel as if we had never taught him +what we ought to. I did not know he had got so many bad ways +until lately; and now that I do know it, my heart is broken!" + +"Tallman was not so bad as you make him out. He was no worse than +a dozen other young gentlemen I could name at this very minute." + +"Oh; I would give everything we are worth to bring him back!--but +it is too late--too late!" + +"No use in talking now, Hester." + +"We ought to have taken more pains with him. He didn't know the +danger he was in, and we did, or we ought to have known it. +Taking a young man of a sudden, from a quiet, minister's family +in the country, like my brother's, and giving him all the money +he wanted, and turning him out into temptation.--Oh, it's +dreadful!" + +"All the pains in the world, Hester, won't help a young man, +unless he chooses himself. What could I do, or you either? Didn't +we send him to school and to college?--didn't we give him an +opportunity of beginning life with a fine property, and married +to one of the handsomest girls in the country, daughter of one of +the best families, too? What more can you do for a young man? He +must do the rest himself; you can't expect to keep him tied to +your apron-string all his life." + +"Oh, no; but husband, while he was young we ought to have taken +more pains to teach him not to think so much about the ways of +the world. There are other things besides getting money and +spending money, to do; it seems to me now as if money had only +helped my poor boy to his ruin!" + +"Your notions are too gloomy, Mrs. Taylor. Such calamities will +happen, and we should not let them weigh us down too much." + +"If I was to live a hundred years longer, I never could feel as I +did before our son's death. Oh, to think what a beautiful, +innocent child he was twenty years ago, this time!" + +"You shouldn't let your mind run so much on him that's gone. It's +unjust to the living." + +The poor woman made no answer, but wept bitterly for some time. + +"It's my only comfort now," she said, at length, "to think that +we have learned wisdom by what's passed. As long as I live, day +and night, I shall labour to teach our younger children not to +set their hearts upon the world; not to think so much about +riches." + +"Well, I must say, Hester, if you think all poor people are +saints, I calculate you make a mistake." + +"I don't say that, husband; but it seems to me that we have never +yet thought enough of the temptations of riches, more especially +to young people, to young men--above all, when it comes so sudden +as it did to our poor boy. What good did money ever do him?--it +only brought him into trouble!" + +"Because Tallman didn't make the most of his opportunities, that +is no reason why another should not. If I had wasted money as he +did, before I could afford it, I never should have made a fortune +either. The other boys will do better, I reckon; they will look +more to business than he did, and turn out rich men themselves." + +"It isn't the money!--it isn't the money I am thinking of!" +exclaimed the poor mother, almost in despair at her husband's +blindness to her feelings. + +"What is it then you take so much to heart?" + +"It's remembering that we never warned our poor child; we put him +in the way of temptation, where he only learned to think +everything of the world and its ways; we didn't take pains enough +to do our duty, as parents, by him!" + +"Well, Hester, I must say you are a very unreasonable lady!" +exclaimed Mr. Taylor, who was getting impatient under his wife's +observations. "One would think it was all my fault; do you mean +to say it was wrong in me to grow rich?" + +"I am afraid it would have been better for us, and for our +children, if you hadn't made so much money," replied the wife. +"The happiest time of our life was the first ten years after we +were married, when we had enough to be comfortable, and we didn't +care so much about show. I am sure money hasn't made me happy; I +don't believe it can make anybody happy!" + +Mr. Taylor listened in amazement; but his straightforward, quiet +wife, had been for several years gradually coming to the opinion +she had just expressed, and the death of her eldest son had +affected her deeply. The merchant, finding that he was not very +good at consolation, soon changed the conversation; giving up the +hope of lessening the mother's grief, or of bringing her to what +he considered more rational views of the all-importance of +wealth. + +As soon as Jane felt equal to the exertion, she accompanied Miss +Agnes and Elinor to Wyllys-Roof. During the three years of her +married life she had never been there, having passed most of the +time either at Charleston or New Orleans. Many changes had +occurred in that short period; changes of outward circumstances, +and of secret feeling. Her last visit to Wyllys-Roof had taken +place just after her return from France, when she was tacitly +engaged to young Taylor; at a moment when she had been more gay, +more brilliantly handsome than at any other period of her life. +Now, she returned there, a weeping, mourning widow, wretchedly +depressed in spirits, and feeble in health. She was still very +lovely, however; the elevated style of her beauty was such, that +it appeared finer under the shadow of grief, than in the sunshine +of gaiety; and it is only beauty of the very highest order which +will bear this test. Her deep mourning dress was in harmony with +her whole appearance and expression; and it was not possible to +see her at this moment, without being struck by her exceeding +loveliness. Jane was only seen by the family, however, and one or +two very intimate friends; she remained entirely in the privacy +of her own room, where Elinor was generally at her side, +endeavouring to soothe her cousin's grief, by the gentle balm of +sympathy and affection. + + + +CHAPTER XII. {XXXV} + +"Do thou stand for my father, and examine me upon the particulars +of my life." + +"What manner of man, an't please your majesty!" +Henry IV. + +{William Shakespeare, "1 Henry IV", II.iv.375-376, 420-421} + +HAZLEHURST's affairs had not remained stationary, in the mean +time; Mrs. Stanley and himself were already at Wyllys-Roof, when +Miss Wyllys and Elinor returned home, accompanied by the widowed +Jane. The ladies had received frequent intelligence of the +progress of his affairs, from Mr. Wyllys's letters; still there +were many details to be explained when the party was re-united, +as several important steps had been taken while they were in New +York. Mr. Clapp was no longer the only counsel employed by the +claimant; associated with the Longbridge attorney, now appeared +the name of Mr. Reed, a lawyer of highly respectable standing in +New York, a brother-in-law of Judge Bernard's, and a man of a +character far superior to that of Mr. Clapp. He was slightly +acquainted with Mr. Wyllys, and had written very civil letters, +stating that he held the proofs advanced by his client, to be +quite decisive as to his identity, and he proposed an amicable +meeting, with the hope that Mr. Stanley's claim might be +acknowledged without farther difficulty. That Mr. Reed should +have taken the case into his hands, astonished Hazlehurst and his +friends; so long as Clapp managed the affair, they felt little +doubt as to its beings a coarse plot of his own; but they had now +become impatient to inquire more closely into the matter. Mrs. +Stanley was growing very uneasy; Hazlehurst was anxious to +proceed farther as soon as possible; but Mr. Wyllys was still +nearly as sanguine as ever. All parties seemed to desire a +personal interview; Mr. Reed offered to accompany his client to +Wyllys-Roof, to wait on Mrs. Stanley; and a day had been +appointed for the meeting, which was to take place as soon as +Harry's opponent, who had been absent from Longbridge, should +return. The morning fixed for the interview, happened to be that +succeeding the arrival of the ladies; and it will be easily +imagined that every member of the family looked forward to the +moment with most anxious interest. Perhaps they were not aware +themselves, how gradually doubts had arisen and increased, in +their own minds, since the first disclosure made by Mr. Clapp. + +"Harry and myself have both seen this man at last, Agnes," said +Mr. Wyllys to his daughter, just after she had returned home, +when alone with Elinor and herself. "Where do you suppose Harry +saw him yesterday? At church, with Mr. Reed. And this morning I +caught a glimpse of him, standing on the steps of Clapp's +office." + +"Indeed!" exclaimed Miss Wyllys, who, as well as Elinor, was +listening eagerly. How did he look?--what kind of man did he +seem?" + +"He looked like a sailor. I only saw him for a moment, however; +for he was coming out of the office, and walked down the street, +in an opposite direction from me. I must confess that his face +had something of a Stanley look." + +"Is it possible!" + +"Yes; so far as I could see him, he struck me as looking like the +Stanleys; but, in another important point, he does not resemble +them at all. You remember the peculiar gait of the family?--they +all had it, more or less; anybody who knew them well must have +remarked it often--but this man had nothing of the kind; he +walked like a sailor." + +"I know what you mean; it was a peculiar motion in walking, well +known to all their friends--a long, slow step." + +"Precisely; this man had nothing of it, whatever--he had the +sailor swing, for I watched his movements expressly. William +Stanley, as a boy, walked just like his father; for I have often +pointed it out to Mr. Stanley, myself." + +"That mast be an important point, I should suppose; and yet, +grandpapa, you think he looks like my uncle Stanley?" said +Elinor. + +"So I should say, from the glimpse I had of him." + +"What did Harry think of him?" asked Miss Wyllys. + +"Hazlehurst did not see his face, for he sat before him in +church. He said, that if he had not been told who it was, he +should have pronounced him, from his general appearance and +manner, a common-looking, sea-faring man, who was not accustomed +to the service of the Church; for he did not seem to understand +when he should kneel, and when he should rise." + +"But William Stanley ought to have known it perfectly," observed +Elinor; "for he must have gone to church constantly, with his +family, as a child, until he went to sea, and could scarcely have +forgotten the service entirely, I should think." + +"Certainly, my dear; that is another point which we have noted in +our favour. On the other hand, however, I have just been +carefully comparing the hand-writing of Clapp's client, with that +of William Stanley, and there is a very remarkable resemblance +between them. As far as the hand-writing goes, I must confess, +that I should have admitted it at once, as identical, under +ordinary circumstances." + +"And the personal likeness, too, struck you, it seems," added +Miss Agnes. + +"It did; so far, at least, as I could judge from seeing him only +a moment, and with his hat on. To-morrow we shall be able, I +trust, to make up our minds more decidedly on other important +points." + +"It is very singular that he should not be afraid of an +interview!" exclaimed Elinor. + +"Well, I don't know that, my child; having once advanced this +claim, he must be prepared for examination, you know, under any +circumstances. It is altogether a singular case, however, whether +he be the impostor we think him, or the individual he claims to +be. Truth is certainly more strange than fiction sometimes. Would +you like to see the statement Mr. Reed sent us, when we applied +for some account of his client's past movements?" + +Miss Agnes and Elinor were both anxious to see it. + +"Here it is--short you see--in Clapp's hand-writing, but signed +by himself. There is nothing in it that may not possibly be true; +but I fancy that we shall be able to pick some holes in it, +by-and-bye." + +"Did he make no difficulty about sending it to you?" asked Miss +Agnes. + +"No, he seemed to give it readily; Mr. Reed sent it to us a day +or two since." + +Miss Wyllys received the letter from her father, inviting Elinor +to read it over her shoulder, at the same moment. It was +endorsed, in Clapp's hand, "STATEMENT OF MR. STANLEY, PREPARED AT +THE REQUEST OF HIS FATHER'S EXECUTOR," and ran as follows: + +"July 1st, 183-. + +"I left home, as everybody knows, because I would have my own way +in everything. It was against my best interests to be sure, but +boys don't think at such times, about anything but having their +own will. I suppose that every person connected with my deceased +father knows, that my first voyage was made to Russia, in the +year 18--, in the ship Dorothy Beck, Jonas Thomson, Master. I was +only fourteen years old at the time. My father had taken to heart +my going off, and when I came back from Russia he was on the +look-out, wrote to me and sent me money, and as soon as he heard +we were in port he came after me. Well, I went back with the old +gentleman; but we had a quarrel on the road, and I put about +again and went to New Bedford, where I shipped in a whaler. We +were out only eighteen months, and brought in a full cargo. This +time I went home of my own accord, and I staid a great part of +one summer. I did think some of quitting the seas; but after a +while things didn't work well, and one of my old shipmates coming +up into the country to see me, I went off with him. This time I +shipped in the Thomas Jefferson, for China. This was in the year +1814, during the last war, when I was about eighteen. Most +people, who know anything about William Stanley, think that was +the last of him, that he never set foot on American ground again; +but they are mistaken, as he himself will take the pains to show. +So far I have told nothing but what everybody knows, but now I am +going to give a short account of what has happened, since my +friends heard from me. Well; the Jefferson sailed, on her voyage +to China, in October; she was wrecked on the coast of Africa in +December, and it was reported that all hands were lost: so they +were, all but one, and that one was William Stanley. I was picked +up by a Dutchman, the barque William, bound to Batavia. I kept +with the Dutchman for a while, until he went back to Holland. +After I had cut adrift from him, I fell in with some Americans, +and got some old papers; in one of them I saw my father's second +marriage. I knew the name of the lady he had married, but I had +never spoken to her. The very next day, one of the men I was +with, who came from the same part of the country, told me of my +father's death, and said it was the common talk about the +neighbourhood, that I was disinherited. This made me very angry; +though I wasn't much surprised, after what had passed. I was +looking out for a homeward-bound American, to go back, and see +how matters stood, when one night that I was drunk, I was carried +off by an English officer, who made out I was a runaway. For five +years I was kept in different English men-of-war, in the East +Indies; at the end of that time I was put on board the Ceres, +sloop of war, and I made out to desert from her at last, and got +on board an American. I then came home; and here, the first man +that I met on shore was Billings, the chap who first persuaded me +to go to sea: he knew all about my father's family, and told me +it was true I was cut off without a cent, and that Harry +Hazlehurst had been adopted by my father. This made me so mad, +that I went straight to New Bedford, and shipped in the Sally +Andrews, for a whaling voyage. Just before we were to have come +home, I exchanged into another whaler, as second-mate, for a year +longer. Then I sailed in a Havre liner, as foremast hand, for a +while. I found out about this time, that the executors of my +father's estate had been advertising for me shortly after his +death, while I was in the East Indies; and I went to a lawyer in +Baltimore, where I happened to be, and consulted him about +claiming the property; but he wouldn't believe a word I said, +because I was half-drunk at the time, and told me that I should +get in trouble if I didn't keep my mouth shut. Well, I cruized +about for a while longer, when at last I went to Longbridge, with +some shipmates. I had been there often before, as a lad, and I +had some notion of having a talk with Mr. Wyllys, my father's +executor; I went to his house one day, but I didn't see him. One +of my shipmates who knew something of my story, and had been a +client of Mr. Clapp's, advised me to consult him. I went to his +office, but he sent me off like the Baltimore lawyer, because be +thought I was drunk. Three years after that I got back to +Longbridge again, with a shipmate; but it did me no good, for I +got drinking, and had a fit of the horrors. That fit sobered me, +though, in the end; it was the worst I had ever had; I should +have hanged myself, and there would have been an end of William +Stanley and his hard rubs, if it hadn't been for the doctor--I +never knew his name, but Mr. Clapp says it was Dr. Van Horne. +After this bad fit, they coaxed me into shipping in a temperance +whaler. While I was in the Pacific, in this ship, nigh three +years, and out of the reach of drink, I had time to think what a +fool I had been all my life, for wasting my opportunities. I +thought there must be some way of getting back my father's +property; Mr. Clapp had said, that if I was really the man I +pretended to be, I must have some papers to make it out; but if I +hadn't any papers, he couldn't help me, even if I was William +Stanley forty times over. It is true, I couldn't show him any +documents that time, for I didn't have them with me at +Longbridge; but I made up my mind, while I was out on my last +voyage, that as soon as I got home, I would give up drinking, get +my papers together, and set about doing my best to get back my +father's property. We came home last February; I went to work, I +kept sober, got my things together, put money by for a lawyer's +fee, and then went straight to Longbridge again. I went to Mr. +Clapp's office, and first I handed him the money, and then I gave +him my papers. I went to him, because he had treated me better +than any other lawyer, and told me if I was William Stanley, and +could prove it, he could help me better than any other man, for +he knew all about my father's will. Well, he hadn't expected ever +to see me again; but he heard my story all out this time, read +the documents, and at last believed me, and undertook the case. +The rest is known to the executors and legatee by this time; and +it is to be hoped, that after enjoying my father's estate for +nigh twenty years, they will now make it over to his son. + +"Dictated to W. C. Clapp, by the undersigned, + +[Signed,] "WILLIAM STANLEY." + +{"Dutchman" = a ship trading between the Netherlands and the +Netherlands East Indies (now Indonesia), of which Batavia (now +Jakarta) was the capital} + +"Are these facts, so far as they are known to you, all true?" +asked Miss Agnes, as she finished the paper. "I mean the earlier +part of the statement, which refers to William Stanley's +movements before he sailed in the Jefferson?" + +"Yes; that part of the story is correct, so far as it goes." + +"How extraordinary!" exclaimed Elinor. + +"What does Harry think of this paper?" + +"Both he and Mrs. Stanley are more disposed to listen to the +story than I am; however, we are to meet this individual +to-morrow, and shall be able then, I hope, to see our way more +clearly." + +"Do you find any glaring inconsistency in the latter part of the +account?" continued Miss Agnes. + +"Nothing impossible, certainly; but the improbability of William +Stanley's never applying to his father's executors, until he +appeared, so late in the day, as Mr. Clapp's client, is still +just as striking as ever in my eyes. Mr. Reed accounts for it, by +the singular character of the man himself, and the strange, loose +notions sailors get on most subjects; but that is far from +satisfying my mind." + +"Mrs. Stanley is evidently much perplexed," observed Miss Wyllys; +"she always feels any trouble acutely, and this startling +application is enough to cause her the most serious anxiety, +under every point of view." + +"Certainly; I am glad you have come home, on her account--she is +becoming painfully anxious. It is a very serious matter, too, for +Hazlehurst; he confessed to me yesterday, that he had some +misgivings." + +"What a change it would make in all his views and prospects for +life!" exclaimed Miss Wyllys. + +"A change, indeed, which he would feel at every turn. But we are +not yet so badly off as that. We shall give this individual a +thorough, searching examination, and it is my firm opinion that +he will not bear it. In the mean time we have agents at work, +endeavouring to trace this man's past career; and very possibly +we may soon discover in that way, some inconsistency in his +story." + +"The interview is for to-morrow, you say," added Miss Agnes. + +"To-morrow morning. It is to be considered as a visit to Mrs. +Stanley; Mr. Reed and Clapp will come with him. He has engaged to +bring a portion of his papers, and to answer any questions of +ours, that would not injure him in case of an ultimate trial by +law: after the interview, we are to declare within a given time +whether we acknowledge the claim, or whether we are prepared to +dispute it." + +"If you do carry it into a court of justice, when will the trial +take place?" asked Miss Agnes. + +"Probably in the autumn; they have already given notice, that +they will bring it on as soon as possible, if we reject their +demand." + +"Harry will not go abroad then, with Mr. Henley." + +"No; not so soon at least as he intended. So goes the world; +Hazlehurst's career suddenly stopped, by an obstacle we never +dreamed of, at this late day. That poor young Taylor in his +grave, too! How is Jane?" + +"Very feeble, and much depressed." + +"Poor girl--a heavy blow to her--that was a sweet baby that she +lost. I am glad to see the other child looks well. Jane's +affairs, too, are in a bad way, they tell me." + +Miss Agnes shook her head, and her father soon after left her. + +Hazlehurst was, of course, much occupied, having many things to +attend to, connected in different ways with the important +question under consideration: there were old papers to be +examined, letters to be written, letters to be read, and the +family seldom saw him, except at his meals. It was evident, +however, that all Mr. Wyllys's displeasure against him, was fast +disappearing under the influence of the strong interest now +aroused in his favour. Miss Agnes had also resumed entirely, her +former manner towards him. Elinor was quite unembarrassed, and +frankly expressed her interest in his affairs; in fact, all +parties appeared so much engrossed by this important topic, that +no one seemed to have time to remember the unpleasant +circumstances of Harry's last visit to Wyllys-Roof. To judge from +his manner, and something in his expression, if any one +occasionally thought of the past, it was Hazlehurst himself; he +seemed grateful for his present kind reception, and conscious +that he had forfeited all claim to the friendly place in which he +had been reinstated. Once or twice, he betrayed momentary feeling +and embarrassment, as some allusion to past scenes was +accidentally made by others, in the course of conversation. + +The family were sitting together after tea, enjoying the summer +evening twilight, after a long business consultation between the +gentlemen. Harry seemed still engrossed by his own meditations; +what was their particular nature at that moment, we cannot say; +but he certainly had enough to think of in various ways. Harry's +friends left him in undivided possession of the corner, where he +was sitting, alone; and Mr. Wyllys, after a quiet, general +conversation with the ladies, asked Elinor for a song. At her +grandfather's request, she sang a pleasing, new air, she had just +received, and his old favourite, Robin Adair. Fortunately, it did +not occur to her, that the last time she had sung that song at +Wyllys-Roof, with Hazlehurst as part of her audience, was the +evening before their rupture; she appeared to have forgotten the +fact, for no nervous feeling affected her voice, though her tones +were lower than usual, as she did not wish to disturb Jane, who +was in a distant part of the house. A letter from Mr. Reed was +brought in, and drew Harry into the circle again; it was +connected with the next day's interview, and after reading it, +Mr. Wyllys made some remarks upon the difference in the tone and +manner of the communications they had received from Clapp, and +from Mr. Reed; the last writing like a gentleman, the first like +a pettifogger. + +"I am glad, at least, that you will have a gentleman to deal +with," observed Elinor. + +"Why, yes, Nelly; it is always advisable to secure a gentleman +for friend or foe, he is the best substitute for a good man that +one can find. But it is my opinion that Mr. Reed will not +persevere in this case; I think he will soon be disgusted with +Clapp, as his brother counsel. To-morrow, however, we shall have +a nearer look at all our opponents, and I trust that we shall be +able to make up our own minds at least, beyond a doubt." + +"I trust so!" replied Mrs. Stanley, whose anxiety had increased +painfully. + +"I wish Ellsworth were here!" exclaimed Harry; "as his feelings +are less interested than those of either of us, he would see +things in a more impartial light." + +"I wish he were here, with all my heart," replied Mr. Wyllys. "I +am a little afraid of both you, my excellent friend, and you, +Hazlehurst; the idea of not doing justice to the shadow of +William Stanley, will make you too merciful towards this +claimant, I fear. I see plainly, Harry, that you have some +scruples, and I caution you against giving way too much to them." + +Hazlehurst smiled, and passed his hand over his forehead. "Thank +you, sir, for your advice," he replied. "I shall try to judge the +facts calmly; although the idea, that one may possibly be an +usurper, is by no means pleasant; it is rather worse even, than +that of giving up to an impostor." + +"It is a thousand pities that Ellsworth cannot be here until next +week; he would have warned you, as I do, not to lose sight of the +impostor." + +"It is quite impossible that he should come, until next Monday; I +knew his business would not admit of it, when I wrote to him at +your request; but he will be here at the very earliest moment +that he can." + +In fact every one present, while they regretted Mr. Ellsworth's +absence, felt thoroughly convinced that there were various +reasons, which gave him the best inclination in the world to be +at Wyllys-Roof as soon as possible. + +"I hope Mrs. Creighton will come with him too; she will enliven +us a little, in the midst of our legal matters," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"Ellsworth mentions Mrs. Creighton's coming particularly; she +sends a message to the ladies, through him, which I have already +delivered," replied Hazlehurst, as he took up Mr. Reed's letter, +to answer it. + +"Well, Agnes, shall we have a game of chess?" said Mr. Wyllys; +and the circle was broken up, as the younger ladies joined Mrs. +Taylor in her own room. + +The hour of ten, on the following morning, had been fixed for the +interview with the sailor and his counsel. Hazlehurst was walking +on the piazza, as the time approached, and punctual to the +moment, he saw a carriage drive up to the house; in it were Mr. +Reed, Mr. Clapp, and their client. Harry stopped to receive them; +and, as they mounted the steps one after the other, he bowed +respectfully to Mr. Reed, slightly to Mr. Clapp, and fixed his +eye steadily on the third individual. + +"Mr. Stanley, Mr. Hazlehurst," said Mr. Reed, in a quiet, but +decided manner. + +Harry bowed like a gentleman, Mr. Stanley like a jack-tar. The +first steady, inquiring glance of Hazlehurst, was sufficient to +show him, that the rival claimant was a man rather shorter, and +decidedly stouter than himself, with dark hair and eyes, and a +countenance by no means unpleasant, excepting that it bore +evident traces of past habits of intemperance; as far as his +features went, they certainly reminded Harry of Mr. Stanley's +portrait. The sailor's dress was that which might have been worn +by a mate, or skipper, on shore; he appeared not in the least +daunted, on the contrary he was quite self-possessed, with an air +of determination about him which rather took Harry by surprise. + +A few indifferent observations were exchanged between Mr. Reed +and Hazlehurst, as the party entered the house; they were taken +by Harry into the drawing-room, and he then left them, to inform +Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Wyllys of their arrival. + +Mrs. Stanley, though a woman of a firm character, was very +excitable in her temperament, and she dreaded the interview not a +little; she had asked Miss Wyllys to remain with her on the +occasion. Mr. Wyllys was sent for, and when he had joined the +ladies, and Mrs. Stanley had composed herself, their three +visitors were ushered into Miss Wyllys's usual sitting-room by +Hazlehurst. He introduced Mr. Reed to Mrs. Stanley and Miss +Wyllys, named Mr. Clapp, and added, as the sailor approached: +"Mr. Reed's client, ma'am." + +"Mr. William Stanley," added Mr. Reed, firmly, but respectfully. + +Mrs. Stanley had risen from her seat, and after curtseying to the +lawyers, she turned very pale, as the name of her husband's son +was so deliberately applied, by a respectable man, to the +individual before her. + +"I was just asking Mr. Stanley, when Mr. Hazlehurst joined us," +observed the forward Mr. Clapp, "if he remembered Wyllys-Roof at +all; but he says his recollections of this place are rather +confused." + +"When were you here last, sir?" asked Mr. Wyllys of the sailor, +giving him a searching look at the same time. + +"About five years ago," was the cool reply, rather to Mr. +Wyllys's surprise. + +"Five years ago!--I have no recollection of the occasion." + +The rest of the party were looking and listening, with curious, +anxious interest. + +"You don't seem to have much recollection of me, at all, sir," +said the sailor, rather bitterly. + +"Do you mean to say, that you were in this house five years ago?" +asked Mr. Wyllys. + +"I was here, but I didn't say I was in the house." + +"What brought you here?" + +"Pretty much the same errand that brings me now." + +"What passed on the occasion?" + +"I can't say I remember much about it, excepting that you did not +give me an over-friendly greeting." + +"Explain how it happened, Mr. Stanley," said Mr. Reed, "Mr. +Wyllys does not understand you." + +"I certainly cannot understand what you mean me to believe. You +say you were here, and did not receive a very friendly +greeting--how was it unfriendly?" + +"Why, you showed me the inside of your smoke-house; which, to my +notion, wasn't just the right berth for the son of your old +friend, and I took the liberty of kicking off the hatches next +morning, and making the best of my way out of the neighbourhood." + +"You remember the drunken sailor, sir, who was found one night, +several years since, near the house," interrupted Harry, who had +been listening attentively, and observed Mr. Wyllys's air of +incredulity. "I had him locked up in the smoke-house, you may +recollect." + +"And you must observe, Mr. Hazlehurst, that is a fact which might +look ugly before a jury that did not know you," remarked Mr. +Clapp; in a sort of half-cunning, half-insinuating manner. + +"I do not in the least doubt the ability of many men, sir, to +distort actions equally innocent." + +"But you acknowledge the fact?" + +"The fact that I locked up a drunken sailor, I certainly +acknowledge; and you will find me ready to acknowledge any other +fact equally true." + +"Do you believe this to be the person you locked up, Harry?" +asked Mr. Wyllys. + +"I think it not improbable that it is the same individual; but I +did not see the man distinctly at the time." + +"I am glad, gentlemen, that you are prepared to admit the +identity thus far--that is a step gained," observed Mr. Clapp, +running his hand through his locks. + +"Permit me, Mr. Clapp, to ask you a question or two," said Mr. +Wyllys. "Now you recall that circumstance to me, I should like to +ask, if we have not also heard of this individual since the +occasion you refer to?" + +"Yes, sir; you probably have heard of him since," replied Mr. +Clapp, baldly. + +"And in connexion with yourself, I think?" + +"In connexion with me, sir. You will find me quite as ready as +Mr. Hazlehurst to admit facts, sir," replied the lawyer, leaning +back in his chair. + +"When they are undeniable," observed Mr. Wyllys, drily. "May I +inquire what was the nature of that connexion?" asked the +gentleman, with one of his searching looks. + +The lawyer did not seem to quail beneath the scrutiny. + +"The connexion, Mr. Wyllys, was the commencement of what has been +completed recently. Mr. Stanley came to lay before me the claims +which he now makes publicly." + +"You never made the least allusion to any claim of this kind to +me, at that time," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"I didn't believe it then; I am free to say so now," + +"Still, not believing the claim, it was singular, I may say +suspicious, sir, that you never even mentioned the individual who +made it." + +"Why, to tell you the truth, Mr. Wyllys, I had unpleasant +thoughts about it; we were neighbours and old friends, and though +I might make up my mind to undertake the case, if I thought it +clear, I did prefer that you should not know about my having had +anything to do with it, as long as I thought it a doubtful point. +I think you must see that was only natural for a young lawyer, +who had his fortune to make, and expected employment from you and +your friends. I have no objections whatever to speaking out now, +to satisfy your mind, Mr. Wyllys." + +"I believe I understand you, sir," replied Mr. Wyllys, his +countenance expressing more cool contempt than he was aware of. + +"I think, however, there are several other points which are not +so easily answered," he added, turning to Mr. Reed, as if +preferring to continue the conversation with him. "Do you not +think it singular, Mr. Reed, to say the least, that your client +should have allowed so many years to pass, without claiming the +property of Mr. Stanley, and then, at this late day, instead of +applying directly to the executors, come to a small town like +Longbridge, to a lawyer so little known as Mr. Clapp, in order to +urge a claim, so important to him as this we are now examining?" +asked Mr. Wyllys, with a meaning smile. + +"We are able to explain all those points quite satisfactorily, I +think," replied Mr. Reed. + +"I object, however," interposed Mr. Clapp, "to laying our case +fully before the defendants, until we know what they conclude to +do. We have met here by agreement, to give the defendants an +opportunity of satisfying their own minds--that they may settle +the point, whether they will admit our claim, or whether we must +go to law to get our rights. It was agreed that the meeting +should be only a common friendly visit, such as Mr. Stanley felt +perfectly willing to pay to his step-mother, and old family +friends. We also agreed, that we would answer any common +questions that might help to satisfy the defendants, provided +that they did not tend to endanger our future success, in the +event of a trial. I think, Mr. Reed, that as there does not seem +as yet much probability that the defendants will be easily +convinced, it behooves us to be on our guard." + +"I will take the responsibility, sir, of answering other +observations of Mr. Wyllys's," replied Mr. Reed. "As the object +of the meeting was an amicable arrangement, we may be able to +make the case more clear, without endangering our own grounds. +Have you any remarks to make, madam?" he added, turning to Mrs. +Stanley. + +It had been settled between the friends, before the meeting, that +Mr. Wyllys should be chief spokesman on the occasion; for, +although the sailor claimed the nearer connexion of step-son to +Mrs. Stanley, yet she had scarcely known her husband's son, +having married after he went to sea. Harry, it is true, had often +been with young Stanley at his father's house, but he was at the +time too young a child to have preserved any distinct +recollection of him. Mr. Wyllys was the only one of the three +individuals most interested, who remembered his person, manner, +and character, with sufficient minuteness to rely on his own +memory. The particular subjects upon which the sailor should be +questioned, had been also agreed upon beforehand, by Harry and +his friends. In reply to Mr. Reed's inquiry, Mrs. Stanley asked +to see the papers which had been brought for their investigation. + +Mr. Clapp complied with the request, by drawing a bundle of +papers from his pocket. He first handed Mrs. Stanley a document, +proving that William Stanley had made two voyages as seaman, in a +Havre packet, in the year 1824, or nearly ten years since the +wreck of the Jefferson. The captain of this vessel was well +known, and still commanded a packet in the same line; very +probably his mates were also living, and could be called upon to +ascertain the authenticity of this paper. No man in his senses +would have forged a document which could be so easily disproved, +and both Mr. Wyllys and Hazlehurst were evidently perplexed by +it, while Mrs. Stanley showed an increase of nervous agitation. +Mr. Wyllys at length returned this paper to Mr. Reed, confessing +that it looked more favourably than anything they had yet +received. Two letters were then shown, directed to William +Stanley, and bearing different dates; one was signed by the name +of David Billings, a man who had been the chief instrument in +first drawing William Stanley into bad habits, and had at length +enticed him to leave home and go to sea; it was dated nineteen +years back. As no one present knew the hand-writing of Billings, +and as he had died some years since, this letter might, or might +not, have been genuine. The name of the other signature was +entirely unknown to Harry and his friends; this second letter +bore a date only seven years previous to the interview, and was +addressed to William Stanley, at a sailor's boarding-house in +Baltimore. It was short, and the contents were unimportant; +chiefly referring to a debt of fifteen dollars, and purporting to +be written by a shipmate named Noah Johnson: the name of William +Stanley, in conjunction with the date, was the only remarkable +point about this paper. Both letters had an appearance +corresponding with their dates; they looked old and soiled; the +first bore the post-office stamp of New York; the other had no +post-mark. Mr. Wyllys asked if this Noah Johnson could be found? +The sailor replied, that he had not seen him for several years, +and did not know what had become of him; he had kept the letter +because it acknowledged the debt. He replied to several other +questions about this man, readily and naturally; though Mr. +Wyllys had no means of deciding whether these answers were +correct or not. Hazlehurst then made several inquiries about +Billings, whom he had seen, and remembered as a bad fellow, the +son of a country physician living near Greatwood. His height, +age, appearance, and several circumstances connected with his +family, were all very accurately given by Mr. Reed's client, as +Harry frankly admitted to Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Wyllys. + +Mr. Reed looked gratified by the appearance of things, and Mr. +Clapp seemed quite satisfied with the turn matters were now +taking. Throughout the interview, Mr. Reed seemed to listen with +a sort of calm interest, as if he had little doubt as to the +result. Mr. Clapp's manner was much more anxious; but then he was +perfectly aware of the suspicions against him, and knew that not +only this particular case, but his whole prospects for life, were +at stake on the present occasion. + +"Like most sailors, Mr. Stanley has kept but few papers," +observed Mr. Reed. + +"He has been as careless about his documents, as he was about his +property--he has lost some of the greatest importance," observed +Mr. Clapp. "Here is something, though, that will speak for him," +added the lawyer, as he handed Mrs. Stanley a book. It was a +volume of the Spectator, open at the blank leaves, and showing +the following words: "John William Stanley, Greatwood, 1804;" and +below, these, "William Stanley, 1810;" the first sentence was in +the hand-writing of the father, the second in the half-childish +characters of the son; both names had every appearance of being +autographs. The opposite page was partly covered with names of +ships, scratches of the pen, unconnected sentences, and one or +two common sailor expressions. Mrs. Stanley's eyes grew dim for +an instant, after she had read the names of her husband and +step-son--she passed the book to Mr. Wyllys; he took it, examined +it closely, but found nothing to complain of in its appearance. + +{"the Spectator" = English daily periodical published by Richard +Steele (1672-1729) and Joseph Addison (1672-1719) between 1711 +and 1714; the eight volumes of the Spectator have been reprinted +frequently in book form ever since} + +"This is only the third volume; have you the whole set?" he +asked, turning to the sailor. + +"No, sir; I left the rest at home." + +"Is there such a set at Greatwood?" asked Mr. Wyllys, turning to +Mrs. Stanley. + +"There is," replied the lady, in a low voice, "and one volume +missing." + +Hazlehurst asked to look at the book; it was handed to him by Mr. +Wyllys. He examined it very carefully, binding, title-page, and +contents; Mr. Clapp watching him closely at the moment. + +"Do you suspect the hand-writing?" asked the lawyer. + +"Not in the least," replied Hazlehurst. "You have read this +volume often I suppose," he added, turning to the sailor. + +"Not I," was the reply; "I ain't given to reading in any shape; +my shipmates have read that 'ere book oftener than I have." + +"Did you carry it with you in all your voyages?" + +"No; I left it ashore half the time." + +"How long have you had it in your possession?" + +"Since I first went to sea." + +"Indeed! that is singular; I should have said, Mr. Clapp," +exclaimed Harry, suddenly facing the lawyer, "that only four +years since, I read this very volume of the Spectator at +Greatwood!" + +If Hazlehurst expected Mr. Clapp to betray confusion, he was +disappointed. + +"You may have read some other volume," was the cool reply; +although Harry thought, or fancied, that he traced a muscular +movement about the speaker's eyelids, as he uttered the words: +"That volume has been in the possession of Mr. Stanley since he +first went to sea." + +"Is there no other copy of the Spectator at your country-place, +Mrs. Stanley?" asked Mr. Reed. + +"There is another edition, entire, in three volumes," said Mrs. +Stanley. + +"I had forgotten it" said Hazlehurst; "but I am, nevertheless, +convinced that it was this edition which I read, for I remember +looking for it on an upper shelf, where it belonged." + +"It was probably another volume of the same edition; there must +be some half-dozen, to judge by the size of this," observed Mr. +Reed. + +"There were eight volumes, but one has been missing for years," +said Mrs. Stanley. + +"It was this which I read, however," said Harry; "for I remember +the portrait of Steele, in the frontispiece." + +"Will you swear to it?" asked Mr. Clapp, with a doubtful smile. + +"When I do take an oath, it will not be lightly, sir," replied +Hazlehurst. + +"It is pretty evident, that Mr. Hazlehurst will not be easily +satisfied," added Mr. Clapp, with an approach to a sneer. "Shall +we go on, Mr. Reed, or stop the examination?" + +Mrs. Stanley professed herself anxious to ask other questions; +and as she had showed more symptoms of yielding than the +gentlemen, the sailor's counsel seemed to cherish hopes of +bringing her over to their side. At her request, Mr. Wyllys then +proceeded to ask some questions, which had been agreed upon +before the meeting. + +"What is your precise age, sir?" + +"I shall be thirty-seven, the tenth of next August." + +"Where were you born?" + +"At my father's country-place, in ----- county, Pennsylvania." + +"When were you last there before his death?" + +"After my whaling voyage in the Sally-Ann, in the summer of +1814." + +"How long did you stay at home on that occasion?" + +"Three months; until I went to sea in the Thomas Jefferson." + +"What was your mother's name, sir?" + +"My mother's name was Elizabeth Radcliffe." + +"What were the names of your grand-parents?" added Mr. Wyllys, +quickly. + +"My grandfather Stanley's name was William; I am named after him. +My grandmother's maiden name was Ellis--Jane Ellis." + +"What were the Christian names of your grand-parents, on your +mother's side?" + +"Let me see--my memory isn't over-good: my grandfather Radcliffe +was named John Henry." + +"And your grandmother?" + +The sailor hesitated, and seemed to change colour; but, perhaps +it was merely because he stooped to pick up his handkerchief. + +"It's curious that I can't remember her Christian name," said he, +looking from one to another; "but I always called her +grandmother;--that's the reason, I suppose." + +"Take time, and I dare say you will remember," said Clapp. "Have +you never chanced to see the old family Bible?" + +The sailor looked at him, as if in thought, and suddenly +exclaimed: "Her name was Agnes Graham!" Other questions were then +asked, about the persons of his parents, the house at Greatwood, +and the neighbourhood. He seemed quite at home there, and +answered most of the questions with great accuracy--especially +about the place and neighbourhood. He described Mr. Stanley +perfectly, but did not appear to remember his mother so well; as +she had died early, however, Mr. Reed and Mr. Clapp accounted for +it in that way. He made a few mistakes about the place, but they +were chiefly upon subjects of opinion, such as the breadth of a +river, the height of a hill, the number of acres in a field; and +possibly his account was quite as correct as that of Mr. Wyllys. + +"On which side of the house is the drawing-room, at Greatwood?" +asked Hazlehurst. + +"Maybe you have changed it, since you got possession; but in my +day it was on the north side of the house, looking towards the +woods." + +"Where are the stairs?" + +"They stand back as you go in--they are very broad." + +"Is there anything particular about the railing?" + +The sailor paused. "Not that I remember, now," he said. + +"Can't you describe it?--What is it made of?" + +"Some kind of wood--dark wood--mahogany." + +"What is the shape of the balusters?" + +He could not tell; which Mr. Wyllys thought he ought to have +done; for they were rather peculiar, being twisted, and would +probably be remembered by most children brought up in the house. + +Mrs. Stanley then begged he would describe the furniture of the +drawing-room, such as it was the last summer he had passed at +Greatwood. He seemed to hesitate, and change countenance, more +than he had yet done; so much so, as to strike Mrs. Stanley +herself; but he immediately rallied again. + +"Well," said he, "you ask a man the very things he wouldn't be +likely to put on his log. But I'll make it all out ship-shape +presently." He stooped to pick up his handkerchief, which had +fallen again, and was going to proceed, when Mr. Clapp +interrupted him. + +"I must take the liberty of interfering," said he, looking at his +watch, as he rose from his seat, and moved towards Mr. Reed, +asking if he did not think the examination had been quite long +enough. + +"I must say, gentlemen," he added significantly, turning towards +Mr. Wyllys and Harry, "that I think our client has had enough of +it; considering that, upon the whole, there is no one here who +has so much right to ask questions, instead of answering them, as +Mr. Stanley." + +"I should suppose, sir," said Mr. Reed, also rising and +addressing Mr. Wyllys, "that you must have heard and seen enough +for the object of our meeting. You have had a personal interview +with Mr. Stanley; you confess that he is like his family, like +himself, in short--allowing for the difference between a boy of +eighteen and a man of thirty-seven, where the habits of life have +been so different; you admit the identity of the hand-writing--" + +"I beg your pardon, sir; not the identity, but the resemblance." + +"A perfectly natural resemblance, under the circumstances, I +think you must allow." + +"Yes; the similarity of the hand-writing is remarkable, +certainly." + +"During the last two hours you have asked the questions which +best suited your own pleasure, and he has answered them with +great accuracy, without one important mistake. What more can you +possibly require?" + +"I do not stand alone, sir; we claim the time previously fixed +for consideration, before we give our final answer. We are, +however, much obliged to you, Mr. Reed, for granting the +interview, even if its results are not what you may have hoped +for. We shall always remember your conduct on this occasion with +respect." + +Mr. Wyllys then offered some refreshments to Mr. Reed; they were +accepted, and ordered immediately. + +Mr. Clapp was standing near Harry, and turning to him, he said: +"Mr. Stanley has a favour to ask, Mr. Hazlehurst, though you +don't seem disposed to grant him any," he added, with peculiar +expression. + +"'A FAIR field, and no favour,' is a saying you may have heard," +replied Hazlehurst, with a slight emphasis on the first word. +"But what is your client's request, sir?" + +Mr. Clapp made a gesture towards the sailor, who then spoke for +himself. + +"I understand that two of my cousins are in the house, and I +should be glad to see them before I leave it." + +"Whom do you mean, sir?" + +"Elinor Wyllys and Mary Van Alstyne. I haven't seen either of +them since they were children; but as I have got but few +relations, and no friends it seems, I should like to see them." + +"You must apply to Mr. Wyllys; the young ladies are under his +care," replied Harry, coldly. + +But Mr. Wyllys took upon himself to refuse the sailor's request, +under the circumstances. Having taken some refreshments, Mr. +Reed, his brother counsel, and their client now made their bows, +and left the house. As they drove from the door, Mr. Reed looked +calm and civil, Mr. Clapp very well satisfied; and the sailor, as +he took his seat by Mr. Reed, observed, in a voice loud enough to +be heard by Harry, who was standing on the piazza: + +"It turns out just as I reckoned; hard work for a man to get his +rights in this here longitude!" + + + +CHAPTER XIII. {XXXVI} + +"Nay, let them go, a couple of quiet ones!" +Taming the Shrew. + +{William Shakespeare, "The Taming of the Shrew", III.ii.240} + +ELINOR was all anxiety to learn the result of the interview; and +Mary Van Alstyne also naturally felt much interest in the +subject, as she, too, was a cousin of William Stanley, their +mothers having been sisters. Elinor soon discovered that the +sailor had borne a much better examination than either of her +friends had expected; he had made no glaring mistake, and he had +answered their questions on some points, with an accuracy and +readiness that was quite startling. He evidently knew a great +deal about the Stanley family, their house, and the +neighbourhood; whoever he was, there could he no doubt that he +had known Mr. Stanley himself, and was very familiar with the +part of the country in which he had resided. Altogether, the +personal resemblance, the handwriting, the fact of his being a +sailor, the papers he had shown, the plausible statement he had +given, as to his past movements, and his intimate knowledge of so +many facts, which a stranger could scarcely have known, made up a +combination of circumstances, quite incomprehensible to the +friends at Wyllys-Roof. Still, in spite of so much that appeared +in his favour, Mr. Wyllys declared, that so far as his own +opinion went, he had too many doubts as to this man's character, +to receive him as the son of his friend, upon the evidence he had +thus far laid before them. The circumstances under which he +appeared, were so very suspicious in every point of view, that +the strongest possible evidences of his identity would be +required, to counteract them. The length of time that had passed +since the wreck of the Jefferson, the long period during which +his father's property had been left in the hands of others, and +the doubtful character of the channel through which the claim was +at length brought forward--all these facts united, furnished good +grounds for suspecting something wrong. There were other points +too, upon which Mr. Wyllys had his doubts; although the general +resemblance of this individual to William Stanley, was sufficient +to pass with most people, allowing for the natural changes +produced by time, yet there were some minor personal traits, +which did not correspond with his recollection of Mr. Stanley's +son: the voice appeared to him different in tone; he was also +disposed to believe the claimant shorter and fuller than William +Stanley, in the formation of his body and limbs; as to this man's +gait, which was entirely different from that of William Stanley, +as a boy, nearer observation had increased Mr. Wyllys's first +impression on that subject. On these particular points, Mrs. +Stanley and Hazlehurst were no judges; for the first had scarcely +seen her step-son, the last had only a child's recollection of +him. Nor could Miss Agnes's opinion have much weight, since she +had seldom seen the boy, during the last years he passed on +shore; for, at that time, she had been much detained at home, by +the ill health of her mother. Hazlehurst had watched the claimant +closely, and the interview had silenced his first misgivings, for +he had been much struck with two things: he had always heard, +whenever the subject of William Stanley's character had been +alluded to before him, that this unfortunate young man was sullen +in temper, and dull in mind. Now, the sailor's whole expression +and manner, in his opinion, had shown too much cleverness for +William Stanley; he had appeared decidedly quick-witted, and his +countenance was certainly rather good-natured than otherwise. Mr. +Wyllys admitted that Harry's views were just; he was struck with +both these observations; he thought them correct and important. +Then Hazlehurst thought he had seen some signs of intelligence +between Clapp and the sailor once or twice, a mere glance; he +could not be positive, however, since it might have been his own +suspicions. As to the volume of the Spectator, he had felt at +first morally certain that he had read that very volume at +Greatwood, only four years ago, but he had since remembered that +his brother had the same edition, and he might have read the book +in Philadelphia; in the mean time he would try to recall the +circumstances more clearly to his mind; for so long as he had a +doubt, he could not swear to the fact. He knew it was not the +octavo edition, at Greatwood, that he had been reading, for he +distinctly remembered the portrait of Steele in the frontispiece, +and Addison's papers on the Paradise Lost, which he had been +reading; that very portrait, and those papers, were contained in +the volume handed to him by Clapp. Both Mr. Wyllys and Hazlehurst +were gratified to find, that Mrs. Stanley differed from them less +than they had feared. She confessed, that at one moment her heart +had misgiven her, but on looking closely at the sailor, she +thought him less like her husband than she had expected; and she +had been particularly struck by his embarrassment, when she had +asked him to describe the furniture of the drawing-room at +Greatwood, the very last summer he had been there, for he ought +certainly under such circumstances, to have remembered it as well +as herself; he had looked puzzled, and had glanced at Mr. Clapp, +and the lawyer had immediately broken off the examination. Such +were the opinions of the friends at this stage of the +proceedings. Still it was an alarming truth, that if there were +improbabilities, minor facts, and shades of manner, to strengthen +their doubts, there was, on the other side, a show of evidence, +which might very possibly prove enough to convince a jury. +Hazlehurst had a thousand things to attend to, but he had decided +to wait at Wyllys-Roof until the arrival of Mr. Ellsworth. + +{"Addison's papers on the Paradise Lost" = in fact, Addison's +essays on Paradise Lost are contained in volumes four and five of +the Spectator} + +Leaving those most interested in this vexatious affair to hold +long consultations together in Mr. Wyllys's study, we must now +proceed to record a visit which Miss Agnes received from one of +our Longbridge acquaintances, and we shall therefore join the +ladies. + +"I am sorry, my dear, that the house is not so quiet as we could +wish, just now," said Miss Agnes to Jane, one morning, as she and +Elinor were sitting together in the young widow's room. + +"Thank you, Aunt; but it does not disturb me, and I know it is +not to be avoided just now," said Jane, languidly. + +"No, it cannot be helped, with this troublesome business going +on; and we shall have Mrs. Creighton and Mr. Ellsworth here +soon." + +"Pray, do not change your plans on my account. I need not see any +of your friends; I shall scarcely know they are here," said Jane, +with a deep sigh. + +"If it were possible to defer their visit, I should do so; but +situated as we are with Mr. Ellsworth--" added Miss Wyllys. + +"Certainly; do not let me interfere with his coming. I feel +perfectly indifferent as to who comes or goes; I can never take +any more pleasure in society!" + +"Here is my aunt Wyllys driving up to the door," said Elinor, who +was sitting near a window. "Do you feel equal to seeing her?" + +"Oh, no, not to-day, dear," said Jane in an imploring voice; and +Elinor accordingly remained with her cousin, while Miss Agnes +went down to meet Mrs. George Wyllys. This lady was still living +at Longbridge, although every few months she talked of leaving +the place. Her oldest boy had just received a midshipman's +warrant, to which he was certainly justly entitled--his father +having lost his life in the public service. The rest of her +children were at home; and rather spoilt and troublesome little +people they were. + +"How is Jane?" asked Mrs. Wyllys, as she entered the house. + +"Very sad and feeble; but I hope the air here will strengthen +her, after a time." + +"Poor thing!--no wonder she is sad, indeed! So young, and such an +affliction! How is the child?" + +"Much better; she is quite playful, and disturbs Jane very much +by asking after her father. What a warm drive you must have had, +Harriet; you had better throw off your hat, and stay with us +until evening." + +"Thank you; I must go home for dinner, and shall not be able to +stay more than half an hour. Is your father in? I wished to see +him, as well as yourself, on business." + +"No, he is not at home; he has gone off some miles, to look at +some workmen who are putting up a new farm-house." + +"I am sorry he is not at home, for I want to ask his opinion. And +yet he must have his hands full just now, with that vexatious +Stanley case. I must say, I think Clapp deserves to be sent to +the tread-mill!" + +"Perhaps he does," replied Miss Wyllys. "It is to be hoped at +least, that he will receive what he deserves, and nothing more." + +"I hope he will, with all my heart! But as I have not much time +to spare, I must proceed to lay my affairs before you. Now I +really and honestly want your advice, Agnes." + +"You have had it often before," replied Miss Wyllys, smiling. "I +am quite at your service now," she added, seeing her +sister-in-law look a little uneasy. Mrs. Wyllys was silent for a +moment. + +"I scarcely know where to begin," she then said; "for here I am, +come to consult you on a subject which you may think beneath your +notice; you are superior to such trifling matters," she said, +smiling--and then added: "But seriously, I have too much +confidence in your judgment and good sense, to wish to act +without your approbation." + +"What is the point upon which I am to decide?--for you have not +yet told me anything." + +"It is a subject upon which I have been thinking for some +time--several months. What should you say to my marrying again?" +asked Mrs. Wyllys stoutly. + +Miss Agnes was amazed. She had known her sister-in-law, when some +years younger, refuse more than one good offer; and had never for +a moment doubted her intention to remain a widow for life. + +"You surprise me, Harriet," she said; "I had no idea you thought +of marrying again." + +"Certainly, I never thought of taking such a step until quite +lately." + +"And who is the gentleman?" asked Miss Agnes, in some anxiety. + +"I know you will at least agree with me, in thinking that I have +made a prudent choice. The welfare of my children is indeed my +chief consideration. I find, Agnes, that they require a stronger +hand than mine to manage them. Long before Evert went to sea, he +was completely his own master; there were only two persons who +had any influence over him, one is his grandfather, the other, a +gentleman who will, I suppose, before long, become nearly +connected with him. I frankly acknowledge that I have no control +over him myself; it is a mortifying fact to confess, but my +system of education, though an excellent one in theory, has not +succeeded in practice." + +'Because,' thought Miss Agnes, 'there is too much theory, my good +sister.' "But you have not yet named the gentleman," she added, +aloud. + +"Oh, I have no doubt of your approving my choice! He is a most +worthy, excellent man--of course, at my time of life, I shall not +make a love-match. Can't you guess the individual--one of my +Longbridge neighbours?" + +"From Longbridge," said Miss Wyllys, not a little surprised. +"Edward Tibbs, perhaps," she added, smiling. He was an unmarried +man, and one of the Longbridge beaux. + +"Oh, no; how can you think me so silly, Agnes! I am ashamed of +you! It is a very different person; the family are great +favourites of your's." + +"One of the Van Hornes?" Mrs. Wyllys shook her head. + +"One of the Hubbards?--Is it John Hubbard, the principal of the +new Academy?" inquired Miss Agnes, faintly. + +"Do you suppose I would marry a man of two-or-three-and-twenty!" +exclaimed Mrs. Wyllys with indignation. "It is his uncle; a man +against whom there can be no possible objection--Mr. James +Hubbard." + +'Uncle Dozie, of all men!' thought Miss Agnes. 'Silent, sober, +sleepy Uncle Dozie. Well, we must be thankful that it is no +worse.' + +"Mr. Hubbard is certainly a respectable man, a man of +principles," she observed aloud. "But everybody looked upon him +as a confirmed old bachelor; I did not suspect either of you of +having any thoughts of marrying," continued Miss Agnes, smiling. + +"I am sometimes surprised that we should have come to that +conclusion, myself. But it is chiefly for the sake of my children +that I marry; you must know me well enough, Agnes, to be +convinced that I sacrifice myself for them!" + +"I wish, indeed, that it may be for their good, Harriet!" + +"Thank you; I have no doubt of it. I feel perfect confidence in +Mr. Hubbard; he is a man so much older than myself, and so much +more experienced, that I shall be entirely guided in future by +his counsel and advice." + +Miss Agnes had some difficulty in repressing a smile and a sigh. + +"Of course, I am well aware that many people will think I am +taking a foolish step," continued Mrs. Wyllys. Hubbard's +connexions, are generally not thought agreeable, perhaps; he has +very little property, and no profession. I am not blinded, you +see; but I am very indifferent as to the opinion of the world in +general; I am very independent of all but my immediate friends, +as you well know, Agnes." + +Miss Wyllys was silent. + +"In fact, my attention was first fixed upon Mr. Hubbard, by +finding how little he was appreciated and understood by others; I +regretted that I had at first allowed myself to be guided by +general opinion. Now I think it very possible that, although Mr. +Hubbard has been your neighbour for years, even you, Agnes, may +have a very mistaken opinion of him; you may have underrated his +talents, his strong affections, and energetic character. I was +surprised myself to find, what a very agreeable companion he is!" + +"I have always believed Mr. James Hubbard a man of kind feelings, +as you observe, and a man of good principles; two important +points, certainly." + +"I am glad you do him justice. But you are not aware perhaps, +what a very pleasant companion he is, where he feels at his ease, +and knows that he is understood." + +'That is to say, where he can doze, while another person thinks +and talks for him,' thought Miss Agnes. + +"The time is fixed I suppose for the wedding, Harriet?" she +inquired aloud, with a smile. + +"Nearly so, I believe. I told Mr. Hubbard that I should be just +as ready to marry him next week, as next year; we agreed that +when two persons of our ages had come to an understanding, they +might as well settle the matter at once. We shall be married, I +fancy, in the morning, in church, with only two or three friends +present. I hope, Agnes, that your father and yourself will be +with me. You know that I should never have taken this step, if +you had not agreed with me in thinking it for the good of my +children." + +"Thank you, Harriet; of course we shall be present, if you wish +it." + +"Certainly I wish it. I shall always look upon you as my best +friends and advisers." + +"Next to Mr. Hubbard, in future," replied Miss Agnes, smiling. + +"When you know him better, you will confess that he deserves a +high place in my confidence. You have no idea how much his +brother and nieces think of him; but that is no wonder, for they +know his good sense, and his companionable qualities. He is +really a very agreeable companion, Agnes, for a rational woman; +quite a cultivated mind, too." + +Visions of cabbages and turnips rose in Miss Agnes's mind, as the +only cultivation ever connected, till now, with Uncle Dozie's +name. + +"We passed last evening charmingly; I read the Lay of the Last +Minstrel aloud to him, and he seemed to enjoy it very much," +continued Mrs. Wyllys. + +{"Lay of the Last Minstrel" = long narrative poem (1805) by Sir +Walter Scott (1771-1832)} + +'He took a nap, I suppose,' thought Miss Agnes. "He ought to be +well pleased to have a fair lady read aloud to him," she replied, +smiling. + +"The better I know him, the more satisfied I am with my choice. I +have: found a man upon whom I can depend for support and +advice--and one who is at the same time a very pleasant +companion. Do you know, he sometimes reminds me of our excellent +father," + +This was really going too far, in Miss Agnes's opinion; she quite +resented a comparison between Uncle Dozie and Mr. Wyllys. The +widow, however, was too much occupied with her own affairs, to +notice Miss Agnes's expression. + +"I find, indeed, that the whole family are more agreeable than I +had supposed; but you rather gave me a prejudice against them. +The young ladies improve on acquaintance, they are pretty, +amiable young women; I have seen them quite often since we have +been near neighbours. Well, I must leave you, for Mr. Hubbard +dines with me to-day. In the mean time, Agnes, I commit my +affairs to your hands. Since I did not find your father at home, +I shall write to him this evening." + +The ladies parted; and as Mrs. Wyllys passed out of the room, she +met Elinor. + +"Good morning, Elinor," she said; "your aunt has news for you, +which I would tell you myself if I had time:" then nodding, she +left the house, and had soon driven off. "My dear Aunt, what is +this news?" asked Elinor. + +Miss Agnes looked a little annoyed, a little mortified, and a +little amused. + +When the mystery was explained, Elinor's amazement was great. + +"It is incredible!" she exclaimed. "My Aunt Wyllys actually going +to marry that prosing, napping Mr. Hubbard; Uncle Dozie!" + +"When I remember her husband," said Miss Agnes, with feeling, "it +does seem incredible; my dear, warm-hearted, handsome, animated +brother George!" + +"How extraordinary!" said Elinor, who could do nothing but +exclaim. + +"No; not in the least extraordinary," added Miss Agnes; "such +marriages, dear, seem quite common." Mr. Wyllys was not at all +astonished at the intelligence. + +"I have expected that Harriet would marry, all along; she has a +great many good intentions, and some good qualities; but I knew +she would not remain a widow. It is rather strange that she +should have chosen James Hubbard; but she might have done worse." + +With these philosophical reflections, Mrs. Wyllys's friends +looked forward to the happy event which was soon to take place. +The very same morning that Miss Agnes was taken into the +confidence of the bride, the friends of the groom also learned +the news, but in a more indirect manner. + +The charms of a parterre are daily be-rhymed in verse, and +vaunted in prose, but the beauties of a vegetable garden seldom +meet with the admiration they might claim. If you talk of beets, +people fancy them sliced with pepper and vinegar; if you mention +carrots, they are seen floating in soup; cabbage figures in the +form of cold-slaw, or disguised under drawn-butter; if you refer +to corn, it appears to the mind's eye wrapt in a napkin to keep +it warm, or cut up with beans in a succatash {sic}. Half the +people who see these good things daily spread on the board before +them, are only acquainted with vegetables after they have been +mutilated and disguised by cookery. They would not know the leaf +of a beet from that of the spinach, the green tuft of a carrot +from the delicate sprigs of parsley. Now, a bouquet of roses and +pinks is certainly a very beautiful object, but a collection of +fine vegetables, with the rich variety of shape and colour, in +leaf, fruit, and root, such as nature has given them to us, is a +noble sight. So thought Uncle Dozie, at least. The rich texture +and shading of the common cabbage-leaf was no novelty to him; he +had often watched the red, coral-like veins in the glossy green +of the beet; the long, waving leaf of the maize, with the silky +tassels of its ears, were beautiful in his eyes; and so were the +rich, white heads of the cauliflower, delicate as carved ivory, +the feathery tuft of the carrot, the purple fruit of the +egg-plant, and the brilliant scarlet tomato. He came nearer than +most Christians, out of Weathersfield, to sympathy with the old +Egyptians in their onion-worship. + +{"parterre" = ornamental flower garden; "out of Weathersfield" = +Wethersfield (the modern spelling), Connecticut, was famous for +its onions (there is still a red onion called "Red +Weathersfield"), until struck by a blight about 1840; "old +Egyptians" = ancient Egypt was proverbial for worshiping the +onion} + +With such tastes and partialities, Uncle Dozie was generally to +be found in his garden, between the hours of sun-rise and +sun-set; gardening having been his sole occupation for nearly +forty years. His brother, Mr. Joseph Hubbard, having something to +communicate, went there in search of him, on the morning to which +we refer. But Uncle Dozie was not to be found. The gardener, +however, thought that he could not have gone very far, for he had +passed near him not five minutes before; and he suggested that, +perhaps Mr. Hubbard was going out somewhere, for "he looked kind +o' spruce and drest up." Mr. Hubbard expected his brother to dine +at home, and thought the man mistaken. In passing an arbour, +however, he caught a glimpse of the individual he was looking +for, and on coming nearer, he found Uncle Dozie, dressed in a new +summer suit, sitting on the arbour seat taking a nap, while at +his feet was a very fine basket of vegetables, arranged with more +than usual care. Unwilling to disturb him, his brother, who knew +that his naps seldom lasted more than a few minutes at a time, +took a turn in the garden, waiting for him to awake. He had +hardly left the arbour however, before he heard Uncle Dozie +moving; turning in that direction, he was going to join him, +when, to his great astonishment, he saw his brother steal from +the arbour, with the basket of vegetables on his arm, and +disappear between two rows of pea-brush. + +"James!--I say, James!--Where are you going? Stop a minute, I +want to speak to you!" cried Mr. Joseph Hubbard. + +He received no answer. + +"James!--Wait a moment for me! Where are you?" added the +merchant; and walking quickly to the pea-rows, he saw his brother +leave them and dexterously make for the tall Indian-corn. Now +Uncle Dozie was not in the least deaf; and his brother was +utterly at a loss to account for his evading him in the first +place, and for his not answering in the second. He thought the +man had lost his senses: he was mistaken, Uncle Dozie had only +lost his heart. Determined not to give up the chase, still +calling the retreating Uncle Dozie, he pursued him from the +pea-rows into the windings of the corn-hills, across the walk to +another growth of peas near the garden paling. Here, strange to +say, in a manner quite inexplicable to his brother, Uncle Dozie +and his vegetables suddenly disappeared! Mr. Hubbard was +completely at fault: he could scarcely believe that he was in his +own garden, and that it was his own brother James whom he had +been pursuing, and who seemed at that instant to have vanished +from before his eyes--through the fence, he should have said, had +such a thing been possible. Mr. Hubbard was a resolute man; he +determined to sift the matter to the bottom. Still calling upon +the fugitive, he made his way to the garden paling through the +defile of the peas. No one was there--a broad, open bed lay on +either hand, and before him the fence. At last he observed a +foot-print in the earth near the paling, and a rustling sound +beyond. He advanced and looked over, and to his unspeakable +amazement, saw his brother, James Hubbard, busily engaged there, +in collecting the scattered vegetables which had fallen from his +basket. + +"Jem!--I have caught you at last, have I? What in the name of +common sense are you about there?" + +No reply was made, but Uncle Dozie proceeded to gather up his +cauliflowers, peas and tomatoes, to the best of his ability. + +"Did you fly over the fence, or through it?" asked his brother, +quite surprised. + +"Neither one nor the other," replied Uncle Dozie, sulkily. "I +came through the gate." + +"Gate!--why there never was a gate here!" + +"There is one now." + +And so there was; part of the paling had been turned into a +narrow gate. + +"Why, who cut this gate, I should like to know?" + +"I did." + +"You did, Jem? What for?--What is the use of it?" + +"To go through." + +"To go where? It only leads into Mrs. Wyllys's garden." + +Uncle Dozie made no answer. + +"What are you doing with those vegetables? I am really curious to +know." + +"Going to carry them down there," said Uncle Dozie. + +"Down where?" repeated Uncle Josie, looking on the ground strewed +with vegetables. + +"Over there." + +"Over where?" asked the merchant, raising his eyes towards a +neighbouring barn before him. + +"Yonder," added Uncle Dozie, making a sort of indescribable nod +backward with his head. + +"Yonder!--In the street do you mean? Are you going to throw them +away?" + +"Throw away such a cauliflower as this!" exclaimed Uncle Dozie, +with great indignation. + +"What are you going to do with them, then?" + +"Carry them to the house there." + +"What house?" + +"Mrs. Wyllys's, to be sure," replied Uncle Dozie, boldly. + +"What is the use of carrying vegetables to Mrs. Wyllys? She has a +garden of her own" said his brother, very innocently. + +"Miserable garden--poor, thin soil," muttered Uncle Dozie. + +"Is it? Well, then, I can understand it; but you might us well +send them by the gardener." + +Uncle Dozie made no reply, but proceeded to arrange his +vegetables in the basket, with an eye to appearances; he had +gathered them all up again, but another object which had fallen +on the grass lay unnoticed. + +"What is that--a book?" asked his brother. + +Uncle Dozie turned round, saw the volume, picked it up, and +thrust it in his pocket. + +"Did you drop it? I didn't know you ever carried a book about +you," replied his brother, with some surprise. "What is it?" + +"A book of poetry." + +"Whose poetry?" + +"I am sure I've forgotten," replied Uncle Dozie, taking a look +askance at the title, as it half-projected from his pocket. "It's +Coleridge's Ancient Mariner," he added. + +{"Coleridge's..." = "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" (1798) by +the English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834). A number of +chapter epigraphs in "Elinor Wyllys" are taken from this famous +poem} + +"What in the world are you going to do with it?" said his +brother, with increasing surprise. + +"I wanted a volume of poetry." + +"You--Jem Hubbard! Why, I thought Yankee-Doodle was the only +poetry you cared for!" + +"I don't care for it, but she does." + +"She!--What SHE?" asked Uncle Josie, with lively curiosity, but +very little tact, it would seem. + +"Mrs. Wyllys," was the laconic reply. + +"Oh, Mrs. Wyllys; I told her some time ago that she was very +welcome to any of our books." + +"It isn't one of your books; it's mine; I bought it." + +"It wasn't worth while to buy it, Jem," said his brother; "I dare +say Emmeline has got it in the house. If Mrs. Wyllys asked to +borrow it, you ought to have taken Emmeline's, though she isn't +at home; she just keeps her books to show off on the +centre-table, you know. Our neighbour, Mrs. Wyllys, seems quite a +reader." + +"She doesn't want this to read herself," observed Uncle Dozie. + +"No?--What does she want it for?" + +"She wants me to read it aloud." + +Uncle Josie opened his eyes in mute astonishment. Uncle Dozie +continued, as if to excuse himself for this unusual offence: "She +asked for a favourite volume of mine; but I hadn't any favourite; +so I bought this. It looks pretty, and the bookseller said it was +called a good article." + +"Why, Jem, are you crazy, man!--YOU going to read poetry aloud!" + +"Why not?" said Uncle Dozie, growing bolder as the conversation +continued, and he finished arranging his basket. + +"I believe you are out of your head, Jem; I don't understand you +this morning. What is the meaning of this?--what are you about?" + +"Going to be married," replied Uncle Dozie, not waiting for any +further questions, but setting off at a brisk step towards Mrs. +Wyllys's door. + +Mr. Joseph Hubbard remained looking over the fence in silent +amazement; he could scarcely believe his senses, so entirely was +he taken by surprise. In good sooth, Uncle Dozie had managed +matters very slily, through that little gate in the garden +paling; not a human being had suspected him. Uncle Josie's doubts +were soon entirely removed, however; he was convinced of the +reality of all he had heard and seen that morning, when he +observed his brother standing on Mrs. Wyllys's steps, and the +widow coming out to receive him, with a degree of elegance in her +dress, and graciousness in her manner, quite perceptible across +the garden: the fair lady admired the vegetables, ordered them +carried into the cellar, and received Coleridge's Ancient Mariner +from Uncle Dozie's hands, while they were still standing beneath +the rose-covered porch, looking sufficiently lover-like to remove +any lingering doubts of Uncle Josie. After the happy couple had +entered the house, the merchant left his station at the paling, +and returned to his own solitary dinner, laughing heartily +whenever the morning scene recurred to him. We have said that +Uncle Dozie had managed his love affairs thus far so slyly, that +no one suspected him; that very afternoon, however, one of the +most distinguished gossips of Longbridge, Mrs. Tibbs's mother, +saw him napping in Mrs. Wyllys's parlour, with a rose-bud in his +button-hole, and the Ancient Mariner in his hand. She was quite +too experienced in her vocation, not to draw her own conclusions; +and a suspicion, once excited, was instantly communicated to +others. The news spread like wild-fire; and when the evening-bell +rang, it had become a confirmed fact in many houses, that Mrs. +Wyllys and Mr. James Hubbard had already been privately married +six months. + + + +CHAPTER XIV. {XXXVII} + +"Now tell me, brother Clarence, what think you +Of this ----------------- ?" +Henry VI. + +{William Shakespeare, "3 Henry VI", IV.i.1-2} + +BEFORE the end of the week, the friends at Wyllys-Roof, after +carefully examining all the facts within their knowledge, were +confirmed in their first opinion, that the individual claiming to +be William Stanley was an impostor. Mrs. Stanley was the last of +the three to make up her mind decidedly, on the point; but at +length, she also was convinced, that Mr. Clapp and this sailor +had united in a conspiracy to obtain possession of her husband's +estate. The chief reasons for believing this to be the case, +consisted in the difference of CHARACTER and EXPRESSION between +the claimant and William Stanley: the more Mr. Wyllys examined +this point, the clearer it appeared to him, who had known his +friend's only son from an infant, and had always felt much +interested in him. As a child, and a boy, William Stanley had +been of a morose temper, and of a sluggish, inactive mind--not +positively stupid, but certainly far from clever; this claimant, +on the contrary, had all the expression and manner of a shrewd, +quick-witted man, who might be passionate, but who looked like a +good-natured person, although his countenance was partially +disfigured by traces of intemperance. These facts, added to the +length of time which had elapsed since the reported death of the +individual, the neglect to claim his inheritance, the suspicious +circumstances under which this sailor now appeared, under the +auspices of an obscure country lawyer, who bore an indifferent +character, and to whom the peculiar circumstances of the Stanley +estate were probably well known, all united in producing the +belief in a conspiracy. There was no doubt, however, but that a +strong case could be made out on the other hand by the claimant; +it was evident that Mr. Reed was convinced of his identity; his +resemblance to William Stanley, and to Mr. Stanley, the father, +could not be denied; the similarity of the handwriting was also +remarkable; his profession, his apparent age, his possession of +the letters, his accurate knowledge of persons and places +connected with the family, altogether amounted to an important +body of evidence in his favour. + +It would require a volume in itself, to give the details of this +singular case; but the general reader will probably care for +little more than an outline of the proceedings. It would indeed, +demand a legal hand to do full justice to the subject; those who +are disposed to inquire more particularly into the matter, having +a natural partiality, or acquired taste for the intricate +uncertainties of the law, will probably have it in their power +ere long, to follow the case throughout, in print; it is +understood at Longbridge, that Mr. James Bernard, son of Judge +Bernard, is engaged in writing a regular report, which, it is +supposed, will shortly be published. In the mean time, we shall +be compelled to confine ourselves chiefly to a general statement +of the most important proceedings, more particularly connected +with our narrative. + +"Here is a letter from Clapp, sir, proposing a compromise," said +Hazlehurst, handing the paper to Mr. Wyllys. It was dated two +days after the interview at Wyllys-Roof; the tone was amicable +and respectful, though worded in Mr. Clapp's peculiar style. We +have not space for the letter itself, but its purport was, an +offer on the part of Mr. Stanley to forgive all arrears, and +overlook the past, provided his father's estate, in its actual +condition, was immediately placed in his hands. He was urged to +take this step, he said, by respect for his opponents, and the +conviction that they had acted conscientiously, while he himself +by his own neglect to appear earlier, had naturally given rise to +suspicion. He was therefore ready to receive the property as it +stood at present, engaging that neither executors nor legatee +should be molested for arrears; the sums advanced to Hazlehurst, +he was willing should be considered equivalent to the legacy +bequeathed to him by Mr. Stanley, the father, in case of his +son's return, although in fact they amounted to a much larger +sum. + +This offer of a compromise merely confirmed the suspicions of all +parties at Wyllys-Roof. The offer was rejected in the same letter +which announced to Mr. Reed, that the defendants had seen as yet +no good reason for believing in the identity of the individual +claiming the name of William Stanley, and consequently, that they +should contest his claim to the Stanley estate. + +After this step, it became necessary to make every preparation +for a trial; as it was already evident, from the usual legal +notices of the plaintiffs, that they intended to carry the case +into a court of justice, with as little delay as possible. It was +the first object of Mr. Wyllys and Hazlehurst, to obtain as much +testimony as lay within their reach, upon the points of the +capacity and natural temperament of William Stanley; letters were +written, in the hope of discovering something through the old +family physician, the school-master, and companions of the young +man before he went to sea; and Mrs. Stanley even believed that +the nurse of her step-son was still living. Agents were also +employed, to search out some clue, which might help to trace the +past life and character of the individual bearing the name of +William Stanley. Harry was only awaiting the expected arrival of +Mr. Ellsworth, before he set out himself for the little town in +the neighbourhood of Greatwood, where he hoped to gather much +useful evidence. To what degree he was also desirous of the +pleasure of meeting Mrs. Creighton again, we cannot say; but his +friends at Wyllys-Roof believed that he was quite as anxious to +see the sister as the brother. He had not long to wait, for, +punctual to the appointed day, the earliest possible, Mr. +Ellsworth arrived, accompanied by Mrs. Creighton. + +"Now, Mr. Hazlehurst, come here and tell me all about these +vexatious proceedings," said Mrs. Creighton to Harry, as the +whole party left the dining-room for the piazza, the day Mr. +Ellsworth and his sister arrived at Wyllys-Roof. "I hope you and +Frank found out, in that long consultation you had this morning, +that it would not be difficult to settle the matter as it ought +to be settled?" + +"On the contrary, we agreed that there were a great many serious +difficulties before us." + +"You don't surely think there is any real danger as to the +result?" asked the lady with great interest. "You cannot suppose +that this man is really William Stanley, come to life again!" + +"No; I believe him to be an impostor; and so does Ellsworth--so +do we all; but he makes out quite a plausible story, +nevertheless." + +"But what are you going to do? Come, sit down here, and tell me +about it." + +"You forget, Josephine," said Mr. Ellsworth, smiling, "that we +lawyers dare not trust the ladies with our secrets; you must +contrive to restrain your curiosity, or interest--whichever you +choose to call it--until the trial." + +"Nonsense!--I am quite too much interested for that; I shall +expect to hear a great deal before the trial. Is it possible your +stock of patience will last till then, Miss Wyllys?" added the +lady, turning to Elinor. + +"Well, I don't know; I confess myself very anxious as to the +result," said Elinor, blushing a little. + +"To be sure; we are all anxious; and I expect to be taken into +your confidence, Mr. Hazlehurst, quite as far as you legal +gentlemen think it safe to admit a lady. Frank has a very bad +habit of never trusting me with his business matters, Miss +Wyllys; we must cure him of that." + +"I am inclined to think, Mrs. Creighton, your patience would +scarcely hear the recital of even one case of Richard Roe versus +John Doe," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"Perhaps not; for I care not a straw for Richard Roe, or John +Doe, either." + +"Would you really like to see the account which this newcomer +gives of himself?" asked Hazlehurst. + +"Certainly; I speak seriously, I assure you." + +"You shall see it this evening," said Harry. "I think you will +agree with me, that it is a strange story." + +"But, Mrs. Creighton," said Mr. Wyllys, "we have had our heads so +full of law, and conspiracies, and impostors, lately, that I was +in hopes you would bring us something more agreeable to think and +talk about. What were the people doing at Nahant when you left +there?" + +"It was very dull there; at least I thought so; I was in a great +hurry for Frank to bring me away." + +"What was wanting, pray?" asked Mr. Wyllys. "Was it the fault of +the weather, the water, or the company?" + +"Of all together, sir; nothing was of the right kind; it was not +half so pleasant as Saratoga this year. Even the flirtations were +not as amusing as usual." + +"I should have thought you might have been amused in some other +way," said Mr. Ellsworth. + +"Flirtation, I would have you believe, my good brother, is +sometimes quite an agreeable and exciting pastime." + +"Faute de mieux," said Harry, smiling. + +{"faute de mieux" = for want of anything better (French)} + +"You surprise me, Josephine, by saying so, as you are no flirt +yourself," observed her brother, with a perfectly honest and +natural expression. + +"Well, I don't know; certainly I never flirt intentionally; but I +won't be sure my spirits have not carried me away sometimes. Have +you never, Miss Wyllys, in moments of gaiety or excitement, said +more than you intended to?" + +"Have I never flirted, do you mean?" asked Elinor, smiling. + +"But though you say it yourself, I don't believe you are a bit of +a flirt, Mrs. Creighton," said the unsuspicious Mr. Wyllys. + +"Oh, no, sir; I would not have you believe me a regular flirt for +the world. I only acknowledge to a little trifling, now and then. +Miss Wyllys knows what I mean; we women are more observant of +each other. Now, haven't you suspected me of flirting more than +once?" + +"You had better ask me," said Mary Van Alstyne; "Elinor is not +half suspicious enough." + +"The acquittal of the gentlemen ought to satisfy you," said +Elinor. "They are supposed to be the best judges. Are you sure, +however, that you did not flirt with Mr. Hopkins?--he was at +Nahant with you, I believe." + +"I am afraid it surpasses the power of woman to distract Mr. +Hopkins's attention from a sheepshead or a paugee." + +{"sheepshead" and "paugee" (porgy) = names applied to a number of +American fish esteemed by anglers} + +"You have really a very pretty view here, Miss Wyllys, although +there is nothing bold or commanding in the country; it makes a +very pleasant home picture," observed Mr. Ellsworth, who had been +looking about him. "That reach in the river has a very good +effect; the little hamlet, too, looks well in the distance; and +the wood and meadow opposite, are as well placed as one could +wish." + +"I am glad you like it; but we really think that, for such simple +scenery, it is uncommonly pretty," replied Elinor. + +"Yes; even your fastidious friend, Mr. Stryker, pronounced the +landscape about Wyllys-Roof to be very well put together," said +Mrs. Creighton. + +"Mr. Stryker, however, professes to have no eye for anything of +the kind," replied Elinor. + +"That is only one of the man's affectations; his eyes are more +like those of other people than he is willing to confess. Though +Mr. Stryker pretends to be one of your men of the world, whose +notions are all practical, yet one soon discovers that he +cherishes his useless foibles, like other people," said the lady, +with an air of careless frankness; though intending the speech +for the benefit of Hazlehurst and Mr. Wyllys, who both stood near +her. + +"Perhaps you don't know that Mr. Stryker has preceded you into +our neighbourhood," said Mary Van Alstyne. "He is staying at Mr. +de Vaux's." + +"Oh, yes; I knew he was to be here about these times. Pray, tell +me which is Mr. de Vaux's place. It is a fine house, I am told." + +"A great deal too fine," said Harry. "It is all finery, or rather +it was a few years since." + +"It is much improved now," observed Elinor; "he talks of taking +down half the columns. That is the house, Mrs. Creighton," she +added, showing the spot where the white pillars of Colonnade +Manor were partly visible through an opening in the wood. + +"What a colonnade it seems to be! It puts one in mind of the +Italian epigram on some bad architecture," said Mr. Ellsworth: + +"'Care colonne che fate qua? +Non sappiamo, in verita!'" + +{"Care colonne..." = Dear columns, what are you doing here? We +really don't know! (Italian)} + +"I understand, Miss Wyllys, that your friend, Mr. Stryker, calls +it the 'cafe de mille colonnes,'" said Mrs. Creighton. + +{"cafe de mile colonnes" = coffee-house of a thousand columns +(French)} + +"Does Mrs. Creighton's friend, Mr. Stryker, treat it so +disrespectfully? Mr. de Vaux has given it a very good name, I +think. It is Broadlawn now; last year it was Colonnade Manor." + +"And, pray, what did Mr. Taylor's manorial rights consist in?" +asked Mr. Ellsworth. + +"In the privilege of putting up as many Grecian summer-houses as +he pleased, I suppose," said Harry; "the place promised to be +covered with them at one time." + +"Mr. de Vaux has taken them down; all but two at least," said +Elinor. + +"It was fortunate that Mr. Taylor had a long purse," remarked +Mrs. Creighton; "for he seems to have delighted in superfluities +of all kinds." + +"I suppose you are aware, Mrs. Creighton, that false taste is +always a very expensive foible," said Mr. Wyllys; "for it looks +upon ornament and improvement as the same thing. My neighbour, +Mr. Taylor, certainly has as much of that spirit as any man I +ever knew." + +"The name he gave his place is a good proof of that," said Harry. +"If he had called it the Colonnade, that would have been at least +descriptive and appropriate; but he tacked on the Manor, which +had neither rhyme nor reason to recommend it." + +"Was it not a Manor before the revolution?" inquired Mrs. +Creighton. + +"Oh, no; only a farm belonging to the Van Hornes. But Taylor +would not have it called a farm, for the world; he delights in +big words," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"That is only natural, I suppose, for 'Don Pompey,' as Mr. +Stryker calls him," observed Mr. Ellsworth. + +The following morning was the happy occasion, which was to make +Mrs. George Wyllys the wife of Uncle Dozie. In the course of the +week, which intervened between her announcing the fact at +Wyllys-Roof, and the wedding itself, she had only consulted her +friends twice, and changed her mind as often. At first it was +settled that she was to be married at two o'clock, in church, +with four witnesses present, and that from church she was to +return quietly to her own house, where the party were to eat a +family dinner with her. A note, however, informed her friends +that it was finally decided, that the wedding should take place +early in the morning, at her own house, in the presence of some +dozen friends. The dinner was also postponed for a fortnight, as +the happy couple intended to set out for Boston, the morning they +were united. + +The weather was propitious; and after an early breakfast the +party from Wyllys-Roof set out. It included Mr. Ellsworth and +Mrs. Creighton, who were connexions of the bride, as well as +Harry, and the family; Mary Van Alstyne remaining at home with +Jane. + +They soon reached Longbridge, after a pleasant, early drive. On +being ushered into Mrs. Wyllys's drawing-room, they were received +in a very informal manner by the bride herself. As Elinor had +recommended a grey silk for the wedding-dress, she was not at all +surprised to find her aunt wearing a coloured muslin. On one +point, however, it was evident she had not changed her mind; for +the happy man, Uncle Dozie, was there in full matrimonials, with +a new wig, and a white waistcoat. The groom elect looked much +like a victim about to be sacrificed; he was as miserably +sheepish and fidgety as ever old bachelor could be under similar +circumstances. Mrs. Creighton paid her compliments to the bride +very gracefully; and she tried to look as if the affair were not +a particularly good joke. Mr. Wyllys summoned up a sort of +resigned cheerfulness; Miss Agnes and Elinor also endeavoured to +look as became wedding-guests. The children, who had all received +presents from the bridegroom, evidently thought the occasion a +holiday. The clergyman having appeared, Mrs. Wyllys gave her hand +to the trembling groom, and the important transaction was soon +over. + +'There is, at least, no danger of Uncle Dozie's taking a nap,' +thought Harry, 'he looks too nervous and uncomfortable for that.' + +Congratulations and good wishes were duly offered; they served +only to increase the bridegroom's distress, while the bride +appeared perfectly satisfied, and in very good spirits. She felt +disposed to make a cheerful sacrifice for the benefit of her +children, to whom she had secured an efficient protector, while +at the same time, she was now sure of a prudent friend and +counsellor for life: so at least she informed Mrs. Creighton. + +"I am sorry your brother is not here, Mr. Hubbard." + +"He went to New York, on business, last night," said the groom. + +"I hope you will have a pleasant trip to Boston," continued Mr. +Wyllys. + +"Thank you for the wish, sir," interposed the bride, "but we +determined last evening to go to Niagara, as we have both been to +Boston already." + +'We shall hear of you at New Orleans, yet,' thought Harry. + +Refreshments were brought in, and everybody, of course, received +their usual share of the wedding-cake. + +"You see I have set you an excellent example," said the bride to +Mrs. Creighton and Elinor. + +"We must hope that these ladies will soon follow it," said Mr. +Ellsworth, with a glance at Elinor. + +"Shall we thank him, Miss Wyllys?" said Mrs. Creighton. "It was +kindly meant, I dare say." + +Mr. Wyllys, who was standing near them, smiled. + +"It was only yesterday, Elinor," added the new Mrs. Hubbard, +"that Black Bess, who made the cake you are eating, told me when +she brought it home, that she hoped soon to make your own +wedding-cake." + +"She has had the promise of it ever since I was five years old," +said Elinor, + +"Is it possible that Black Bess is still living and baking?" said +Harry. "I can remember her gingerbread, as long as I can +recollect anything. I once overheard some Longbridge ladies +declare, that they could tell Black Bess's cake as far as they +could see it; which struck me as something very wonderful." + +"She seems to be a person of great importance," said Mrs. +Creighton; "I shall hope soon to make her acquaintance. My dear +Miss Elinor, I wish you would bear in mind that your wedding-cake +has been ordered these dozen years. I am afraid you forget how +many of us are interested in it, as well as Black Bess." + +"Our notable housekeepers you know, tell us that wedding-cake +will bear keeping half-a-century," said Elinor, smiling. + +"That is after the ceremony I am sure, not before," said Mrs. +Creighton. + +Elinor seemed at last annoyed by these persevering allusions, and +several persons left the group. Hazlehurst took a seat by Miss +Patsey; he was anxious to show her that her brother-in-law's +behaviour, had in no manner changed his regard for herself and +her family. + +"Where is Charlie," he asked. + +"He has gone off to Lake Champlain now. I hope you and Charlie +will both soon get tired of travelling about, Mr. Hazlehurst; you +ought to stay at home with your friends." + +"But I don't seem to have any home; Charlie and I are both by +nature, home-bred, home-staying youths, but we seem fated to +wander about. How is he coming on with his pictures?--has he +nearly done his work on the lakes?" + +"Yes, I believe so; he has promised to come to Longbridge next +month, for the rest of the summer. He has been distressed, quite +as much as the rest of us, Mr. Hazlehurst, by these +difficulties--" + +"Do not speak of them, Miss Patsey; it is a bad business; but one +which will never interfere between me and my old friends, I +trust." + +Miss Patsey looked her thanks, her mortification, and her +sympathy, but said nothing more. + +The carriage which was to convey the bride and groom to the +steamboat, soon drove to the door; and taking leave of their +friends, the happy couple set off. They turned back, however, +before they were out of sight, as Mrs. Hubbard wished to change +the travelling-shawl she had first selected for another. Mr. +Wyllys, Elinor, and Harry accompanied them to the boat; and they +all three agreed, that the groom had not yet been guilty of +napping; although Hazlehurst declared, that as the seats on deck +were cool and shady, he had little doubt that he would be dozing +before the boat was out of sight. + +Those who feel the same anxiety for the welfare of the children, +during their mother's absence, which weighed upon the mind of +Miss Agnes, will be glad to hear that they were all three carried +to Wyllys-Roof, under the charge of an experienced nurse. And it +must be confessed, that it was long since little George, a +riotous child, some seven years old, had been kept under such +steady, but kind discipline, as that under which he lived, during +this visit to his grandfather. + +Mr. Ellsworth and Harry passed the morning at Longbridge, engaged +with their legal affairs; and in the evening Hazlehurst left +Wyllys-Roof for Philadelphia; and Mrs. Stanley accompanied him, +on her way to Greatwood. + + + +CHAPTER XV. {XXXVIII} + +"------- But by the stealth +Of our own vanity, we're left so poor." +HABINGTON. + +{William Habington (English poet and dramatist, 1605-1664), +"Castara" I.20-21} + +Now that Harry had left the house, Mrs. Creighton's attention was +chiefly given to Mr. Wyllys; although she had as usual, smiles, +both arch and sweet, sayings, both piquant and agreeable, for +each and all of the gentlemen from Broadlawn, who were frequent +visiters at Wyllys-Roof. Mr. Stryker, indeed, was there half the +time. It was evident that the lady was extremely interested in +Hazlehurst's difficulties; she was constant in her inquiries as +to the progress of affairs, and listened anxiously to the many +different prognostics as to the result. Miss Agnes remarked +indeed, one day, when Mr. Ellsworth thought he had succeeded in +obtaining an all-important clue, in tracing the previous career +of Harry's opponent, that his sister seemed much elated--she sent +an extremely amiable message to Hazlehurst in her brother's +letter. It afterwards appeared, however, on farther inquiry, that +this very point turned out entirely in favour of the sailor, +actually proving that nine years previously he had sailed in one +of the Havre packets, under the name of William Stanley. Mrs. +Creighton that evening expressed her good wishes for Harry, in a +much calmer tone, before a roomfull {sic} of company. + +"Ladies, have you no sympathizing message for Hazlehurst?" +inquired Mr. Ellsworth, as he folded a letter he had been +writing. + +"Oh, certainly; we were sorry to hear the bad news;" and she then +turned immediately, and began an animated, laughing conversation +with Hubert de Vaux. + +'What a difference in character between the brother and sister,' +thought Miss Agnes, whose good opinion of Mr. Ellsworth had been +raised higher than ever, by the earnest devotion to his friend's +interest, which appeared throughout his whole management of the +case. + +The family at Wyllys-Roof were careful to show, by their friendly +attention to the Hubbards, that their respect and regard for them +had not suffered at all by the steps Mr. Clapp had taken. Miss +Agnes and Elinor visited the cottage as frequently as ever. One +morning, shortly after the wedding, Miss Wyllys went to inquire +after Mrs. Hubbard, as she was in the habit of doing. She found +Mary Hubbard, the youngest daughter, there, and was struck on +entering, by the expression of Miss Patsey's face--very different +from her usual calm, pleasant aspect. + +"Oh, Miss Wyllys!" she exclaimed, in answer to an inquiry of Miss +Agnes's--"I am just going to Longbridge! My poor, kind uncle +Joseph!--but he was always too weak and indulgent to those +girls!" + +"What has happened?" asked Miss Wyllys, anxiously. + +"Dreadful news, indeed; Mrs. Hilson has disgraced herself!--Her +husband has left her and applied for a divorce! But I do not +believe it is half as bad as most people think; Julianna has been +shamefully imprudent, but I cannot think her guilty!" + +{"Her husband has left her..." = this incident seems to reflect +the unhappy marriage between Henry Nicholas Cruger (1800-1867) -- +a close friend of the Cooper family -- and the free-wheeling +Harriet Douglas (1790-1872). After their 1833 marriage, Harriet +Douglas insisted on living her own life -- often in Europe; +Cruger eventually left her and in 1843 began a lengthy and highly +public divorce action based on desertion. The Cooper family +strongly disapproved of Harriet Douglas, and she is believed to +have been an inspiration for the free-wheeling Mary Monson in +James Fenimore Cooper's last novel, "The Ways of the Hour" +(1850)} + +Miss Wyllys was grieved to hear such a bad account of her old +neighbour's daughter. + +"Her husband has left her, you say; where is she now?" + +"Her father brought her home with him. He went after her to +Newport, where she had gone in the same party with this man--this +Mr. de Montbrun, and a person who lives in the same +boarding-house, a Mrs. Bagman, who has done a great deal of harm +to Julianna." + +"Sad, indeed!" exclaimed Miss Agnes. + +"Charles says it is heart-rending, to see my poor uncle, who was +so proud of his good name--thought so much of his daughters! +Often have I heard him say: 'Let them enjoy life, Patsey, while +they are young; girls can't do much harm; I love to see them look +pretty and merry.' They never received any solid instruction, and +since her marriage, Julianna seems to have been in bad company. +She had no children to think about, and Mr. Hilson's time is +always given to his business; her head was full of nonsense from +morning till night; I was afraid no good would come of it." + +"It is at least a great point, that she should have come back +with her father." + +"Yes, indeed; I am thankful for it, from the bottom of my heart. +Oh, Miss Wyllys, what a dreadful thing it is, to see young people +going on, from one bad way to another!" exclaimed Miss Patsey. + +"We must hope that her eyes will be opened, now." + +"If she had only taken warning from what Charles told her about +this Mr. de Montbrun; he had seen him at Rome, and though he had +no positive proofs, knew he was a bad man, and told Mrs. Hilson +so. It is surely wrong, Miss Wyllys, to let all kinds of +strangers from foreign countries into our families, without +knowing anything about them." + +"I have often thought it very wrong," said Miss Agnes, earnestly. + +"But Mrs. Hilson wouldn't believe a word Charles said. She talked +a great deal about aristocratic fashions; said she wouldn't be a +slave to prudish notions--just as she always talks." + +"Where was her husband, all this time?" + +"He was in New York. They had not agreed well for some time, on +account of her spending so much money, and flirting with +everybody. At last he heard how his wife was behaving, and went +to Saratoga. He found everybody who knew her, was talking about +Julianna and this Frenchman. They had a violent quarrel, and he +brought her back to town, but gave her warning, if ever she spoke +again to that man he would leave her. Would you believe it!--in +less than a week, she went to the theatre with him and this Mrs. +Bagman! You know Mr. Hilson is a quiet man in general, but when +he has made up his mind to anything, he never changes it: when he +came in from his business, and found where his wife had gone, he +wrote a letter to Uncle Joseph, and left the house." + +"But what does Mrs. Hilson say? Does she show any feeling?" + +"She cries a great deal, but talks just as usual; says she is a +victim to her husband's brutality and jealousy. It seems +impossible to make her see things in their right light. I hope +and pray that her eyes may be opened, but I am afraid it will be +a long time before they are. But it is hard, Miss Wyllys, to open +the eyes of the blind and deluded! It is more than mortal man can +do!" + +"Yes; we feel at such times our miserable weakness, and the +influence of evil upon human nature, more, perhaps, than at any +other moment!" + +"That is true, indeed. I have often thought, Miss Wyllys, that +those who have watched over a large family of children and young +people, have better notions about the true state of human nature, +than your great philosophers. That has been the difficulty with +Uncle Hubbard; he said girls in a respectable family were in no +danger of doing what was wrong; that he hated preaching and +scolding, and could not bear to make young people gloomy, by +talking to them about serious subjects. My father always taught +me to think very differently; he believed that the only way to +help young people to be really happy and cheerful, was to teach +them to do their duty." + +"It would be well, if all those who have charge of young persons +thought so!" exclaimed Miss Agnes. + +"But, oh, Miss Wyllys, I dread seeing my poor uncle! Charles +writes me word that he is quite changed--pale and care-worn--so +different from his usual look; he says my uncle has grown ten +years older in the last week. And such a kind, indulgent father +as he has been!" + +Tears filled Miss Wyllys's eyes. "Is his daughter Emmeline at +home?" she asked. + +"Yes; and Emmeline seems more sobered by this terrible business, +than Mrs. Hilson herself. She sent for me, thinking I might be of +some service to Julianna, and persuade her to stay at home, and +not return to Mrs. Bagman, as she threatens to do." + +A wagon was waiting to carry Miss Patsey to Longbridge, and Miss +Agnes begging that she might not detain her, she set out on her +painful duty. On arriving at her uncle's house, she almost +dreaded to cross the threshold. She found Mr. Hubbard in the +dining-room; he paid no attention to her as she opened the door, +but continued walking up and down. She scarcely knew how to +address him; the common phrases of greeting that rose to her lips +seemed misplaced. He either did not see her, or would not notice +her. She then walked quite near to him, and holding out her hand, +said in a calm tone: + +"Uncle, I have come to see Julianna." + +The muscles of his face moved, but he made no answer. + +"I have come to stay with her, if you wish it." + +"Thank you," he said, in a thick voice. + +"Is there anything I can do for you?" + +"What can be done?" he said, bitterly, and almost roughly. + +"Do you wish me to stay?" + +"Yes; I am obliged to you for coming to see a woman of bad +reputation." + +Patsey left him for the present. She found her cousins together; +Emmeline's eyes were red, as if she had just been weeping; Mrs. +Hilson was stretched on a sofa, in a very elegant morning-gown, +reading a novel of very doubtful morality. Patsey offered her +hand, which was taken quite cavalierly. + +"Well, Patsey," she said, "I hope you have not come to be a spy +upon me." + +"I have come to see you, because I wish to be of service to you, +Julianna." + +"Then, my dear child, you must bring his High-Mightiness, my +jealous husband to reason," said the lady, smoothing a fold in +her dress. Patsey made no answer, and Mrs. Hilson looked up. "If +you are going to join the rest of them against me, why I shall +have nothing to do with you; all the prim prudes in the world +won't subdue me, as my good-man might have found out already." + +"Where is your husband?" asked Miss Patsey, gravely, but quietly. + +"I am sure I don't know; he has been pleased to abandon me, for +no reason whatever, but because I chose to enjoy the liberty of +all women of fortune in aristocratic circles. I would not submit +to be made a slave, like most ladies in this country, as Mrs. +Bagman says. I choose to associate with whom I please, gentlemen +or ladies. What is it makes the patrician orders so delightful in +Europe?--all those who know anything about it, will tell you that +it is because the married women are not slaves; they have full +liberty, and do just as they fancy, and have as many admirers as +they please; this very book that I am reading says so. That is +the way things are managed in high life in Europe." + +"What sort of liberty is it you wish for, Julianna? The liberty +to do wrong? Or the liberty to trifle with your reputation?" + +Mrs. Hilson pouted, but made no answer. + +"I cannot think the kind of liberty you speak of is common among +good women anywhere," continued Patsey, "and I don't think you +can know so much about what you call HIGH LIFE in Europe, +Julianna, for you have never been there. I am sure at least, that +in this country the sort of liberty you seem to be talking about, +is only common in very LOW LIFE; you will find enough of it even +here, among the most ignorant and worst sort of people," said +Miss Patsey, quietly. + +Mrs. Hilson looked provoked. "Well, you are civil, I must say, +Miss Patsey Hubbard; of all the brutal speeches that have been +made me of late, I must say that yours is the worst!" + +"I speak the truth, though I speak plainly, Julianna." + +"Yes plainly enough; very different from the refinement of Mrs. +Bagman, I can assure you; she would be the last person to come +and tyrannize over me, when I am a victim to my husband's +jealousy. But I have not a creature near me to sympathize with +me!" + +"Do not say that; your father is down-stairs, grown old with +grief during the last week!" + +Mrs. Hilson did not answer. + +"You have known me all your life, from the time you were a +child," added Miss Patsey, taking her cousin's passive hand in +her own; "and I ask, if you have ever known me to deceive you by +an untruth?" + +"I am sure I don't know," replied her cousin, carelessly. + +"Yes, you do know it, Julianna. Trust me, then; do not shut your +ears and your eyes to the truth! You are in a very dangerous +situation; look upon me as your friend; let me stay with you; let +me help you! My only motive is your own good; even if I believed +you really guilty, I should have come to you; but I do not +believe you guilty!" + +"I am much obliged to you," said her cousin, lightly. "But I +happen to know myself that I have committed no such high crime +and misdemeanour." + +"Yes, you have trifled so far with your reputation, that the +world believes you guilty, Julianna." + +"Not fashionable people. I might have gone on for years, enjoying +the friendship of an elegant lady like Mrs. Bagman, and receiving +the polite attentions of a French nobleman, had it not been for +the countrified notions of Pa and Mr. Hilson; and now, I am torn +from my friends, I am calumniated, and the Baron accused of being +an impostor! But the fact is, as Mrs. Bagman says, Mr. Hilson +never has understood me!" + +Patsey closed her eyes that night with a heavy heart. She did not +seem to have produced the least impression on Mrs. Hilson. + +How few people are aware of the great dangers of that common +foible, vanity! And yet it is the light feather that wings many a +poisoned dart; it is the harlequin leader of a vile crew of +evils. Generally, vanity is looked upon as merely a harmless +weakness, whose only penalty is ridicule; but examine its true +character, and you will find it to be one of the most dangerous, +and at the same time one of the most contemptible failings of +humanity. There is not a vice with which it has not been, time +and again, connected; there is not a virtue that has not been +tainted by its touch. Men are vain of their vices, vain of their +virtues; and although pride and vanity have been declared +incompatible, probably there never lived a proud man, who was not +vain of his very pride. A generous aspect is, however, sometimes +assumed by pride; but vanity is inalterably contemptible in its +selfish littleness, its restless greediness. Who shall tell its +victims--who shall set bounds to its triumphs? Reason is more +easily blinded by vanity than by sophistry; time and again has +vanity misdirected feeling; often has vanity roused the most +violent passions. Many have been enticed on to ruin, step by +step, with the restless lure of vanity, until they became +actually guilty of crimes, attributed to some more sudden, and +stronger impulse. How many people run into extravagance, and +waste their means, merely from vanity! How many young men +commence a career of folly and wickedness, impelled by the +miserable vanity of daring what others dare! How many women have +trifled with their own peace, their own reputation, merely +because vanity led them to receive the first treacherous homage +of criminal admiration, when whispered in the tones of false +sentiment and flattery! The triumphs of vanity would form a +melancholy picture, indeed, but it is one the world will never +pause to look at. + +The eldest daughter of Mr. Hubbard, the worthy Longbridge +merchant, without strong passions, without strong temptations, +was completely the victim of puerile vanity. The details of her +folly are too unpleasant to dwell on; but the silly ambition of +playing the fine lady, after the pattern of certain European +novels, themselves chiefly representing the worst members of the +class they claim to depict, was the cause of her ruin. She had so +recklessly trifled with her reputation, that although her +immediate friends did not believe the worst, yet with the world +her character was irretrievably lost. At five-and-twenty she had +already sacrificed her own peace; she had brought shame on her +husband's name, and had filled with the bitterest grief, the +heart of an indulgent father. Happily, her mother was in the +grave, and she had no children to injure by her misconduct. + +Patsey Hubbard continued unwearied in her kind endeavours to be +of service to her kinswoman; anxious to awaken her to a sense of +her folly, and to withdraw her from the influence of bad +associates. + +"It is right that society should discountenance a woman who +behaves as Julianna has done," said she one day, to Mrs. Hubbard, +on returning home; "but, oh, mother, her own family surely, +should never give her up while there is breath in her body!" + + + +CHAPTER XVI. {XXXIX} + +"That which you hear, you'll swear you see, +There is such unity in the proofs." +Winter's Tale. + +{William Shakespeare, "A Winter's Tale", V.ii.31-32} + +WHEN Hazlehurst arrived at the little village in the +neighbourhood of Greatwood, he was so fortunate as to find that +many persons among the older members of the community, had a +perfect recollection of William Stanley, and were ready to +testify, to the best of their knowledge, as to any particulars +that might be of service in the case. + +His first inquiry was, for the young man's nurse. He discovered +that she had recently removed into a neighbouring state, with the +son, in whose family she had lived since leaving the Stanleys. As +soon as Harry had accompanied Mrs. Stanley to Greatwood, he set +out in pursuit of this person, from whom he hoped to obtain +important evidence. On arriving at the place where she was now to +be found, he was much disappointed, for her faculties had been so +much impaired by a severe attack of paralysis, that he could +learn but little from her. She seemed to have cherished a warm +affection for the memory of William Stanley, whose loss at sea +she had never doubted. Whenever his name was mentioned she wept, +and she spoke with feeling and respect of the young man's +parents. But her mind was much confused, and it was impossible to +make any use of her testimony in a court of justice. + +Thus thrown back upon those who had a less intimate personal +knowledge of the young man, Harry pursued his inquiries among the +families about Greatwood, and the village of Franklin +Cross-Roads. With the exception of a few newcomers, and those who +were too young to recollect eighteen years back, almost everybody +in the neighbourhood had had some acquaintance with William +Stanley. He had been to school with this one; he had sat in +church, in the pew next to that family; he had been the constant +playfellow of A-----; and he had drawn B----- into more than one +scrape. Numerous stories sprang up right and left, as to his +doings when a boy; old scenes were acted over again, and past +events, mere trifles perhaps at the time, but gaining importance +from the actual state of things, were daily brought to light; +there seemed no lack of information connected with the subject. + +We must observe, however, before we proceed farther, that +Hazlehurst had no sooner arrived at Greatwood, than he went to +look after the set of the Spectator, to which the volume produced +at the interview had belonged. He found the books in their usual +place on an upper shelf, with others seldom used; every volume +had the double names of Mr. Stanley and his son, but the set was +not complete; there was not only one volume missing, but two were +wanting! Hazlehurst sprang from the steps on which he was +standing, when he made this discovery, and went immediately in +pursuit of Mrs. Stanley, to inquire if she knew which volume was +originally missing. She could not be sure, but she believed it +was the eighth. Such was the fact; the eighth volume was not in +its place, neither was the sixth, that which Mr. Clapp had in his +possession; yet Mrs. Stanley was convinced, that only two years +previously, there had been but one volume lost. Harry tried to +revive his recollection of the time and place, when and where, he +had read that volume, with the portrait of Steele, and Addison's +papers on the Paradise Lost; he should have felt sure it was at +Greatwood, not long before going abroad with Mr. Henley, had it +not been, that he found his brother had the very same edition in +Philadelphia, and he might have read it there. He also +endeavoured to discover when and how the second missing volume +had been removed from its usual place on the shelf. But this was +no easy task; neither the housekeeper--a respectable woman, in +whom Mrs. Stanley and himself had perfect confidence--nor the +servants, could form even a surmise upon the subject. At last +Harry thought he had obtained a clue to everything; he found that +two strangers had been at Greatwood in the month of March, that +year, and had gone over the whole house, representing themselves +as friends of the family. The housekeeper had forgotten their +visit, until Harry's inquiries reminded her of the fact; she then +gave him the name of the young woman who had gone over the house +with these two individuals. This girl was no longer at Greatwood, +but in the neighbouring village; at Mrs. Stanley's request, +however, she came to give a report of the circumstance. + +{"Spectator" = Susan Fenimore Cooper has been forgetful; the +sailor, it was stated in Chapter 12, had a copy of Volume three; +Addison's essays on Paradise Lost, that Harry remembered reading, +are in fact contained in Volumes four and five; but we are now +told that it is Volumes six and eight that are missing from the +shelf!} + +"It was in March these two strangers were here, you say, +Malvina?" observed Mrs. Stanley. + +"Yes, ma'am; it was in March, when the roads were very bad." + +"What sort of looking persons were they, and how old should you +have called them?" asked Hazlehurst. + +"One was a tall and slim gentleman, with curly hair; the other +looked kind o' rough, he was stout, and had a red face; they +wasn't very young, nor very old." + +"Tell us, if you please, all you remember about their visit, just +as it passed," said Harry. + +"Well, it happened Mrs. Jones was sick in her room when they +called; they wanted to see the house, saying they knew the family +very well. I asked them to sit down in the hall, while I went to +tell Mrs. Jones; she hadn't any objections, and told me to show +them the rooms they wanted to see. So I took them over the +house--first the parlours, then the other rooms." + +"Did they ask to see the bed-rooms?" + +"Yes, sir; they went over all the house but the garret; they went +into the kitchen and the pantry." + +"Did they stay some time?" + +"Yes, sir; Mrs. Jones wondered they staid so long." + +"Did they go into the library?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"Do you remember whether they looked at the books?" + +"No; they didn't stay more than a minute in the library." + +"Are you sure they did not look at any of the books?" repeated +Harry. + +"I am quite sure they didn't, for the room was too dark, and they +only staid half-a-minute. I asked them if I should open the +shutters; but one of them said they didn't care; he said he was +never over-fond of books." + +Mrs. Stanley and Harry here exchanged looks of some surprise. + +"Did they talk much to each other?--do you remember what they +said?" continued Harry. + +"Yes, they talked considerable. I reckon they had been here +before, for they seemed to know a good deal about the house. When +I showed them the south parlour, the gentleman with the red face +said everything looked natural to him, but that room most of all; +then he pointed to the large chair by the fire-place, and said: +'That is where I last saw my father, in that very chair; he was a +good old gentleman, and deserved to have a better son.'" + +"Is it possible!" exclaimed Mrs. Stanley. + +"But, my dear madam, it was all acting no doubt; they wished to +pass for the characters they have since assumed; it only proves +that the plot has been going on for some time." "Do you remember +anything else that was said?" added Hazlehurst, turning again to +the girl. + +"They talked considerable, but I didn't pay much attention. They +inquired when Mr. Hazlehurst was coming home; I said I didn't +know. The one with the curly hair said he guessed they knew more +about the family than I did; and he looked queer when he said +so." + +Nothing further was gathered from this girl, who bore an +excellent character for truth and honesty, though rather stupid. +The volume of the Spectator still remained as much a mystery as +ever. Nor did a second conversation with this young woman bring +to light anything new; her answers on both occasions corresponded +exactly; and beyond proving the fact of Clapp's having been over +the house with the sailor, nothing was gained from her report. At +the second conversation, Harry asked if she knew whether these +strangers had remained long in the neighbourhood? + +"I saw them the next day at meeting," she replied, "and Jabez +told me he met them walking about the place; that is all I know +about it, sir." + +Jabez, one of the men on the farm, was questioned: he had seen +these two strangers walking about the place, looking at the barns +and stables, the same day they had been at the house; but he had +not spoken to them; and this was the amount of his story. + +Harry then inquired at the taverns in the neighbourhood; and he +found that two persons, answering to the same description, had +staid a couple of days, about the middle of March, at a small +inn, within half a mile from Greatwood. Their bill had been made +out in the name of "Mr. Clapp and friend." This was satisfactory +as far as it went, and accounted for the sailor's knowledge of +the house; though Mrs. Stanley could not comprehend at first, how +this man should have pointed out so exactly, her husband's +favourite seat. Harry reminded her, however, that Clapp had +passed several years of his youth at Franklin Cross-Roads, in a +lawyer's office, and had very probably been at Greatwood during +Mr. Stanley's life-time. + +Hazlehurst had drawn up a regular plan of action for his +inquiries; and after having discovered who could assist him, and +who could not, he portioned off the neighbourhood into several +divisions, intending to devote a day to each--calling at every +house where he hoped to gain information on the subject of +William Stanley. + +He set out on horseback early in the morning, for his first day's +circuit, taking a note-book in his pocket, to record facts as he +went along, and first turning his horse's head towards the house +of Mrs. Lawson, who had been a constant playfellow of William +Stanley's, when both were children. This lady was one of a large +family, who had been near neighbours of the Stanleys for years, +and on terms of daily intimacy with them; and she had already +told Harry, one day when she met him in the village, that she +held herself in readiness to answer, to the best of her ability, +any questions about her former playmate, that he might think it +worth while to ask. On knocking at this lady's door, he was so +fortunate as to find Mrs. Lawson at home; and, by especial luck, +Dr. Lewis, a brother of her's, who had removed from that part of +the country, happened just then to be on a visit at his sister's. + +After a little preliminary chat, Hazlehurst made known the +particular object of his call. + +"Do I remember William Stanley's personal appearance and habits? +Perfectly; quite as well as I do my own brother's," replied the +doctor, to Harry's first inquiry. + +"Mrs. Lawson told me that he used to pass half his time at your +father's house, and kindly offered to assist me, as far as lay in +her power; and I look upon myself as doubly fortunate in finding +you here to-day. We wish, of course, to collect as many minute +details as possible, regarding Mr. Stanley's son, as we feel +confident, from evidence already in our power, that this +new-comer is an impostor." + +"No doubt of it," replied the doctor; "an extravagant story, +indeed! Nearly eighteen years as still as a mouse, and then +coolly stepping in, and claiming a property worth some hundreds +of thousands. A clear case of conspiracy, without doubt." + +"Poor William was no saint, certainly," added Mrs. Lawson; "but +this sailor must be a very bad man." + +"Pray, when did you last see young Stanley!" asked Harry, of the +lady. + +"When he was at home, not long before his father's death. He held +out some promise of reforming, then. Billings, who first led him +into mischief, was not in the neighbourhood at that time, and his +father had hopes of him; but some of his old companions led him +off again." + +"He must have been a boy of strange temper, to leave home under +such circumstances; an only son, with such prospects before him." + +"Yes, his temper was very unpleasant; but then, Mr. Stanley, the +father, did not know how to manage him." + +"He could scarcely have had much sense either, to have been so +easily led astray by a designing young fellow, as that Billings +seems to have been." + +"Flattery; flattery did it all," observed the doctor. "Some +people thought young Stanley little more than half-witted; but I +have always maintained that he was not wanting in sense." + +"I don't see how you can say so, doctor," observed the sister. "I +am sure it was a settled thing among us children, that he was a +very stupid, disagreeable boy. He never took much interest in our +plays, I remember." + +"Not in playing doll-baby, perhaps; but I have had many a holiday +with him that I enjoyed very much, I can tell you. He never had a +fancy for a book, that is true; but otherwise be was not so very +dull as some people make out." + +"He had the reputation of being a dull boy, had he?" + +"Oh, certainly," said Mrs. Lawson. "at one time, when we were +quite children, we all took arithmetic lessons together, and he +was always at the foot of the class." + +"He had no head for figures, perhaps; it is more likely, though, +that he wouldn't learn out of obstinacy; he was as obstinate as a +mule, that I allow." + +"What sort of games and plays did he like best?" + +"I don't know that he liked one better than another, so long as +he could choose himself," replied Dr. Lewis. + +"Was he a strong, active boy?" + +"Not particularly active, but a stout, healthy lad." + +"Disposed to be tall?" + +"Tallish; the last time he was here, he must have measured about +five feet ten." + +"Oh, more than that," interposed Mrs. Lawson; "he was taller than +our eldest brother, I know--full six feet one, I should say." + +"No, no, Sophia; certainly not more than five feet nine or ten. +Remember, you were a little thing yourself at the time." + +"Do you remember the colour of his eyes, Mrs. Lawson?" + +"Yes, perfectly; they were blue." + +"Brown, I should say," added the doctor. + +"No, John, you are quite mistaken; his eyes were blue, Mr. +Hazlehurst--very dark blue." + +"I could have taken my oath they were brown," said the doctor. + +Hazlehurst looked from one to the other in doubt. + +"You were away from home, doctor, more than I was, and probably +do not remember William's face as distinctly as I do. I am quite +confident his eyes were a clear, deep blue." + +"Well, I should have called them a light brown." + +"Were they large?" asked Harry. + +"Of a common size, I think," said the brother. + +"Remarkably small, I should say," added the sister. + +"What colour was his hair?" asked Harry, giving up the eyes. + +"Black," said the doctor. + +"Not black, John--dark perhaps, but more of an auburn, like his +father's portrait," said Mrs. Lawson. + +"Why, that is black, certainly." + +"Oh, no; auburn--a rich, dark auburn." + +"There is a greyish cast in that portrait, I think," said Harry. + +"Grey, oh, no; Mr. Stanley's hair was in perfect colour when he +died; I remember him distinctly, seeing him as often as I did," +said the lady. "The hair of the Stanley family is generally +auburn," she added. + +"What do you call auburn?" said the doctor. + +"A dark, rich brown, like William Stanley's." + +"Now I call Mr. Robert Hazlehurst's hair auburn." + +"My brother's hair! Why that is sometimes pronounced sandy, and +even red, occasionally," said Harry. + +"Not red; Lawson's hair is red." + +"Mr. Lawson's hair is more of a flaxen shade," said the wife, a +little quickly. + +Despairing of settling the particular shade of the hair, Harry +then inquired if there was any strongly marked peculiarity of +face or person about William Stanley? + +Here both agreed that they had never remarked anything of the +kind; it appeared that the young man was made more like the rest +of the world, than became the hero of such a singular career. + +"Do you think you should know him, if you were to see him again, +after such a long interval?" + +"Well, I don't know," said the doctor; "some people change very +much, from boys to middle-aged manhood, others alter but little." + +"I have no doubt that I could tell in a moment, if this person is +William Stanley or an impostor," said Mrs. Lawson. "Think how +much we were together, as children; for ten years of his life, he +was half the time at our house. I am sure if this sailor were +William Stanley, he would have come to see some of us, long +since." + +"Did he visit you when he was last at Greatwood?" + +"No, he did not come at that time; but I saw him very often in +the village, and riding about." + +"Do you remember his stuttering at all?" + +"No; I never heard him that I know of; I don't believe he ever +stuttered." + +"He did stutter once in a while, Sophia, when he was in a +passion." + +"I never heard him." + +"Young Stanley had one good quality, Mr. Hazlehurst, with all his +faults; he spoke the truth--you could believe what he said." + +"My good brother, you are mistaken there, I can assure you. Time +and again have I known him tell falsehoods when he got into a +scrape; many is the time he has coaxed and teased, till he got us +children into mischief--he was a great tease, you know--" + +"Not more so than most boys," interposed the doctor. + +"And after he had got us into trouble, I remember perfectly, that +he would not acknowledge it was his fault. Oh, no; you could not +by any means depend upon what he said." + +"Was he much of a talker?" + +"No, rather silent." + +"Quite silent:" both brother and sister were in unison here, at +last. + +"He was good-looking, you think, Mrs. Lawson?" + +"Oh, yes, good-looking, certainly," replied the lady. + +"Rather good-looking; but when he was last at home, his features +had grown somewhat coarse, and his expression was altered for the +worse," said the doctor. + +"He was free with his money, I believe?" + +"Very extravagant," said Mrs. Lawson. + +"He didn't care a fig for money, unless it was refused him," said +the doctor. + +"Was there anything particular about his teeth?" + +"He had fine teeth," said Mrs. Lawson; "but he did not show them +much." + +"A good set of teeth, if I remember right," added the doctor. + +"His complexion was rather dark, I believe?" said Harry. + +"More sallow than dark," said the lady. + +"Not so very sallow," said the gentleman. + +"You asked just now about his eyes, Mr. Hazlehurst; it strikes me +they were much the colour of yours." + +"But mine are grey," said Harry. + +"More of a hazel, I think." + +"Oh, no; William Stanley's eyes were as different as possible +from Mr. Hazlehurst's, in colour and shape!" exclaimed the lady. + +The conversation continued some time longer, but the specimen +just given will suffice to show its character; nothing of +importance was elicited, and not one point decidedly settled, +which had not been already known to Harry. He continued his round +of visits throughout the day, with much the same result. The +memories of the people about Greatwood seemed to be playing at +cross-purposes; and yet there was no doubt, that all those +persons to whom Hazlehurst applied, had known young Stanley for +years; and there was every reason to believe they were well +disposed to give all the evidence in their power. + +>From Mrs. Lawson's, Harry went to the house of another +acquaintance, a Captain Johnson; and the following is the amount +of what he gathered here, as it was hastily entered in his +note-book: + +"Eyes grey; hair black; rather stout for his age; sullen temper; +very dull; bad company cause of his ruin; not cold-hearted; +stuttered a little when excited; expression good when a boy, but +much changed when first came home from sea; Billings the cause of +his ruin." + +So much for Captain Johnson. The next stopping-place was at a +man's, by the name of Hill, who had been coachman at Mr. +Stanley's for several years; his account follows: + +"Hill says: 'Would get in a passion when couldn't have his own +way; have heard him stutter; always in some scrape or other after +first went to college; eyes blue; hair brown; sharp enough when +he pleased, but always heard he hated books; short for his age +when first went to sea, and thin; had grown three or four inches +when he came back; should have thought him five feet eight or +nine, when last saw him; face grown fuller and red, when came +home.'" + +>From Hill's, Harry went to see Mr. Anderson, who had kept the +principal tavern at Franklin Cross-Roads, during William +Stanley's boyhood; but he was not at home. + +He then called at Judge Stone's: "Mrs. S. thought him handsome +young man; judge, quite ugly; husband says eyes a greenish +colour; wife thinks were dark brown; height about my own, said +judge; not near so tall, says Mrs. S.: both agreed he was morose +in temper, and dull at learning." + +At several other places where Harry called, he found that William +Stanley had been merely known by sight. Others related capital +stories of scrapes, in which they had been implicated with the +boy, but could tell Harry very little to the purpose, where it +came to particular questions. Three individuals pronounced him +tall, four thought he was middle sized, two declared he was +short. Two inferences, however, might be drawn from all that had +been said: William Stanley must have been of an unpleasant +temper; while general evidence pronounced him rather more dull +than most boys. With these two facts at least sufficiently well +established, while his head was filled with contradictory +visions, of hair, eyes, and complexion, of various shades and +colours, Harry returned in the evening, quite jaded and worn-out +with his day's exertions; not the least of which had been, to +reconcile totally opposite accounts on a dozen different points. + +Mrs. Stanley was awaiting his return with much anxiety; and while +Harry was drinking an excellent cup of tea--the most refreshing +thing in the world to a person who is fatigued, even in warm +weather--he reported his day's work. His friend seemed to think +the account anything but encouraging; though Harry declared, that +it was well worth the labour and vexation to establish the two +facts, regarding the young man's capacity and temper, in which +respects he certainly differed from the claimant. + +"What miserable hypocrites both this man and his lawyer must be!" +exclaimed Mrs. Stanley. + +"Hypocrisy figures often enough in courts of justice, ma'am, and +is only too often successful for a time." + +"I am afraid, my dear Harry, they will give you a great deal of +trouble!" + +"I have no doubt of it," replied Hazlehurst; "but still I hope to +defeat them, and in the end, to punish their vile conspiracy." + +"A defeat would he distressing to both Mr. Wyllys and myself; but +to you, my dear young friend, it would be serious indeed!" she +observed, with feeling. + +"We shall yet gain the day, I trust," said Harry. "The +consequences of defeat would indeed be very serious to me," he +added. "In such a case I should lose everything, and a little +more, as Paddy would say. I made a deliberate calculation the +other day, and I find, after everything I own has been given up, +that there would still be a debt of some thirty thousand dollars +to pay off." + +"It is wise, I suppose, to be prepared for the worst," said Mrs. +Stanley, sadly; "but in such a case, Harry, you must look to your +friends. Remember, that I should consider it a duty to assist +you, in any pecuniary difficulties which might result from a +defeat." + +"You are very good, ma'am; I am grateful for the offer. In case +of our failure, I should certainly apply to my immediate friends, +for I could never bear the thought of being in debt to those +rascals. But if the affair turns out in that way, I must stay at +home and work hard, to clear myself entirely. I am young, and if +we fail to repel this claim, still I shall hope by industry and +prudence, to discharge all obligations before I am many years +older." + +"I have never doubted, Harry, that in either case you would do +what is just and honourable; but I mourn that there should be any +danger of such a sacrifice." + +"It would be a sacrifice, indeed; including much that I have +valued heretofore--tastes, habits, partialities, prospects, +fortune, hopes--all must undergo a change, all must he +sacrificed." + +"And hopes are often a precious part of a young man's portion," +said Mrs. Stanley. + +Hazlehurst happened to raise his eyes as she spoke, and, from the +expression of her face, he fancied that she was thinking of Mrs. +Creighton. He changed colour, and remained silent a moment. + +"You would be compelled to give up your connexion with Mr. +Henley," she observed, by way of renewing the conversation. + +"Yes, of course; I should have to abandon that, I could not +afford it; I should have to devote myself to my profession. I +have no notion, however, of striking my colours to these +land-pirates until after a hard battle, I assure you," he said, +more cheerfully. "Great generals always prepare for a retreat, +and so shall I, but only as the last extremity. Indeed, I think +our affairs look more encouraging just now. It seems next to +impossible, for such a plot to hold together in all its parts; we +shall be able probably, to find out more than one weak point +which will not bear an attack." + +"It is certainly important to establish the difference in temper +and capacity, between the claimant and William Stanley," said +Mrs. Stanley. + +"Highly important; Ellsworth is hard at work, too, in tracing the +past life of the sailor, and by his last letters, I find he had +written to young Stanley's school-master, and to the family +physician. He had seen the sailor, and in addition to Mr. +Wyllys's remarks upon his gait, which is different from that of +William when a boy, Ellsworth writes, that he was very much +struck with the shape of the man's limbs, so different from those +of the portrait of Mr. Stanley's son, when a lad, which they have +at Wyllys-Roof; he thinks the family physician may help him +there; fortunately, he is still living." + +"It is a great pity the nurse's faculties should have failed!" +exclaimed Mrs. Stanley. + +"Yes, it's a pity, indeed; her evidence would have been very +important. But we shall do without her, I hope." + +"Are you going to Wyllys-Roof again, before the trial?" + +"No; I shall have too much to do, here and in Philadelphia. Mr. +Wyllys has kindly asked me, however, to go there, as soon as the +matter is settled, whether for good or for evil." + +"I thought I heard you talking over with Mr. de Vaux, some +boating excursion, to take place in August, from Longbridge; has +it been given up?" + +"Not given up; but de Vaux very good-naturedly proposed +postponing it, until after my affairs were settled. It is to take +place as soon as I am ready; whether I shall join it with flying +colours, or as a worsted man, time alone can decide." + +The mail was just then brought in; as usual there was a letter +for Harry, from Ellsworth. + +"Wyllys-Roof, August, 183-. + +"Our application to the family physician proves entirely +successful, my dear Hazlehurst; my physiological propensities +were not at fault. I had a letter last evening from Dr. H-----, +who now lives in Baltimore, and he professes himself ready to +swear to the formation of young Stanley's hands and feet, which +he says resembled those of Mr. Stanley, the father, and the three +children, who died before William S. grew up. His account agrees +entirely with the portrait of the boy, as it now exists at +Wyllys-Roof; the arms and hands are long, the fingers slender, +nails elongated; as you well know, Mr. Clapp's client is the very +reverse of this--his hands are short and thick, his fingers what, +in common parlance, would be called dumpy. I was struck with the +fact when I first saw him in the street. Now, what stronger +evidence could we have? A slender lad of seventeen may become a +heavy, corpulent man of forty, but to change the formation of +hands, fingers, and nails, is beyond the reach of even Clapp's +cunning. We are much obliged to the artist, for his accuracy in +representing the hands of the boy exactly as they were. This +testimony I look upon as quite conclusive. As to the Rev. Mr. +G-----, whose pupil young Stanley was for several years, we find +that he is no longer living; but I have obtained the names of +several of the young's man's companions, who will be able to +confirm the fact of his dullness; several of the professors at +the University are also living, and will no doubt be able to +assist us. I have written a dozen letters on these points, but +received no answers as yet. So far so good; we shall succeed, I +trust. Mr. Wyllys bids you not forget to find out if Clapp has +really been at Greatwood, as we suspected. The ladies send you +many kind and encouraging messages. Josephine, as usual, +sympathizes in all our movements. She says: 'Give Mr. Hazlehurst +all sorts of kind greetings from me; anything you please short of +my love, which would not be proper, I suppose.' I had a charming +row on the river last evening, with the ladies. I never managed a +law-suit in such agreeable quarters before. + +"Faithfully yours, + +"F. E." + + + +CHAPTER XVII. {XL} + +"What say you, can you love this gentleman?" +Romeo and Juliet. + +{William Shakespeare, "Romeo and Juliet", I.iii.79} + +JANE'S strength and spirits were gradually improving. She had +been persuaded to take a daily airing and had consented to see +one or two of the ladies in her room. Mr. Wyllys always passed +half an hour with her, every afternoon; and at length she came +down stairs, and joined the family in the drawing-room, for a +short time in the evening. Mr. and Mrs. Robert Hazlehurst, who +came from Philadelphia to pass a day or two with her, found her +much better than they had expected. + +Charlie Hubbard returned to the grey cottage, with his portfolio +full of sketches, intending to pass several months at home, in +finishing his pictures of Lake George; the school-room having +been converted into a painting-room for his use. Miss Patsey's +little flock were dispersed for a time; and Charlie was even in +hopes of persuading his mother and sister to accompany him to New +York, where Mary Hubbard, the youngest sister, was now engaged in +giving music lessons. He felt himself quite a rich man, and drew +up a plausible plan for hiring a small house in some cheap +situation, where they might all live together; but Miss Patsey +shook her head, she thought they could not afford it. Still, it +was delightful to her, to listen to plans devised by Charlie's +warm heart; she seemed to love him more than ever, since he had +even sacrificed his moustaches to his mother's prejudice against +such foreign fashions. + +"Keep your money, Charles; we can make out very well in the old +cottage; more comfortably than we have ever done before. You will +want all you can make one of these days, when you marry," said +Miss Patsey. + +To her surprise, Charlie showed some emotion at this allusion to +his marrying, and remained perfectly silent for an instant, +instead of giving the playful answer that his sister had expected +to hear. + +Mrs. Hubbard then observed, that she should not wish to move; she +hoped to end her life in the old grey cottage. They had lived so +long in the neighbourhood of Longbridge, that a new place would +not seem like home to Patsey and herself. Charlie must come to +see them as often as he could; perhaps he would be able to spend +his summers there. + +"Well, we shall see, mother; at any rate, Mary and I together, we +shall be able to make your life easy, I trust." + +Mrs. Hubbard observed, that although they had been poor for the +last seventeen years, yet they had never really seemed to feel +the weight of poverty; they had met with so much kindness, from +so many relations and friends. + +"But kindness from our own children, mother, is the most blessed +of all," said Patsey. + +Charlie did not give up his plan, however, but he forbore to +press it for the present, as he was engaged to drive his sister, +Mrs. Clapp, to her own house at Longbridge. Hubbard had kept +aloof from his brother-in-law whenever he could, since the +Stanley suit had been commenced; any allusion to this affair was +painful to him; he had never respected Mr. Clapp, and now +strongly suspected him of unfair dealing. He pitied his sister +Kate from the bottom of his heart; but it seemed pity quite +thrown away. To judge from her conversation, as Charlie was +driving her home, she had implicit confidence in her husband; if +she had at first doubted the identity of the sailor, she had +never for a second supposed, that William himself was not firmly +convinced of it. On the other hand, she began to have some +misgivings as to the character and integrity of Mr. Wyllys, whom +hitherto, all her life long, she had been used to consider as the +model of a gentleman, and an upright man. She soon got up quite a +prejudice against Mrs. Stanley; and as for Hazlehurst, he fell +very low indeed in her estimation. + +"You don't know what trouble poor William has with this suit," +she said to her brother. "I am sometimes afraid it will make him +sick. It does seem very strange, that Mr. Stanley's executors +should be so obstinate in refusing to acknowledge his son. At +first it was natural they should hesitate; I mistrusted this +sailor at first, myself; but now that William has made everything +so clear, they cannot have any excuse for their conduct." + +Charlie whipped the flies from his horse, without answering this +remark. + +"I hope William will come home to-night. He and Mr. Stanley have +gone off together, to get possession of some very important +papers; they received a letter offering these papers, only the +night before last, and William says they will establish Mr. +Stanley's claim, beyond the possibility of a denial. Mr. Wyllys +and Mr. Hazlehurst will feel very badly, I should think, when +they find that after all, they have been keeping their friend's +son from his rights." + +"They believe they are doing their duty," said Charlie, +laconically. + +"It seems a strange view of duty, to act as they do." + +"Strange views of duty are very common," said Charlie, glad to +take refuge in generalities. + +"Common sense and common honesty will help us all to do our +duty," observed Kate. + +"No doubt; but both are more uncommon qualities than one would +think, among rational beings," said Charlie. + +"Well, you know, Charles, Patsey used to tell us when we were +children, that a plain, honest heart, and plain, good sense were +the best things in the world." + +"That is the reason, I suppose, why we love our sister Patsey so +much, because she has so much of those best things in the world," +said Charlie, warmly. "I never saw a woman like her, for +downright, plain goodness. The older I grow, the better I know +her; and I love you, Kate, for the same reason--you are +straightforward and honest, too," he added, smiling. + +"William often laughs at me, though, and says my opinion is not +good for much," said the sister, shaking her head, but smiling +prettily at the same time. + +"I am sure no one can complain of your actions, Kate, whatever +your opinions may be," replied Charlie; and whatever might have +been his estimate of Clapp's views, he forbore to utter a +syllable on the subject; for he respected the wife's affection, +and knew that his brother-in-law had at least one good +quality--he was kind and faithful as a husband and father, +according to common-place ideas of faithfulness at least; for he +would any day risk their character and peace, to make a little +money. + +The conversation of the young people soon turned upon their +trifling, foolish, unfortunate cousin, Mrs. Hilson; and this was +a subject, upon which both brother and sister agreed entirely. +Before long, they drove up to Mr. Clapp's door, and were received +by the lawyer himself, who had just returned with his client; +this latter individual was also seen lounging in the office. Mr. +Clapp professed himself entirely satisfied with the result of his +journey; and declared that they were now quite ready for Mr. +Hazlehurst--sure of a victory, beyond all doubt. + +The time had not been lost by Harry and his friends, however; +they too, thought themselves ready for the trial. As the +important day was drawing near, Mr. Ellsworth was obliged to +leave Wyllys-Roof; he had done all he could at Longbridge, and +there were still various matters to be looked after in +Philadelphia. Mrs. Creighton accompanied her brother, and they +were not to return to Wyllys-Roof until after the important +question was decided. Hazlehurst was then to come with them; +whether defeated or triumphant could not yet be known. Harry's +friends, however, were generally sanguine; and Mrs. Creighton was +full of sympathy, and in excellent spirits. + +There remained another affair, which must also be finally settled +in a few weeks. When Mr. Ellsworth returned to Wyllys-Roof, the +appointed three months of probation would have expired, and he +would either remain there as the affianced husband of Elinor, or +leave Longbridge her rejected suitor. + +During the past three months, Elinor had taken an important step +in life; she had reached a point in experience, where she had +never stood before. The whole responsibility of deciding upon a +subject, highly important to herself, and to those connected with +her, had been thrown entirely upon her alone. The fate of her +whole life would be much involved in the present decision. During +the last two or three years, or in other words, since she had +first discovered that Harry loved Jane, she had intended to +remain single. It seemed very improbable to her, that any one +would seek to gain her affections, unless with the view of +enjoying the fortune which she had now the reputation of +possessing; it was only natural that she should exaggerate those +personal disadvantages, which had lost the heart of him whom she +had once loved so truly. She had been so much attached to +Hazlehurst, that she shrunk from the idea of ever becoming the +wife of another; and she considered herself as having tacitly +made choice of a single life, which her mother's letter seemed to +suggest. But as she never spoke of her views, or alluded to them, +her grandfather and aunt were ignorant of this intention; and she +soon began to observe with regret that they wished her to marry, +and were indeed anxious that she should accept Mr. Ellsworth. +This was the first occasion of any importance, on which their +wishes and her own had been at variance; it was a new position +for Elinor to be placed in. When Mr. Ellsworth made his proposal, +it was owing to the strong, but affectionate representations of +Mr. Wyllys and Miss Agnes, that he was not immediately rejected. +Elinor was, in fact, the last person to be convinced of his +regard for her; but she had known his character and standing too +well to believe him a mere fortune-hunter; and after he had once +offered himself, could not doubt his sincerity. She mentioned to +Miss Wyllys her previous intention of remaining single. + +"Make no rash decision, my love," was the reply at the time. "You +are too reasonable, for me to believe that you will do so; look +at your own position, Elinor; you will be alone in the world, +more so than most women. Your grandfather is advanced in years, +and my health warns me not to expect a long life. I do not wish +to distress you, but to place the truth plainly before you, my +Elinor. You have neither brother nor sister; Jane and Harry, your +intimate companions in childhood, will be separated from you by +ties and duties of their own. What will you do, my child? An +affectionate disposition like yours cannot be happy alone. On the +other hand, here is Mr. Ellsworth, who is certainly attached to +you; a man of excellent character, with every important quality +that can be desired. You say you wish to be reasonable; judge for +yourself what is the wisest course under these circumstances." + +Elinor was silent for a moment; at length she spoke. + +"It has always been one of your own lessons to me, dearest aunt, +to profit by the past, to improve the present, and leave the +future to Providence. Yet, now, you would have me think of the +future only; and you urge me to marry, while you are single, and +happy, yourself!" + +"Yes, my child; but I have had your grandfather and you, to make +me happy and useful. Most single women have near relatives, to +whom they can attach themselves, whom it is a duty and a pleasure +to love and serve; but that is not your case. Elinor, your +grandfather is very anxious you should accept Mr. Ellsworth." + +"I know it," said Elinor; "he has told me so himself." + +"He is anxious, dear, because from what he knows of Mr. Ellsworth +and yourself, he is convinced you would eventually be happy; he +fears you hesitate from some feeling of girlish romance. Still, +we have neither of us any wish to urge you too far. Appeal to +your own good, common sense, that is all that can be desired; do +not be romantic, dear, for the first time in your life," +continued her aunt smiling. "I know the wishes of your friends +will have some weight with you; do not let them control you, +however. Judge for yourself, but take time to reflect; accept Mr. +Ellsworth's own proposition--wait some time before you give a +final answer; that is all that your grandfather and myself can +ask." + +And such had been the decision; three months being the time +appointed. Since then, both Mr. Wyllys and Miss Agnes had +carefully refrained from expressing any farther opinion--they +never even alluded to the subject, but left Elinor to her own +reflections. Such at least was their intention; but their wishes +were well known to her, and very possibly, unconsciously +influenced their conduct and manner, in many daily trifles, in a +way very evident to Elinor. In the mean time, September had come, +and the moment for final decision was at hand. Mr. Ellsworth's +conduct throughout had been very much in his favour; he had been +persevering and marked in his attentions, without annoying by his +pertinacity. Elinor had liked him, in the common sense of the +word, from the first; and the better she knew him, the more cause +she found to respect his principles, and amiable character. And +yet, if left to her own unbiassed judgment, she would probably +have refused him at first, with no other reluctance than that of +wounding for a time the feelings of a man she sincerely esteemed. + +The morning that Mrs. Creighton and Mr. Ellsworth left +Wyllys-Roof, Elinor set out to take a stroll in the field, with +no other companion than her friend Bruno. The dog seemed aware +that his mistress was absent and thoughtful, more indifferent +than usual to his caresses and gambols; and, after having made +this observation, the sagacious animal seemed determined not to +annoy her, but walked soberly at her side, or occasionally +trotting on before, he would stop, turn towards her, and sit in +the path, looking at her as she slowly approached. She had left +the house, in order to avoid any intrusion on her thoughts, at a +moment which was an important one to her; for she had determined, +that after one more thorough examination of her own feelings, her +own views, and the circumstances in which she was placed, the +question should be irrevocably settled--whether she were to +became the wife of Mr. Ellsworth, or to remain single. Many +persons may fancy this a very insignificant matter to decide, and +one that required no such serious attention. But to every +individual, that is a highly important point, which must +necessarily affect the whole future course of life; the choice +which involves so intimate and indissoluble a relation, where +every interest in life is identical with one's own, is surely no +trifling concern. It may well be doubted, indeed, if even with +men it be not a matter of higher importance than is commonly +believed; observation, we think, would lead to the opinion, that +a wife's character and conduct have a deeper and more general +effect on the husband's career, for good or for evil, through his +opinions and actions, than the world is aware of. This choice +certainly appeared a much more formidable step to Elinor, when +Mr. Ellsworth was the individual to be accepted or rejected, than +it had when Harry stood in the same position. In one case she had +to reflect, and ponder, and weigh all the different +circumstances; in the other, the natural bent of her affections +had decided the question before it was asked. But Elinor had, +quite lately, settled half-a-dozen similar affairs, with very +little reflection indeed, and without a moment's anxiety or +regret; she had just refused, with polite indifference, several +proposals, from persons whom she had every reason to believe, +cared a great deal for her fortune, and very little for herself. +If thought were more active than feeling, in behalf of Mr. +Ellsworth, still, thought said a great deal in his favour. She +had always liked and respected him; she believed him attached to +her; her nearest friends were anxious she should give a +favourable answer; there could not be a doubt that he possessed +many excellent and desirable qualities. She would not be +romantic, neither would she be unjust to Mr. Ellsworth and +herself; she would not accept him, unless she could do so +frankly, and without reluctance. This, then, was the question to +be decided--could she love Mr. Ellsworth? The free, spontaneous +love, natural to early youth, she had once given to Hazlehurst; +could she now offer to Mr. Ellsworth sincere affection of another +kind, less engrossing at first, less mingled with the charms of +fancy, but often, perhaps on that account, more valuable, more +enduring? Sincere affection of any sort, is that only which +improves with age, gaining strength amid the wear and tear of +life. It was to decide this question clearly, that Elinor had +desired three months' delay. These three months had nearly +passed; when she again met Mr. Ellsworth, in what character +should she receive him? + +The precise train of thought pursued by Elinor, during this +morning stroll, we shall not attempt to follow; but that she was +fully aware of the importance of the decision was evident, by the +unusual absence of manner, which seemed to have struck even her +four-footed friend Bruno. She had, indeed, made an important +discovery lately, one which was startling, and even painful to +her. She found that there are moments in life, when each +individual is called upon to think and to act alone. It is a +truth which most of us are forced to feel, as we go through this +world; though, happily, it is but seldom that such hours occur. +In general, the sympathy, the counsel of friends, is of the very +highest value; and yet, there are moments when neither can avail. +At such times, we are forced to look higher, to acknowledge that +human wisdom does not reach far enough to guide us, that our +wounds need a purer balm than any offered by human sympathy. +Until recently, Elinor had always been soothed and supported by +the affection and guidance of her aunt, but she must now depend +upon herself alone. To a young person, called upon for the first +time to take an important step, with no other guide than +individual judgment and conscience, the responsibility of action +may well be startling; even a wise and experienced man will often +pause at such moments, doubtful of the course he shall pursue. It +is an easy matter to settle a question, when passion, feeling, +interest, or prejudice gives the bias; but where these are all +silent, and cool judgment is left alone to decide, the greatest +men feel, to a painful degree, how limited are their powers; the +high responsibility which is attached to free-will rises before +them, and they shrink from the idea of trusting their own welfare +to their own short-sighted reason alone. Most men, at such times, +take refuge in a sort of fatalism; they stand inactive, until +urged in this or that direction by the press of outward +circumstances; or they rush blindly forward, under impatience of +suspense, preferring risk to inaction. + +The occasion of our young friend's anxiety and thoughtfulness +was, no doubt, a trifling one to all but herself; the cause of +her hesitation, however, was honourable; the opinions, feelings, +and motives under which she eventually acted, were alike natural +and creditable. + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. {XLI} + +"Are you acquainted with the difference +That holds this present question, in the court?" +Merchant of Venice. + +{William Shakespeare, "The Merchant of Venice", IV.i.171-172} + +AS the time for the trial approached, the parties collected in +Philadelphia. Harry and his friends were often seen in the +streets, looking busy and thoughtful. Mr. Reed also appeared, and +took up his quarters at one of the great hotels, in company with +Mr. Clapp and his client, who generally received the name of +William Stanley, although he had not yet established a legal +claim to it. There was much curiosity to see this individual, as +the case had immediately attracted general attention in the town, +where the families interested were so well known, and the +singular circumstances of the suit naturally excited additional +interest. + +After the court opened its session, it became doubtful at one +moment, whether the cause would he tried at that term; but others +which preceded it having been disposed of, the Stanley suit was +at length called. + +On one side appeared William Stanley, the plaintiff, with Messrs. +Reed and Clapp as counsel; a number of witnesses had been +summoned by them, and were now present, mingled with the +audience. On the other hand were the defendants, Mr. Wyllys, +Hazlehurst, Ellsworth, and Mr. Grant, a distinguished lawyer of +Philadelphia, appearing more particularly for Mrs. Stanley; they +were also supported by witnesses of their own. + +While the preliminary steps were going on, the jury forming, and +the parties interested making their arrangements, the court-room +filled rapidly with the friends of Hazlehurst, and a crowd of +curious spectators. Among the individuals known to us, were +Robert Hazlehurst, Mr. Stryker, and Charlie Hubbard, the young +artist, who found that his want of inches interfered with his +view of the scene, and springing on a bench, he remained there, +and contrived to keep much the same station throughout the trial, +his fine, intelligent countenance following the proceedings with +the liveliest interest: Harry soon perceived him, and the young +men exchanged friendly smiles. Mr. Stryker was looking on with +cold, worldly curiosity; while Robert Hazlehurst watched over his +brother's interest with much anxiety. In one sense the audience +was unequally divided at first, for while Harry had many warm, +personal friends present, the sailor was a stranger to all; the +aspect of things partially changed, however, for among that +portion of the crowd who had no particular sympathies with the +defendants, a number soon took sides with the plaintiff. The +curiosity to see the sailor was very great; at one moment, in the +opening of the trial, all eyes were fixed on him; nor did Harry +escape his share of scrutiny. + +It was immediately observed, by those who had known the late Mr. +Stanley, that the plaintiff certainly resembled his family. He +was dressed like a seaman, and appeared quite easy and confident; +seldom absent from court, speaking little, but following the +proceedings attentively. His counsel, Mr. Reed, bore a calm and +business-like aspect. Clapp was flushed, his eye was keen and +restless, though he looked sanguine and hopeful; running his hand +through his dark curls, he would lean back and make an +observation to his client, turn to the right and whisper +something in the ear of Mr. Reed, or bend over his papers, +engrossed in thought. + +The defendants, on their side, were certainly three as +respectable men in their appearance, as one would wish to see; +they looked, moved, and spoke like gentlemen; in manner and +expression they were all three perfectly natural; simple, easy, +but firm; like men aware that important interests were at stake, +and prepared to make a good defence. Mr. Grant, their colleague, +was an insignificant-looking man when silent, but he never rose +to speak, without commanding the whole attention of his audience +by the force of his talent. + +The judges were-well known to be respectable men, as American +magistrates of the higher grade are usually found to be. In the +appearance of the jury there was nothing remarkable; the foreman +was a shrewd-looking man, his neighbour on the left had an open, +honest countenance, two others showed decidedly stupid faces, and +one had a very obstinate expression, as if the first idea that +entered his head, on any subject whatever, was seldom allowed to +be dislodged. + +Such was the appearance of things when the trial commenced. +Leaving the minutiae of the proceedings to the legal report of +Mr. Bernard, understood to be in the press, we shall confine +ourselves to a brief, and very imperfect outline of the speeches, +and the most important points of the testimony; merely +endeavouring to give the reader a general idea of the course of +things, on an occasion so important to Hazlehurst. + +Mr. Clapp opened the case in a regular speech. Rising from his +seat, he ran his fingers through his hair, and commenced, much as +follows: + +"We come before you on this occasion, gentlemen of the jury, to +plead a cause which it is believed is unprecedented, in its +peculiar facts, among the annals of justice in our great and +glorious country. Never, indeed, should I have believed it +possible that an American citizen could, under any circumstances +whatever, have been compelled during so long a period to forego +his just and legal rights; ay, that he could be forced to the +very verge of abandoning those rights--all but forced to forget +them. Yet, such are the facts of the case upon which you are now +to decide. The individual appearing before you this day, claiming +that the strong arm of the law be raised in his behalf, first +presented himself to me, with the very same demand, six years +since; to my shame I confess it, he was driven unaided from my +door--I refused to assist him; he had already carried the same +claim to others, and received from others the same treatment. And +what is this claim, so difficult to establish? Is it some +intricate legal question? Is it some doubtful point of law? Is it +a matter which requires much learning to decide, much wisdom to +fathom? No, gentlemen; it is a claim clearly defined, firmly +established; never yet doubted, never yet denied: it is a claim, +not only recognized in the common-law of every land, protected in +the statute-books of every nation, but it is a claim, gentlemen, +which springs spontaneously from the heart of every human +being--it is the right of a son to his father's inheritance. A +right, dear alike to the son of one of our merchant princes, and +to the son of the porter on our wharves." + +"Mr. Clapp paused; he looked about the court, rested his eyes on +his client, ran his fingers through his curls, and then +proceeded. + +"Gentlemen; I have told you that it is the right of a son to his +father's inheritance, which we this day call upon you to uphold. +It is more; it is the sacred cause of the orphan that you are to +defend. Yes, gentlemen; at the moment when William Stanley should +have taken possession of the inheritance, which was his by the +threefold title of nature, of law, and of parental bequest, he +was a mere boy, a minor, a wanderer on the deep; one of that +gallant class of men who carry the glorious colours of our great +and happy country into every port, who whiten every sea with +American canvass--he was a roving sailor-boy!" + +And setting out from this point, Mr. Clapp made a general +statement of the case, coloured by all the cheap ornaments of +forensic eloquence, and varied by allusions to the glory of the +country, the learning of all judges, particularly American +judges, especially the judges then on the bench; the wisdom of +all juries, particularly American juries, especially the jury +then in the box. He confessed that his client had been guilty of +folly in his boyhood; "but no one, gentlemen, can regret past +misconduct more than Mr. Stanley; no son ever felt more deeply +than himself, regret, that he could not have attended the +death-bed of his father, received his last blessing, and closed +his eyes for the last time!" Mr. Clapp then read parts of Mr. +Stanley's will, gave an outline of his client's wanderings, and +was very particular with names and dates. The sailor's return was +then described in the most pathetic colours. "He brought with +him, gentlemen, nothing but the humble contents of a sailor's +chest, the hard-earned wages of his daily toil; he, who in +justice was the owner of as rich a domain as any in the land!" +The attempts of this poor sailor to obtain his rights were then +represented. "He learned the bitter truth, gentlemen, that a poor +seaman, a foremast hand, with a tarpaulin hat and round-jacket, +stood little chance of being heard, as the accuser of the rich +and the powerful--the men who walked abroad in polished beavers, +and aristocratic broad-cloths." Aristocracy having once been +brought upon the scene, was made to figure largely in several +sentences, and was very roughly handled indeed. To have heard Mr. +Clapp, one would have supposed aristocracy was the most sinful +propensity to which human nature was liable; the only very +criminal quality to which republican nature might he inclined. Of +course the defendants were accused of this heinous sin; this +brilliant passage concluded with a direct allusion to the "very +aristocratic trio before him." Mr. Stanley was declared to be no +aristocrat; he was pronounced thoroughly plebeian in all his +actions and habits. "Like the individual who has now the honour +of addressing you, gentlemen, Mr. Stanley is entirely free, in +all his habits and opinions, from the hateful stain of +aristocracy." He continued, following his client's steps down to +the present time, much as they are already known to the reader. +Then, making a sudden change, he reviewed the conduct of the +defendants as connected with his client. + +{"Aristocracy" = Susan Fenimore Cooper was very familiar with +court proceedings in the 1840s. Her father was at this time +involved in a series of generally successful libel suits against +newspapers, which defended themselves by accusing him of being +"aristocratic," a sore point, as he had repeatedly denounced +aristocracy as the worst of all forms of government} + +"What were their first steps at the death of Mr. Stanley, the +father? Merely those which were absolutely necessary to secure +themselves; they inquired for the absent son, but they inquired +feebly; had they +waited with greater patience he would have appeared, for the +story of his disinheritance would never have reached him. Whence +did that story proceed from? It is not for me to say; others now +present may be able to account for it more readily. No, +gentlemen, it is a bitter truth, that the conduct of the +executors has been consistent throughout, from the moment they +first took possession of the Stanley estate, until their +appearance in this court; the conduct of the rival legatee has +also been marked by the same consistent spirit of opposition, +from the time of his first interview with Mr. Stanley, after he +had arrived at years of discretion, and knew the value of the +estate he hoped to enjoy; from the moment, I say, when he coolly +ordered the unfortunate sailor to be locked up in Mr. Wyllys's +smoke-house, until the present instant, when his only hope lies +in denying the identity of Mr. Stanley's son." Mr. Clapp dwelt +for some time upon this first interview, and the smoke-house; as +he had previously hinted to Hazlehurst, he laboured to make that +affair "look ugly," to the best of his ability. If the language +of the Longbridge lawyer had been respectful throughout the +preliminary proceedings, his tune in the court-room changed +completely. As he drew towards the close of his speech, he gave +full scope to a burst of virtuous indignation against wickedness +and hypocrisy in general, and particularly against the conduct of +the defendants. He declared himself forced to believe, that both +Mr. Wyllys and Hazlehurst had suspected the existence of William +Stanley from the first--others might have the charity to believe +they had been ignorant of the young man's existence, he only +wished he could still believe such to have been the fact--he had +believed them honestly ignorant of it, until it was no longer +possible for the prejudices of a long-standing friendship and +intimacy to blind his eyes, under the flood of light presented by +proofs as clear as day--proofs which his respected brother, the +senior counsel, and himself, were about to lay before the court. +He wished to be understood, however; he never for one moment had +included in these suspicions--so painful to every candid, upright +mind, but which had recently forced themselves upon him--he +repeated, that in them he had never included the respected lady +who filled the place of step-mother to his client, whose +representative he now saw before him, in the person of a highly +distinguished lawyer of the Philadelphia bar; he did not suppose +that that venerable matron had ever doubted the death of her +husband's son. He knew that excellent lady, had often met her in +the social circle; none admired more than he, the virtues for +which she was distinguished; he had never supposed it possible, +that if aware of the existence of William Stanley, she could have +sat down calmly to enjoy his inheritance. Such a case of +turpitude might not be without example; but he confessed that in +his eyes, it would amount to guilt of so black a dye, that he was +unwilling to accuse human nature of such depravity; it went +beyond the powers of his, Mr. Clapp's, imagination to comprehend. +No, he acquitted Mrs. Stanley of all blame; she had been +influenced and guided by the two gentlemen before him. He had +himself observed, that during all the preliminary proceedings, +the venerable step-mother of his client had shown many symptoms +of doubt and hesitation; it was his firm conviction, it was the +opinion of his client, of his brother counsel, that if left to +her own unbiassed judgment, Mrs. Stanley would immediately have +acknowledged her husband's son, and received him as such. He +appealed to the defendants themselves if this were not true; he +called upon them to deny this assertion if they could--if they +dared! Here Mr. Clapp paused a moment, and looked towards Mr. +Grant. + +The defendants had already spoken together for an instant; Mr. +Ellsworth rose: "The answer which the counsel for the plaintiff +was so anxious to receive, was reserved for its proper place in +the defence. Where so much might be said, he should scarcely be +able to confine himself within the bounds necessary at that +moment. Let the counsel for the plaintiff rest assured, however, +that the answer to that particular question, when given, would +prove, like the general answer of the defence, of a nature that +the interrogator would, doubtless, little relish." + +During Mr. Clapp's abusive remarks, and impudent insinuations +against himself and Mr. Wyllys, Hazlehurst, placing one arm on +the table before him, leaned a little, forward, and fixed his eye +steadily, but searchingly, on the face of the speaker. It proved +as Harry had expected; the lawyer looked to the right and left, +he faced the judges, the jurors; he glanced at the audience, +raised his eyes to the ceiling, or threw them upon his papers, +but not once did he meet those of Hazlehurst. + +"Gentlemen of the jury; you will observe that the question +remains unanswered!" continued Mr. Clapp, with a triumphant air. +He then contrived to appeal to his brother counsel to declare his +own impressions, and gave Mr. Reed an opportunity of affirming, +that he had believed Mrs. Stanley inclined to acknowledge their +client; he spoke calmly and impressively, in a manner very +different from the hurried, yet whining enunciation, and +flourishing gestures of his colleague. + +Mr. Clapp now proceeded to prepare the way for the evidence: he +gave a general idea of its character, expressing beforehand the +firmest conviction of its effect on the court. "I have been +engaged in hundreds of suits, gentlemen; I have been a regular +attendant in courts of law from early boyhood, and never, in the +whole course of my experience, have I met with a case, so +peculiar and so important, supported by a body of evidence so +clear, so decided, so undeniable as that which we shall +immediately lay before you;" and Mr. Clapp sat down, running his +fingers through his curls. + +The court here adjourned for an hour. The curiosity of the +audience seemed thoroughly excited; when the judges reassembled, +the room was even more crowded than in the morning. + +Before calling up the witnesses, Mr. Reed spoke for five minutes; +his dignified manner was a favourable preparation for the +testimony in the plaintiff's behalf. + +The first fact proved, was the resemblance of the plaintiff to +William Stanley; this point was thoroughly investigated, and +settled without difficulty in favour of the plaintiff--some +half-a-dozen witnesses swearing to the identity, according to the +best of their belief. The fact that the defendants themselves had +acknowledged the personal resemblance, was also made to appear; +and Mr. Reed introduced the identity of handwriting to strengthen +the personal identity--several witnesses giving their testimony +on the subject. It seemed indeed, clear, from the whole of this +part of the evidence, that there was no rational ground to doubt +any other difference, either in the personal resemblance or the +handwriting, than what might naturally exist in the same man, at +the ages of eighteen and thirty-seven. + +The statement offered to the defendants some months since, +tracing the last career of the plaintiff was now introduced, and +the principal facts legally proved by different witnesses. +Officers and sailors of different vessels in which he had sailed, +were sworn. Among others, Captain -----, of the packet ship ***, +testified to the plaintiff's having sailed in his vessel, under +the name of William Stanley, nine years previously; and it was +very clearly proved, that at different intervals since then, he +had continued to bear the same name, although he had also shipped +under those of Bennet, Williams, and Benson. The statement, as +given already in our pages, was borne out satisfactorily in most +of its important facts by the evidence; although on some points +the counsel for the plaintiffs confessed, that they had not been +able to obtain all the legal proofs they had wished for. After +tracing the plaintiff's steps as a sailor, the fact of his having +been long endeavouring to bring forward the claim he now made, +was examined. Mr. G-----, a highly respectable lawyer of +Baltimore, testified to the fact that several years previously, +the plaintiff had applied to him to undertake the case then +before the court; to speak frankly, this evidence surprised the +defendants, who were scarcely prepared for it. Then came proof of +the different applications to Mr. Clapp, his several visits to +Longbridge, and his presence at Wyllys-Roof six years previously, +when locked up in the out-house by Hazlehurst; Mr. Clapp +repeating at this moment, a very broad insinuation, that the +defendant knew the claims of the individual he had put in +confinement. His willingness to be examined, his ready consent to +an interview with Mr. Wyllys, Mrs. Stanley, and Hazlehurst, the +close examination which he bore at Wyllys-Roof, were brought +forward; and Mr. Clapp managed to introduce most of the important +questions of the defendants at that time, with the accurate +answers of the plaintiff, in his account of that meting. + +The court adjourned at this time, and many individuals among the +audience seemed to incline very decidedly towards the plaintiff. +The personal friends of the defendants looked somewhat anxious, +although Mr. Wyllys and Hazlehurst still showed a steady front. +The testimony which we have given so briefly, as much of it has +already appeared in the narrative, occupied the court more than +one day, including the different cross-examinations of several +witnesses, by the defendants: this duty fell to the lot of Mr. +Grant, who carried it on in his usual dry, sarcastic manner, but +was unable to effect any important change in the state of things. + +The following morning, the plaintiff's papers were laid before +the court. The volume of the Spectator, and the letters already +produced at Wyllys-Roof, were shown. In addition to these, the +following papers were now brought forward: A letter addressed to +the name of Benson, on board the British sloop-of-war, Ceres; +another directed to William Bennet, on board the Dutch barque +William, when at Batavia, nearly eighteen years since; this +letter was important, as it was evidently written to an American +sailor, and alluded to his having been recently shipwrecked on +the coast of Africa, and taken up by a Dutch vessel. These +documents were all received with great interest, and their +probable authenticity seemed generally admitted. Mr. Reed then +observed: "We shall close our evidence, gentlemen, by laying +before you testimony, sufficient in itself to prove triumphantly +the identity of the plaintiff, when connected with a small +portion only of that which has preceded it." + +He drew from his papers an old Russia-leather pocketbook, with +the initials W. S. stamped upon in large Gothic letters. + +Mr. Wyllys made an involuntary movement as it was held up for +examination; that very pocket-book, or one exactly like it, had +he given himself to the son of his old friend, the very last time +he saw him. He watched the proceedings at this moment with +intense interest--evident to everybody. + +"This pocket-book, gentlemen, is the property of the plaintiff," +continued Mr. Reed. "The initials of his name, W. S., stamped +upon it, are half-effaced, yet still sufficiently distinct to +tell their story. But the contents of this precious book are of +still greater importance to the interests of my client." + +Mr. Reed then opened it and drew from one side a letter, and read +the address, "William Stanley, New York, care of Jonas Thomson, +Master of the ship Dorothy Beck." "This letter, gentlemen of the +jury, is signed John Stanley--it is from the father of William +Stanley, in whose name I now submit it to your examination." The +letter was then read; it corresponded entirely with the +circumstances already known to the reader; its date, nature, +handwriting, all were perfectly correct, and the signature was +sworn to by several witnesses. Mr. Wyllys was evidently moved +when the letter was read; he asked to look at it, and all eyes +were turned on his venerable countenance, as he silently examined +the paper. It was remarked that the hand which held the letter +was not steady, and the features which bent over it betrayed +perceptible agitation. Mr. Wyllys turned to Hazlehurst, as he +finished reading the sheet. + +"It is undeniably genuine; the letter of John Stanley to his +son!" he said. + +A short consultation succeeded between the defendants. Hazlehurst +wrote a line or two on a slip of paper, and handed it to Mr. +Wyllys, and then to Ellsworth and Mr. Grant. + +"Will the counsel for the plaintiff tell us, why these documents +were not produced at the interview with the defendants?" asked +Mr. Ellsworth. + +"We had several reasons for not doing so," replied Mr. Clapp. +"Had our client not been received so coldly, and every effort +employed to misunderstand him, we should have produced them +earlier; although it would have been impossible to have shown +them at that meeting, since they were not then in our +possession." + +"Will the plaintiff state where, and from whom he first received +that pocket-book?" asked Mr. Grant. + +Here the counsel for the plaintiff consulted together a moment. +It seemed as if their client was willing to answer the question; +and that Mr. Reed advised his doing so, but Mr. Clapp opposed it. + +"The defendants must be aware," he said, "that they had no right +to question his client; Mr. Stanley therefore declined answering; +he had already, at the proper time and place, answered many +inquiries of theirs, in a manner which had, doubtless, appeared +satisfactory to the court, although it had not satisfied the +defendants. Mr. Stanley had lost all hope of answering any +question of the defendants, in a manner SATISFACTORY TO THEM." + +Here the defendants were engaged for a moment in making notes. + +Mr. Reed proceeded with the contents of the pocket-book. "The +letter of the father to his erring son, is not the only testimony +we shall produce from the pocket-book of my client, gentlemen." + +A printed slip of newspaper, soiled, and yellow with age, was +then drawn from one of the pockets, and read by Mr. Reed: +"Married, Wednesday, the 10th, at Trinity Church, New York, by +the Rev. Charles G. Stanley, John Stanley, of Greatwood, +Pennsylvania, to Elizabeth, daughter of the late Myndert Van +Ryssen, of Poughkeepsie." + +Again the defendants showed evident interest. Mr. Wyllys passed +his hand over his face, to drive away melancholy recollections of +the past; the present Mrs. Stanley was Miss Van Ryssen, and at +that marriage he had stood by the side of his friends, as the +priest united them. + +"Is not that a touching memorial, gentlemen, of the workings of +natural feeling in the heart of a misguided boy? He had left his +father, left his home, left his friends in a fit of reckless +folly, but when he meets with the name of the parent from whom he +is estranged, in an American paper, in a distant land, he cuts +the paragraph from the sheet, and it is carefully preserved among +his precious things, during many succeeding years of hardships, +and of wrongs. But there is another striking fact connected with +that scrap of paper; the individual whose name stands there, as +connected in the closest of human ties with the young man's +father, is the same, whose legal representative I now see before +me, prepared to oppose, by every means in his power, the claim of +the son to the inheritance bequeathed him, with the forgiveness +of his dying father. The simplest language I can choose, will +best express the force of facts so painful. The circumstances are +before you; it rests with you to say, whether tardy justice shall +not at length make some amends for the wrongs of the last +eighteen years." + +The defendants here asked to look at the paper; they could find +no fault with it; in texture, colour, accuracy, every point, it +corresponded with what it should be. + +Mr. Reed paused an instant, and then continued. "But, gentlemen +of the jury, this old and well-worn pocket-book, the companion of +my client's wanderings, and hard fortunes; the letter from the +father to the son, received as authentic, without an instant's +hesitation, by the defendants themselves; the marriage notice of +the deceased father and the step-mother, now his legal opponent, +are not the only proofs to be drawn from this portion of our +testimony." + +Mr. Reed then opened the pocket-book, and showed that it had +originally contained a number of leaves of blank paper; these +leaves were partially covered with the hand-writing of William +Stanley. The date of his going to sea, and the names of the +vessels he had sailed in, were recorded. Brief, random notes +occurred, of no other importance than that of proving the +authenticity of the pocket-book. A sailor's song was written on +one page; another was half-covered with figures, apparently some +trifling accounts of his own. The date of a particular storm of +unusual severity, was put down, with the latitude and longitude +in which it occurred, the number of hours it lasted, and the +details of the injury done to the vessel. This rude journal, if +such it may be called, was handed to the jury, and also examined +by the defendants. + +Mr. Grant took it, observing with his usual set expression, and +caustic manner, that "it was certainly the pocket-book of a +sailor, probably the pocket-book of William Stanley. It was +connected with a singular story, a very singular story indeed; +but, really, there was one fact which made it altogether the most +extraordinary compound of leather and paper, that ever happened +to fall in his way. If he was not mistaken, he had understood +that the plaintiff, among other remarkable adventures, claimed to +have just escaped drowning, by the skin of his teeth, when picked +up on the coast of Africa, in the winter of 181-. His pocket-book +seemed to have borne the shipwreck equally well; it was landed +high and dry in that court-house, without a trace of salt-water +about it. How did the plaintiff manage to preserve it so well? He +should like the receipt, it might prove useful." + +{"receipt" = recipe} + +Mr. Grant had been looking down very attentively at the +pocket-book while speaking, occasionally holding it up for others +to see, with studied carelessness; as he put the question, he +suddenly raised his eyes, without changing his position, and +fixed them searchingly, with a sort of ironical simplicity, on +Mr. Clapp and his client. + +"I can tell him all about it," the plaintiff was heard to say, by +those near him. + +There was a moment's consultation between the plaintiff and his +counsel. A juror then expressed a wish to hear the explanation. + +Mr. Clapp rose and said: "When Mr. Stanley was picked up by the +'William,' does the counsel for my client's step-mother suppose, +that he was the only remnant of the wreck floating about? If he +does, he happens to be mistaken. Mr. Stanley says there were two +others of the crew picked up at the time he was, with the hope of +restoring life, but they were dead. There were also several +chests, and various other objects brought on board the 'William.' +One of the chests was his client's. The pocket-book was contained +in a tin box, which happened to be wrapped in a piece of old +sail-cloth, and nothing in the box was wet. It contained several +old bank-notes, besides the pocket-book, and they were not wet. +He hoped the counsel for his client's step-mother was satisfied." + +Mr. Grant bowed. "Much obliged for the explanation; but he was +still inclined to think, that there must have been some peculiar +process employed with that highly important pocket-book." + +Mr. Clapp replied by a short burst of indignation, at the +intolerable insinuations of his opponent, and appealed to the +court to silence them. Mr. Grant was accordingly reminded by the +judge, that unless he had something beyond mere insinuations to +offer, his remarks could not be listened to. Mr. Reed then +related how these papers had been lost by his client, some years +since; they had been left in a box at a boarding-house, during a +voyage he made in the Pacific; the house was burnt down, and Mr. +Stanley had believed his papers lost, until he recently heard +they were in possession of a shipmate, at New Bedford. Mr. Clapp +and himself had gone there, and easily obtained them again from +Robert Stebbins, the man in whose hands they had been since the +fire. The fact of the fire was proved; Stebbins was sworn, and +testified to having saved the box with his own effects, and his +having quite lately returned it to the owner, on first hearing an +account of the suit in which he was engaged. This part of the +testimony was clearly laid before the court by Mr. Reed; and the +evidence for the plaintiffs was closed, with these papers, and +the examination of Stebbins, through whose hands they had come. + +The cross-examination of the different witnesses was still +conducted by Mr. Grant; several of the witnesses were made to +contradict each other, and partially to contradict themselves; +but as it was only on points of minor importance, no material +change could be effected in the general appearance of things, in +spite of all Mr. Grant's ingenuity. He kept Stebbins a long time +on the stand; and once or twice this individual seemed a good +deal confused in manner and expression; still nothing important +could be drawn from him, his account of the papers corresponding +sufficiently well with that of the plaintiff. + +It was late in the afternoon when the proceedings of the trial +reached this stage, and the court adjourned. Some of Hazlehurst's +friends were uneasy, others were confident of success; Mr. +Stryker declared he thought the sailor had made out a very strong +case, and he predicted that he would gain the suit. It is not to +be supposed that Mrs. Stanley, and the ladies at Wyllys-Roof, +were left in ignorance of what passed in the court-room. Robert +Hazlehurst, at whose house Mrs. Stanley and Miss Wyllys were +staying, made brief notes of the proceedings every few hours, and +sent them to his wife and friends, who despatched them by every +mail to the younger ladies at Wyllys-Roof. + +When the court met again, the time for the defendants to be heard +had arrived. + +The defence was opened by Hazlehurst; he had had but little +practice at the bar, but, like most educated Americans, it +required but little to fit him for speaking in public. His voice +was good, his manner and appearance were highly in his favour; he +had the best of materials to work with, native ability, +cultivated by a thorough education, and supported by just views +and sound principles. Energy of character and feeling helped him +also; warming as he proceeded, he threw himself fully into his +subject, and went on with a facility surprising to himself, and +far surpassing the most sanguine expectations of his friends. As +for his opponents, they had anticipated very little from him. We +give a sketch of his opening remarks: + +"It is the first time, gentlemen," he said, on rising to speak, +"that the individual who now addresses you, has ever appeared in +a high court of justice, as an act of self-defence. I have never +yet been solemnly called upon to account for my past actions by +any fellow-creature. My moral motives have never yet been +publicly impugned. The position in which I now stand, accused of +denying the just rights of another, of wilfully withholding the +parental inheritance from the son of my benefactor, is therefore +as novel to myself in its whole character, as it must appear +remarkable to you in its peculiar circumstances. + +"I have already learned, however, during the few years that I +have filled a place on the busy stage of active life, that in the +world to which we belong, Truth herself is compelled to appear on +the defensive, nearly as often, perhaps, as Error. I have no +right therefore to complain. So long as I am included in the same +accusation, so long as I am associated in the same defence with +the venerable man at my side--one, whose honourable career has +furnished to the community represented by this assembly, a noble +model of conduct during three-score years and ten; one whom it +has been the especial object of my endeavours to follow, in my +own path through life--so long, I can have no wish to shrink from +the situation in which I am placed; I can find no room for doubts +or misgivings, as to the wisdom and rectitude of the course I +have adopted. + +"That the position, however, in which we stand before you, on the +present occasion, gentlemen, is one that requires explanation, we +readily admit; it is too remarkable in its particulars to escape +the searching inquiry of justice. We appear in this court, the +executors and legatee of Mr. Stanley--his widow, his nearest +friend, and his adopted representative--to deny a claim, just in +itself, advanced in the name of his only son. Such a position +must be either quite untenable, totally unjustifiable, an outrage +upon the common decency of society, or it must stand on the firm +foundation of truth. You will easily believe, that such a +position would never have been taken, under circumstances so +extraordinary, by three individuals, possessing only a common +share of honesty and good sense, unless they had held it to be +one which they could maintain. You will readily admit, that it is +the very last position which a man of clear integrity, good +character, and natural feeling would wish to assume, unless +acting from conscientious motives, and guided by sound reason. + +"I have no wish to parade a stoical indifference to the pecuniary +interests at stake to-day; they are such as must seriously affect +my fortunes for years, possibly for life. A cause involving so +large a sum of money, so fine a landed estate, honourably +acquired by the late proprietor, and generously bequeathed to +myself, must necessarily include many interests of a varied +character. Many grateful recollections of the past, many hopes +for the future, have been connected in my mind with the house at +Greatwood; from early boyhood I have been taught to look forward +to it, as a home and a resting-place, when the busiest years of +life shall have passed. These interests, however, although among +the best enjoyments of existence, are of a nature entirely +personal, forgive me, if for a moment I have glanced at them. +But, gentlemen, if I have always valued the bequest of Mr. +Stanley, from its own intrinsic importance, from the many +advantages it has already procured me, from the hopes with which +it is connected, and from the grateful recollection, that to the +friendly affection of my benefactor I owe its possession, yet, I +solemnly affirm, in the hearing of hundreds of witnesses, that +there is no honest occupation, however humble, no labour, however +toilsome, that I would not at this instant cheerfully exchange +for it, rather than retain that inheritance one hour from its +rightful owner, could I believe him to be living. + +"No human being, I trust, who knows the principles from which I +have hitherto acted, can show just ground for mistrusting this +declaration. + +"But, fellow-citizens of the jury, to you I am a stranger. There +is not one of your number, as I now scan the faces in your box, +that I recognize as that of an acquaintance. I cannot, therefore, +expect you to believe this assertion, unsupported by evidence of +its truth. I willingly leave vain declamation to those who have +no better weapon to work with; were it in my power to influence +your decision, by volleys of words without meaning, sound without +sense, such as only too often assail the ears of judges and +juries, respect for the honourable office you now fill, would +deter me from following such a course; self-respect would +naturally prevent me from following so closely the example of the +orator who first addressed you on behalf of the plaintiff. I have +often before heard that orator, fellow-citizens of the jury; this +is not the first occasion upon which I have listened with simple +wonder, to a fluency which ever flows undisturbed, undismayed, +whether the obstacles in its way be those of law or justice, +reason or truth. But if I have wondered at a facility so +remarkable, never, for a single instant, have I wished to rival +this supple dexterity. It is an accomplishment one can scarcely +envy. On the other hand, these wholesale supplies of bombastic +declamation form so large a part of the local stock in trade of +the individual to whom I refer, that it would seem almost cruel +to deprive him of them; we have all heard a common expression, +more easily understood than explained, but which would be quite +applicable to the pitiable state of the counsel for the +plaintiff, when deprived of his chief support, his favourite +modes of speech--he would then be reduced, gentlemen, to LESS +THAN NOTHING." Hazlehurst's face was expressive enough as he +uttered these words. + +"No, fellow-citizens of the jury, I shall not ask you to believe +a single assertion of my own, unsustained by proof. At the proper +moment, the testimony which we possess in favour of the death of +Mr. Stanley's son, and the facts which have led us to mistrust +the strange story which you have just heard advanced in behalf of +the plaintiff, will be laid before you. At present, suffer me, +for a moment longer, to refer to the leading motives which have +induced us to appear in this court, as defendants, under +circumstances so singular. + +"The importance which, as legatee of Mr. Stanley, I attach to his +generous gift has not been denied. But, independently of this, +there are other causes sufficient in themselves to have brought +me into this hall, and these motives I share with the friends +associated in the same defence. If we conceive ourselves to be +justified in refusing the demand of the plaintiff, as a +consequence of this conviction, we must necessarily hold it to be +an imperative duty to repel, by every honest means in our power, +a claim we believe false. This is a case which allows of no +medium course. On one hand, either we, the defendants, are guilty +of an act of the most cruel injustice; or, on the other, the +individual before you, assuming the name of William Stanley, is +an impostor. The opinion of those most intimately connected with +the late Mr. Stanley, is clearly proclaimed, by the stand they +have deliberately taken, after examining the evidence with which +the plaintiff advances his extraordinary claim. This individual +who, from his own account, was content to remain for years in a +state of passive indifference to the same important inheritance, +now claimed so boldly, in defiance of so many obstacles, we +believe to be an impostor; not a single, lingering scruple +prevents my repeating the declaration, that I believe him to be a +bold and daring impostor. + +"With this opinion, is it expected that I shall calmly endure +that one, whose only title consists in his cunning and his +audacity, should seize with impunity, property, legally and +justly my own? Is it believed that I shall stand idly by, without +a struggle to defend the name of my deceased benefactor from such +impudent abuse? That I should be content to see the very +hearth-stone of my friend seized, by the grossest cupidity? That +I should surrender the guardianship of his grave to one, with +whom he never had a thought, a feeling, a sympathy in common?--to +one, who would not scruple to sell that grave for a bottle of +rum? + +"Every feeling revolts at the thought of such a shameful neglect +of duty! No; I acknowledge myself bound, by every obligation, to +oppose to the last extremity, such an audacious invasion of right +and truth. Every feeling of respect and gratitude to the memory +of my benefactor, urges me forward; while all the attachment of +the friend, and all the affection of the widow, revive, and unite +in the defence. + +"But, fellow-citizens of the jury, my own personal rights, +sufficient on a common occasion to rouse any man, the duties owed +by each of the defendants to the memory of Mr. Stanley--duties +sacred in the eyes of every right-thinking man, these are not the +only motives which call upon us to oppose the plaintiff, to repel +with all the strength we can command this daring act of piracy. + +"There is another duty still more urgent, a consideration of a +still higher character, involved in the course we pursue to-day. +There is one object before us, far surpassing in importance any +to which I have yet alluded; it is one, fellow-citizens of the +jury, in which each individual of your number is as deeply +concerned as ourselves, in which the highest earthly interests of +every human being in this community are included; it is the one +great object for which these walls were raised, this hall opened, +which has placed those honourable men as judges on the seat of +justice, which has called you together, from the less important +pursuit of your daily avocations, to give an impartial opinion in +every case brought before you; it is the high object of +maintaining justice in the community to which we all equally +belong. I am willing to believe, fellow-citizens of the jury, +that you are fully aware of the importance of your own office, of +the dignity of this court, of the necessity of its existence, of +its activity to protect the honest and inoffensive citizen, +against the designing, the unprincipled, and the violent. Such +protection we know to be absolutely binding upon every community +claiming to be civilized; we know that without it no state of +society, at all worthy of the dignity of human nature, at all +worthy of the dignity of freemen, can exist; without active +justice, indeed, the name of Freedom becomes a mere sound of +mockery. I have been taught to hold the opinion, gentlemen, that +if there is one obligation more imperative than any other, +imposed upon an American by the privileges of his birth-right, it +is this very duty of maintaining justice in her full integrity; +of raising his voice in her behalf when she is threatened, of +raising his arm in her defence when she is assailed. To move at +the first clear appeal of justice, is surely one of the chief +duties of every American citizen, of every man blessed with +freedom of speech and freedom of action; and, surely, if this be +a general rule, it would become a double act of moral cowardice, +to desert the post, when those individual rights, confided +especially to my own protection, including interests so important +to myself, are audaciously assailed. If there are circumstances +which partially remove the weight of this obligation, of this +public struggle for justice, from portions of the community, from +the aged, who have already firmly upheld every honourable +principle through a long course of years, and from those who are +confined by their natural position to the narrow but holy circle +of domestic duties; if such be honourable exemptions from bearing +the brunt of the battle, it is only to open the front rank to +every active citizen, laying claim to manliness and honesty. Such +I conceive to be the obligation imposed upon myself, by the +demand of the plaintiff. Upon examination, I can find no +sufficient evidence to support this claim; it becomes therefore, +in my belief, by its very nature, an atrocious outrage alike to +the living and the dead--an insulting violation of natural +justice and the law of the land, sufficient to rouse every +justifiable effort in resistance. + +"Whenever attention may be called to a question, of a character +audaciously unprincipled, even when quite independent of personal +advantage and personal feeling, I should still hope that duty as +a man, duty as a freeman, would have sufficient influence over my +actions, to urge me forward in opposition to its unrighteous +demands, just so far as common sense and true principle shall +point the way. Such I conceive to be the character of the present +question; were there no pecuniary interest, no individual feeling +at stake, I should still conceive it a duty to hold on the +present occasion the position in which I now stand. + +"The grounds upon which this opinion as to the character of the +case has been formed, the grounds upon which we base our defence, +must now be laid before you." + +After this opening, Harry proceeded with an outline of the +testimony for the defence. His statement was very clear and +accurate throughout; but as it contained nothing but what is +already known to the reader, we shall omit this part of his +remarks. + +After he had given a general account of the conduct and views of +the defendants, Mr. Ellsworth proceeded to lay the legal evidence +in their possession, before the court. The first point examined, +was the testimony they had received as to the death of William +Stanley. The wreck of the Jefferson was easily proved, by a +letter from the captain of the American ship Eagle, who had +spoken the Jefferson the morning of the gale in which she was +lost, and having safely rode out the storm himself, had +afterwards seen the wreck. This letter was written on Captain +Green's arrival in port, and was in answer to inquiries of Mr. +Wyllys; besides an account of the gale, and the wreck of the +Jefferson, it contained the united opinions of his mates and +himself, that no one could have escaped, unless under very +extraordinary circumstances, as the vessel herself had foundered, +and no boat could have lived in such a tempest. During a calm +which had followed the gale, they had fallen in with fragments of +the wreck, some of which had been used in repairing their own +vessel; they had seen several dead bodies, and had taken up an +empty boat, and several other objects, but nothing which threw +farther light on the subject. William Stanley's name, as one of +the crew of the Jefferson, was next produced; this part of the +testimony came through our acquaintance, Mr. Hopkins, who had +been the owner of the Jefferson. Then came proofs of the many +efforts made by the executors, to obtain accounts of Mr. +Stanley's son, by advertisements to sailors and shipmasters, in +all the great ports of the country, repeated during five years; +many letters and communications were also produced, all +strengthening the report of the young man's death. An agent had +been employed by Mrs. Stanley, for one year, with no other object +than that of searching for intelligence of her step-son; the man +himself was dead, but his letters were read, and sworn to by his +wife. Only once had the executors obtained a faint hope of the +young man's existence; the second-mate of a whaler reported that +he had known a William Stanley, a foremast hand, in the Pacific; +but eventually it appeared, that the man alluded to was much +older than Mr. Stanley's son, and his name was SANLEY. Nothing +could be more clearly proved, than the efforts of the executors +to obtain accurate intelligence as to the young man's fate; and +it was also evident from the reports received, that they could +have had no good reason to doubt his death. The next points +examined, included the person and conduct of the plaintiff. The +bad character of the plaintiff was made to appear in the course +of this examination; "a character which seems at least to have +always clung to that individual, under the various names it has +pleased him to assume at different times," observed Mr. +Ellsworth. It was clearly shown that he was considered a man of +no principles, even among his comrades. The personal identity was +fully examined; this part of the testimony excited intense +interest among the audience, while even the court seemed to +listen with increased attention. The opinions of the different +witnesses on this point were not disputed; the general +resemblance of the plaintiff to the Stanleys was not denied; the +similarity of handwriting was also admitted; but Mr. Ellsworth +argued, that such resemblances, among persons who were in no way +related to each other, were not uncommon; probably every +individual in that court-room had been told fifty times, that he +was like A., B., or C. Occasionally, such resemblances were +really very marked indeed. He then cited the instance of a man +who was hanged in England, on this very ground of personal +identity, sworn to by many individuals; and yet, a year after, it +was discovered that the real criminal was living; and these two +men, so strikingly alike, had never even seen each other, nor +were they in any manner related to each other. But who could say +whether the plaintiff were actually so much like William Stanley? +It was not certain that any individual in that room had seen the +young man for eighteen years; but one of the defendants had any +distinct recollection of him, even at that time; the colour of +the hair, and a general resemblance in complexion and features, +might well be the amount of all that could be advanced in favour +of the likeness; the plaintiff resembled the Stanleys, father and +son; but probably a hundred other men might be picked up in the +country, in whom the same resemblance might be found--men who +laid no claim to the name or estate of Mr. Stanley. Similarity of +handwriting was not uncommon either; and here some dozen notes +and letters were produced, and proved to a certain degree that +this assertion was correct; in several cases the resemblance was +very great; and Mr. Ellsworth maintained, that with the documents +in the possession of the sailor, undeniably written by young +Stanley, any common writer, devoid of honesty, might have moulded +his hand by practice to an imitation of it, sufficient for +forgery. So much for the resemblance; he would now point out the +difference between the plaintiff and William Stanley in two +points, which, if clearly proved, must convince the jury that +identity was utterly impossible, a pure fiction, a gross +deception. He then produced the portrait of William Stanley; +after acknowledging that there was some general resemblance, he +suddenly showed the difference in the formation of the hands, +fingers, and nails, between the boy and the plaintiff. This +difference was indeed striking, for Ellsworth took a moment to +point it out, when the sailor was in court, and engaged in +putting a piece of tobacco in his mouth, and his hands were in +full view. For a second he seemed out of countenance, but he soon +resumed the confident look he had worn throughout. Mr. Ellsworth +entered very minutely into this fact, showing that painters +usually gave a correct idea of the hand, when it was introduced +in a portrait; and the impossibility of the natural formation of +the hand being entirely changed, either by time or hard work, was +proved by the testimony of anatomists. The family physician of +the late Mr. Stanley was an important witness at this stage of +the trial; he swore to the fidelity of the portrait, and +confirmed the fact of the particular formation of William +Stanley's limbs when a boy; he thought it very improbable that a +lad of his frame and constitution would ever become as heavy and +robust as the plaintiff. He was asked by a juror if he thought +this impossible? "No; he could not say it was impossible." The +difference in gait was then examined. + +{"spoken the Jefferson" = passed and communicated with} + +"There is yet another point to be examined," said Ellsworth, +"similar in nature, but still more decided in its bearing." He +then brought forward all the testimony that had been collected, +as to the temper and capacity of William Stanley; it was clearly +proved, chiefly by the young man's tutors and companions, that he +was morose and stubborn in disposition, and dull in intellect. So +far this point was easily settled; but it was difficult to place +the opposite facts, of the cleverness and better temper of the +plaintiff, as clearly before the court as they had appeared to +the defendants. Any one who had seen him under the same +circumstances as Mr. Wyllys and Hazlehurst, during the last three +months, would have been convinced of this difference; but in the +court-room it was not so easy to place the matter beyond dispute, +although two witnesses gave their opinions on this point, under +oath, and Ellsworth did all he could, by attracting attention to +the plaintiff, to his manner and expression; but he was not quite +satisfied with the result of his own endeavours. + +"Let us now look at the conduct of this individual; we shall find +it, I think, quite inconsistent with that any man of plain, good +sense, would have supposed the most easy and natural course under +the circumstances; while, on the other hand, it is entirely +consistent throughout, in being strongly marked with the stamp of +improbability, in its general aspect, and in its details." After +a review of the plaintiff's course, as it stood in his own +statement, he proceeded to investigate his conduct during the +last three months, maintaining, that had he really been William +Stanley, he would have presented himself long since to Mr. +Wyllys, unsupported by Mr. Clapp; he would not have found it +necessary to visit Greatwood, and examine the house and place so +thoroughly, before submitting to an examination; he would not +have waited to be examined, he would voluntarily have told his +own story in a manner to produce undeniable conviction. For +instance, but a few weeks since, when, if we may believe his +story, that pocket-book came into his possession again, had he +gone to Mr. Wyllys, shown it, and merely told him accurately, +from whom, when, and where he had first received it, he would +have been immediately recognized as the individual he claims to +be. Had he been William Stanley, he could have told those simple +facts, he would have told them; while they were facts which it +was impossible that an impostor should know, since they were +confined entirely to Mr. Wyllys and his friend's son--Mr. Wyllys +himself having given the pocket-book to William Stanley when they +were alone together. He appealed to every man there present, what +would have been his own conduct under such circumstances? As to +the readiness of Mr. Wyllys to receive William Stanley, could he +believe him living, it was proved by the past conduct of the +executors, their anxiety to obtain a correct account of the young +man's fate, their hopes at first, their regrets at last, when +hope had died away. Ellsworth closed his speech by observing, +that after this review of the circumstances, considering the +striking differences pointed out in person, temper, and capacity, +from those of William Stanley, the irreconciliable difference in +the gait and formation of the limbs, and the unnatural conduct of +the plaintiff throughout, had Mr. Wyllys received this man as +William Stanley, the son of his deceased friend, it would have +been a gross neglect of duty on his part. + +There now remained but one act to complete the defence. It was +concluded by Mr. Grant, who went over the whole case in a speech, +in his usual well-known manner, learned and close in its +reasoning, caustic and severe in its remarks on the opposite +party. His general view was chiefly legal; occasionally, however, +he introduced short and impressive remarks on the general aspect +of the case, and the particular character of the most suspicious +facts presented by the plaintiff; he was severe upon Mr. Clapp, +showing a shrewd and thorough knowledge of the man, and the legal +species to which he belonged. The Longbridge lawyer put on an +increase of vulgar nonchalance for the occasion, but he was +unable to conceal entirely his uneasiness under the sharp and +well-aimed hits of one, so much his superior in standing and real +ability. Mr. Grant dwelt particularly upon the suspicious +appearance of the facts connected with the volume of the +Spectator, and the pocket-book, both of which he admitted to have +belonged to William Stanley originally; and he seemed to manage +the difference in temper and capacity more effectually than Mr. +Ellsworth had done. His speech was listened to with the closest +attention during several hours; after having reviewed the +testimony on both sides and finished his legal survey of the +ground, he concluded as follows: + +"Gentlemen of the jury; the facts of this case are before you, so +far at least as we could reach them; there are doubtless others +behind the curtain which might prove highly important in +assisting your decision. You have followed me over the dull track +of the law wherever it led us near this case, and I thank you for +the patience you have shown. The subject is now fully before you, +and I conceive that you will agree with me that in the present +case, the counsel for the plaintiff have undertaken a task of no +ordinary difficulty. It seems a task by no means enviable under +any of its different aspects; but really, in the whole course of +my experience at the bar, it has never yet fallen to my lot to +witness so startling a feat of legal legerdemain, as that +attempted in this court-room by the counsel for the plaintiff. I +conceive, gentlemen, that they are engaged in a task seldom +attempted since the days of wizards and necromancers--they have +undertaken to raise a ghost!" + +It was now time for the plaintiff's lawyers to close the trial. +Mr. Clapp wished to speak again, but Mr. Reed took the case +entirely in his own hands; he was evidently firmly convinced of +the identity of his client with William Stanley, and the natural +indignation he felt at the accusations of the defendants, and the +treatment the sailor had received from the executors, gave +unusual warmth to his manner, which was generally calm; it was +remarked that he had never made a stronger speech than on that +occasion. He did not dispute the honesty of the opinions of Mr. +Wyllys and Hazlehurst, but he conceived they had no right to hold +such opinions after examining the testimony in behalf of the +plaintiff. He conceived that the defendant attached an importance +altogether puerile to mere common probability, every-day +probability; how many facts, now proved as clearly as human +evidence can prove, have worn at first an improbable aspect to +many minds! How many legal cases of an improbable nature might be +cited! He would only allude to a few; and here he went over +several remarkable cases on record. + +"And yet he would even engage to answer the objections against +his client on this very ground of probability; much had been said +about the volume of the Spectator, but Mr. Hazlehurst could not +swear to having read it at Greatwood four years since; while it +appeared on cross-examination that his brother had the same +edition of that book in Philadelphia, and that Mr. H. was in the +habit of reading his brother's books; it also appeared that other +volumes had been lost from the house at Greatwood in the course +of the last four years. He held it then to be clearly probable; +first, that Mr. H. had not read that identical volume shown at +the interview, but one belonging to his brother; secondly, that +the same volume had not been lost within the last four years; +that others had been lost was certain, but that this volume had +been in the possession of his client for nearly twenty years was +PROBABLE." He went on in the same way to prove the probability of +his client's gait having been changed, like that of other +sailors, by a life at sea; that his whole body had become heavier +and coarser from twenty years' hard work, and change of habits. +He here made Dr. B., the physician who had testified on this +subject, appear in a ridiculous light, by quoting some +unfortunately obscure remarks he had made under +cross-examination. + +"Then, as to his client's temper, he hoped it had improved with +age, but he thought that point had not been as clearly settled as +his best friends could wish; still, it was by no means IMPROBABLE +that it had improved under the salutary restraints of greater +intercourse with the world. Who has not known persons whose +tempers have become better under such circumstances? As to the +capacity of his client, that had also PROBABLY been roused into +greater activity by the same circumstances. Who has not heard of +striking instances in which boys have been pronounced stupid by +their masters and playfellows, and yet the same lads have +afterwards turned out even brilliant geniuses?" He mentioned +several instances of this kind. He went over the most striking +features of the whole case in this manner, but we are necessarily +compelled to abridge his remarks. "He accepted this ground of +probability fully and entirely; the conduct of his client had +been thought unnatural; he conceived that the very same stubborn, +morose disposition, which the defendants had laboured so hard to +fasten upon William Stanley, would account in the most PROBABLE +manner for all that had been unusual in the conduct of his +client. The same boy who at fifteen had so recklessly exchanged a +pleasant home and brilliant prospects for a sailor's hardships, +might very naturally have continued to feel and to act as the +plaintiff had done." + +He then brought together all the points in favour of the sailor, +"The resemblance between the plaintiff and William Stanley had +been called trifling by the counsel for the defendants; he +considered it a remarkably strong resemblance, since it included +not only acknowledged personal likeness, but also similarity of +handwriting, of age, of occupation, the possession of documents +admitted to be authentic by the defendants themselves, with +knowledge of past events, persons, and places, such as would be +natural in William Stanley but quite beyond the reach of a common +stranger. He conceived that the great number of different points +in his client's favour was a far stronger ground for the truth of +his claim, than any one fact, however striking, standing alone. +He held that this mass of evidence, both positive and +circumstantial, could be accounted for in no other way at all +probable, than by admitting the identity of his client. He +conceived it also probable that any unprejudiced man would take +the same view of this case; a case singular in its first aspect, +though not more singular than hundreds of others on record, and +entirely within the bounds of possibility in every fact, while it +assumed greater probability the farther it was examined." He then +adverted to several points merely legal, and finally concluded by +a strong appeal in behalf of the plaintiff. + +The judge rose to make his charge; it was strictly legal and +impartial, chiefly reminding the jury that they were to decide +entirely from the facts which had been placed before them; if +they thought the evidence to which they listened sufficient to +prove legally the identity of the plaintiff as William Stanley, +they must give a verdict in his favour; if they held that +evidence to be incomplete and insufficient, according to the +legal views which must be their guide, they must pronounce a +verdict in favour of the defendants: concluding with explaining +one or two legal points, and an injunction to weigh the whole +evidence impartially, the judge took his seat. + +The jury rose; marshalled by constables and headed by their +foreman, they turned from the box and left the court-room to +consider their verdict. + +Another cause was called. The parties interested, their friends, +and the crowd of curious spectators poured from the building, +discussing as they moved along the probable result, which could +scarcely be known until the next morning, for it was late on the +fourth night that the trial closed. + + + +CHAPTER XIX. {XLII} + +"Tout est perdu fors l'honneur!" +Francois I. + +{"Tout est perdu fors l'honneur" = all is lost but honor +(French). Francis I of France (1494-1547), letter to his mother, +1525; by 1840 a proverbial expression} + +HAZLEHURST'S friends, fully aware of the importance of the cause +to his interests, had followed the trial with great anxiety. Mrs. +Stanley, Mrs. Robert Hazlehurst, Miss Wyllys, and Mrs. Creighton +were regularly informed of the events which had passed whenever +the court adjourned. The young ladies at Wyllys-Roof, Elinor, +Jane, and Mary Van Alstyne were obliged to wait longer for +information; they had received, however, regular reports of the +proceedings by every mail; they had learned that the trial had +closed, and were now waiting most anxiously for the final +decision of the jury. + +"I had no idea the trial would last so long; had you?" observed +Mary Van Alstyne, as the three friends were sitting together +waiting for that day's mail, which must at length bring them the +important news. + +"Yes; grandpapa told me that it might possibly last a week." + +"I don't see why they cannot decide it sooner," said Jane; +"anybody might know that sailor could not be William Stanley. +Poor Harry! what trouble he has had with the man ever since he +came home!" + +At that moment carriage-wheels were heard approaching; Elinor ran +to the window. + +"They are coming!" she cried; and in another instant she was on +the piazza, followed by Mary and Jane. Two carriages were +approaching the door. + +"Here they are--all our friends!" exclaimed Mary Van Alstyne, as +she recognized in the first open wagon Mr. Wyllys and Ellsworth, +and in the barouche behind, the ladies, including Mrs. Creighton; +while Harry himself sat at the side of the coachman. + +Elinor was on the last step of the piazza, looking eagerly +towards the faces of her friends as they advanced. + +"Grandpapa!" she exclaimed, looking all anxious curiosity, as the +wagon stopped. + +Mr. Wyllys smiled, but not triumphantly. + +Ellsworth shook his head as he sprang from the wagon and took her +hand. + +"Can it be possible!--Is the suit lost?" she again exclaimed. + +"Only too possible!" replied Mr. Ellsworth. "The jury have given +a verdict for the plaintiff, in spite of our best endeavours." + +Elinor turned towards Harry, and offered him both her hands. +Hazlehurst received them with feeling, with emotion. + +"I can't acknowledge that I am such a poor forlorn fellow as one +might fancy," he said, smiling, "while I have still such kind and +warm friends." + +Elinor blushing to find herself between the two gentlemen, +advanced to receive the kiss of her aunt and Mrs. Stanley. The +countenance of the latter lady showed evident traces of the +painful feelings she had experienced at the decision. Mrs. +Creighton too looked a little disturbed; though graceful as ever +in her manner, she was not easy; it was clear that she had been +much disappointed by Harry's defeat. + +"I am grieved to hear the bad news, Mr. Hazlehurst!" said Mary +Van Alstyne. + +"Poor Harry--I am so sorry for you!" exclaimed Jane, looking very +lovely as she raised her eyes to her kinsman's face. + +"Ellsworth, can't you manage to lose all you are worth and a +little more?" said Harry, smiling, after having thanked the +ladies for their kind reception. + +"As I could not keep your property for you with the best will in +the world, no doubt I could get rid of my own too," replied his +friend. + +When the whole party assembled in the drawing-room, nothing was +talked of for a while but the trial. It appeared that the jury +had been fifteen hours considering their verdict. The doors of +the court-room had been crowded by people curious to learn the +decision of the case, and when the jury entered the court with +their verdict there was a rush forward to hear it. + +"Verdict for the plaintiff--" was announced by the clerk in a +loud voice, in the usual official manner. + +"Clapp was standing near me at the moment," said Harry, "there +was a flash of triumph in his face as he turned towards me. The +sailor actually looked bewildered for an instant, but he soon +appeared very well satisfied. As for myself, I honestly declare +that I expected such would be the result." + +"It was too late to write to you, my child," said Mr. Wyllys; "we +only heard the verdict in time to prepare for leaving town in the +morning's boat. And now, Nelly, you must give us some consolation +in the shape of a good dinner." + +It was very evident that although everybody endeavoured to wear a +cheerful face, the defeat had been much felt by Mrs. Stanley, Mr. +Wyllys, and Ellsworth. Hazlehurst himself really appeared better +prepared for the misfortune than any of the party; in fact he +conceived Mrs. Stanley's position to be more painful than his +own, though so much less critical in a pecuniary view. Mrs. +Creighton was certainly neither so gay, nor so easy as usual in +her manner; one might have fancied that she felt herself in an +unpleasant and rather an awkward position--a very unusual thing +for that lady. It might have struck an observer that she wished +to appear as amiable as ever to Harry, but she did not succeed +entirely in concealing that her interest in him was materially +diminished, now that he was no longer Mr. Stanley's heir. It was +only by trifling shades of manner, however, that this was +betrayed; perhaps no one of the circle at Wyllys-Roof remarked +it; perhaps it was not lost upon Hazlehurst; there seemed to be +an occasional expression in his eye which said so. + +After the party had separated to prepare for dinner, Elinor +joined her aunt, and learned many farther particulars of the +trial. + +"Is there no hope, Aunt?--can nothing be done--no new trial?" + +"I am afraid not. The gentlemen are to hold several consultations +on that point, however, but they seem to agree that little can be +done. Both your grandfather and Harry were determined to go on if +there were the least probability of success; but Mr. Grant, Mr. +Ellsworth, and several other gentlemen say they can give them no +grounds for encouragement; the trial was perfectly regular, and +they think an appeal for a new trial would be rejected; and even +if it were granted, they see no reason to hope for a different +verdict." + +"And yet there cannot be a doubt, Aunt, to us at least, that this +man is an impostor!" exclaimed Elinor. + +"No, not to us certainly; but it was not possible to place the +proofs of this as clearly before the court as they have appeared +to us. Harry says he was afraid from the beginning that this +would be the case." + +"How well he bears it!" exclaimed Elinor. "And Mrs. Stanley, she +can scarcely speak on the subject!" + +"She feels it most keenly. Would you believe it, my child, when +we arrived on board the boat this morning, we found Mr. Clapp and +this man already there; and at a moment when Mrs. Stanley and I +were sitting alone together, the gentlemen having left us, and +Mrs. Creighton being with another party, they came and walked up +and down before us. Mr. Clapp took off his hat, and running his +hand through his hair, as he does so often, he said in a loud +voice: "Well, Mr. Stanley, when do you go to Greatwood?" Happily, +Harry saw us from the other side of the deck, and he instantly +joined us. Of course we did not mention to him what had passed; +and although Mr. Clapp was noisy and vulgar, yet he did not come +so near us again." + +"What a miserable man he is!" exclaimed Elinor. "And is it +possible that sailor is going to take possession of my uncle +Stanley's house immediately?" + +"I do not know, my child. Everything has been left in the hands +of Robert Hazlehurst and Mr. Grant, by our friends." + +Already had Elinor's mind been busy with planning relief for +Hazlehurst; if he were now worse than penniless, she was rich--it +would be in her power to assist him. The point itself had been +long since settled by her, but the manner in which it was to be +done was now to be considered. She was determined at least that +her old playfellow should have the use of any sum he might +require, under the circumstances that would be the easiest and +most acceptable to himself. Her grandfather must make the offer; +they would either wait until he returned from the cruise in the +Petrel, or possibly it would be better to write to him while +absent. + +Elinor had, perhaps, been more disappointed by the verdict than +any one, for she had been very sanguine as to the result; she had +not conceived it possible that such gross injustice could +triumph. + +But, alas, how imperfect is merely human justice in its best +form! It is a humiliating reflection for the human race, that +Justice, one of the highest attributes of Truth, should have so +little power among men; that when guided by human reason alone +she should so often err! + +To guard faithfully the general purity of Justice, to watch that +her arm is neither crippled by violence nor palsied by fear, that +her hands are not polluted by bribery, nor her ears assailed by +flattery, is all that human means can do; but wo {sic} to the +society where this duty is neglected, for disgrace and general +corruption are then inevitable. + +It was a day of movement at Wyllys-Roof; after the arrival of the +party from Philadelphia there were constant communications with +their neighbours at Broadlawn, as the long talked of cruise of +the Petrel had been only postponed for Harry's return, and young +de Vaux was now all impatience to be off. When Elinor went down +for dinner she found Ellsworth and Harry on the piazza playing +with Bruno, the fine Newfoundland dog which Hazlehurst had given +her when he first went abroad. + +"He is a noble creature!" exclaimed Ellsworth. + +"I am making friends with Bruno again, you see," said Harry as +Elinor drew near. "What would you say if I coaxed him off to the +Petrel with me to-morrow?" + +"You are very welcome to his company for the voyage, if you can +persuade him to go. Down Bruno, down my good friend," she said, +as the dog bounded towards her; "I wish you would remember that a +thin white dress must be treated with some respect. Are you +really going to-morrow?" she added, turning to Harry. + +"Yes; we are under sailing orders. I have just been over to look +at the Petrel, and everything is ready. De Vaux has only been +waiting for me--the rest of the party has been collected for some +days. I found Smith the conchologist, and Stryker, at Broadlawn." + +"Has your course been finally settled?" asked Ellsworth. + +"Yes; we are to circumnavigate Long-Island." + +"You will have an agreeable cruise, I dare say, with a pleasant +set of messmates; Hubert de Vaux is a good fellow himself, and +Stryker is in his element on such occasions." + +"We are to have Charlie Hubbard too, and Harman Van Horne." + +"How long will you be gone?" said Elinor. + +"Some ten days, or a fortnight at the very farthest." + +"Can we see anything of Mr. de Vaux's boat from here?" asked Mrs. +Creighton, stepping on the piazza. + +"Only her masts; in this direction, near the grove," replied +Harry. "She is a schooner, and a beautiful craft, too." + +"Miss Wyllys, you should coax Mr. de Vaux to give the ladies a +pic-nic when he returns," said Mrs. Creighton. + +"No doubt he would be happy to do so, if you were to express the +wish," said Elinor. + +"Unfortunately I shall not be here. Wyllys-Roof is a dangerous +place, one always stays here too long; but I cannot positively +afford more than a day or two at present; I have promised to be +in town on Thursday." + +Elinor expressed her regrets very hospitably; and they were soon +after summoned to dinner. + +In the evening, Hubert de Vaux and the gentlemen from Broadlawn, +engaged for the cruise, walked in. Charlie Hubbard was there too; +he had remained in Philadelphia during the whole trial, and had +just returned home that morning. + +"And so you are positively going to-morrow," said Mr. Wyllys to +young de Vaux. + +"Positively; at six in the morning." + +"Is it part of your plan, to stow yourselves away at night in the +Petrel?" + +"The Petrel's cabin is not to be despised, I assure you, sir. It +has six as good berths as those of any North-River sloop that +ever carried passengers in days of yore. But we shall only sleep +on board occasionally, for the fun of the thing." + +{"North-River sloop" = the Hudson River was also called the North +River, and before steamboats, passengers travelled between New +York and Albany by what were known as Hudson River or North River +sloops} + +"At what places do you intend to put into port?" + +"We are going to shoot for a day or two on Long-Island; and we +shall let the Yankees have a sight of the Petrel, at New Haven, +Sachem's-Head, and Nantucket." + +{"Sachem's Head" = Sachem Head harbor is about 10 miles east of +New Haven, Connecticut} + +"I have no doubt you will have a pleasant excursion." + +"Our only difficulty at present seems the prospect of too much +comfort," said Charlie. "Mrs. de Vaux expressed some fears of a +famine at Longbridge in consequence of this cruise, we carry off +such a stock of provisions." + +"Not a bit too much; people always want twice as much on a party +of pleasure as at other times," said Hubert de Vaux. + +The plan of the cruise was talked over in all its details, and +the whole party seemed pleased with the idea. Young Van Horne, +now a practising physician in New York, was delighted with the +prospect of a week's liberty; Mr. Smith, the conchologist, hoped +to pick up some precious univalve or bivalve; Charlie talked of +taking a sketch of Cape Cod; Harry declared he was determined to +enjoy the trip, as the last holiday he could allow himself for a +long time; and Mr. Stryker promised himself the best of chowders, +a sea-dish in which he professed himself to be a great +connoisseur. Mrs. Creighton indeed declared, that he looked upon +that season as lost, in which he could not make some improvement +in his celebrated receipt for chowder. Whether it was that this +lady's gaiety and coquetry instinctively revived in the company +of so many gentlemen, or whether she felt afraid of Mr. Stryker's +keen, worldly scrutiny, her manner in the evening resumed +entirely its wonted appearance; she was witty, graceful, piquant, +and flattering as ever, and quite as much so with Hazlehurst as +with any. + +"What do you say to a game of chess, Mrs. Creighton?" asked Mr. +Wyllys. + +"With pleasure, sir; I am always at your service. Not that it is +very pleasant to be beaten so often, but I really think I improve +under your instructions. You are so much interested yourself that +you inspire others." + +"You must allow me, Mrs. Creighton, to suggest something for your +improvement," said Mr. Stryker. + +"And what is it, pray?" + +"You talk too much; you make yourself too agreeable to your +adversary--that is not fair." + +"Oh, it is only a ruse de guerre; and Mr. Wyllys beats me nine +games out of ten, in spite of my chattering." + +{"ruse de guerre" = military strategem (French)} + +"No doubt; but if you could make up your mind to be less charming +for half an hour, you might have the honours of the game +oftener." + +"I must gain the battle my own way, Mr. Stryker, or not at all." + +"I leave you to your fate, then," said the gentleman, turning +away. + +Charlie, Elinor, Harry, and Jane were quietly talking together; +Jane having now resumed her place in the family circle. They were +speaking of Charlie's sketches, and the young widow asked if he +ever painted portraits now; Miss Wyllys {sic} wished to have +her's taken, before she left them to return to her parents. + +{"Miss Wyllys" = should read Jane (or Mrs. Taylor); Elinor Wyllys +is an orphan} + +"You do paint portraits," said Elinor; "I have seen those of your +mother and Miss Patsey." + +Charlie changed colour, and hastily denied any claim to be called +a portrait-painter. + +"Yet it would be pleasant," said Elinor, "to have a picture of my +cousin painted by you." + +Jane observed she should like to have Elinor's, by the same hand. + +"Oh, my portrait would not be worth having," said Elinor, +smiling; "certainly not if taken by an honest artist." + +"You will both, I hope, fare better from the hands of Mr. I----- +or Mr. S-----," said Charlie, with some little embarrassment. + +Mr. Ellsworth, who had been standing near the group, now asked +Elinor to sing. + +"What will you have?" she replied, taking a seat at the piano. + +"Anything you please." + +"Pray then give us Robin Adair, Miss Elinor," said Charlie. + +Elinor sang the well-known song with greater sweetness than +usual--she was decidedly in good voice; both Charlie and Harry +listened with great pleasure as they stood by her side; Jane was +also sitting near the piano, and seemed more interested in the +music than usual; it was a song which the young widow had so +often heard, in what she now looked back to as the happy days of +her girlhood. More than one individual in the room thought it +charming to listen to Elinor and look at Jane, at the same +instant. Several of the gentlemen then sang, and the party broke +up cheerfully. + +Little was it thought, that never again could the same circle be +re-united at Wyllys-Roof; all who crossed the threshold that +night were not to return. + + + +CHAPTER XX. {XLIII} + +"I pr'ythee hear me speak!" +Richard III. + +{William Shakespeare, "Richard III", IV.iv.180} + +HAZLEHURST had gone out with his friends, and continued walking +on the piazza, first with Charlie and then with Ellsworth; at +length Mrs. Stanley called him from the window to say good-bye, +as she did not expect to see him again before the cruise; the +other ladies also wished him a pleasant excursion at the same +moment. + +"Good fishing and no musquitoes {sic}--which, I take it, is all +that is desirable on such an occasion," said Mrs. Creighton, +smiling brightly but carelessly, as she offered her hand. + +"Thank you; I suppose you have no commands for Cape Cod?" + +"None at all, I believe, unless you can bring us the true Yankee +receipt for chowder, which Mr. Stryker was explaining this +evening." + +"You will be off so early to-morrow that we shall scarcely see +you, Harry," said Miss Wyllys. "You must come back to us, +however, and fall into the old habit of considering Wyllys-Roof +as home, whenever you please," she added kindly. + +Harry's thanks were expressed with feeling. + +"And in the mean time I hope you will have a pleasant cruise," +said Elinor. "Fair winds and better prospects attend you!"--and +as she raised her eyes, Harry observed they had filled with tears +when she made this allusion to his difficulties. Perhaps +Ellsworth made the same remark, and appreciated her kindness; for +when Elinor turned to wish him good-night we strongly suspect +that his countenance said so; there could be no doubt at least, +that she blushed at the time, though pale but a moment before. + +After the ladies had gone, Mr. Wyllys and Ellsworth went off +together, and Harry returned to the piazza. + +It was perhaps inconsiderate in Hazlehurst to continue walking so +late, for the sound of his footsteps fell regularly on the +stillness of the night, long after the family had gone to rest, +and may possibly have disturbed some of his friends; but many +busy thoughts of the past and the future crowded on his mind, +while pacing that familiar spot, the piazza of Wyllys-Roof. It is +time that these thoughts should be partially revealed to the +reader, and for that purpose we must pause a moment, in order to +look backward. + +Long since, Harry's heart had warmed again towards his old +playfellow, Elinor. As soon as the first novelty of a life at Rio +had worn off, Harry, whose affections were strong, began to miss +his old friends; the more so, since Mr. Henley, although his +principles and talents entirely commanded his secretary's esteem, +was not a pleasant companion in every-day life. Hazlehurst soon +began to contrast the minister's formal, old bachelor +establishment with the pleasant house of his friend Ellsworth, +where Mrs. Creighton did the honours charmingly, and with the +cheerful home of his brother, where his sister-in-law always +received him kindly: still oftener be compared the cold, stately +atmosphere which seemed to fill Mr. Henley's house, with the +pleasant, genial spirit which prevailed at Wyllys-Roof, where +everything excellent wore so amiable an aspect. Until lately he +had always been so closely connected with the family there, that +he accused himself of not having done full justice to all their +worth. He took a pleasure in dwelling on Mr. Wyllys's high moral +character, so happily tempered by the benevolence of cheerful old +age; he remembered the quiet, unpretending virtues of Miss +Wyllys, always mingled with unvarying kindness to himself; and +could he forget Elinor, whose whole character was so engaging; +uniting strength of principle and intelligence, with a +disposition so lovely, so endearing? A place in this family had +been his, his for life, and he had trifled with it, rejected it; +worse than that--well he knew that the best place in Elinor's +generous heart had once been wholly his; he had applied for it, +he had won it; and what return had he made for her warmest +affections? He had trifled with her; the world said he had jilted +her, jilted the true-hearted Elinor, his friend and companion +from childhood! Knowing her as well as he did, he had treated her +as if she were a mere ball-room coquette; he had forgotten her as +soon as if it had been a mere holiday fancy of a boy of fifteen. +He had been completely infatuated, dazzled, blinded by a +beautiful face. That it was sheer infatuation was now evident; +for, absent from both Elinor and Jane, all feeling for the latter +seemed to have vanished like a dream. It is said that love +without hope cannot live: the question must be settled by those +who have suffered most frequently from the wounds of Cupid; but +it seems evident, at least from Harry's experience, that love +which has fed plentifully upon hopes for some months, when +suddenly put upon a change of diet, and receiving a large dose of +mortification to boot, falls immediately into a rapid decline. +The recollection of his fancy for Jane was now unpleasant under +every aspect, but where it was connected with Elinor he soon +began to consider it as particularly painful. He regretted that +he had engaged Elinor in the hasty, boyish manner he had done, +before going abroad; had he not taken this step, the momentary +mortification of a refusal by Jane would have been the only evil; +Elinor would not have suffered, and all might have gone well. +Gradually the idea gained upon him, that it was not impossible to +repair the past. His conduct had been unpardonable, no doubt; +yet, perhaps it might be forgiven. But even if Elinor could +forget his inexcusable fickleness, would her friends ever consent +to risk her future peace with one who had so recklessly trifled +with her already? Mr. Wyllys had been deeply indignant at his +conduct; his whole manner had changed, there had been a cold +civility in it when they had met, which Harry had felt keenly--it +amounted almost to contempt. Miss Wyllys, too, was no longer the +kind, indulgent Aunt Agnes of his boyhood; there was a very +decided coldness and reserve in her whole expression, which it +seemed all but impossible to overcome. He wished, however, that +he had it in his power to make advances towards a reconciliation; +he was prepared for merited coldness at first, but he would +willingly submit to it as a just penance, if he could but hope +eventually to regain his position with Elinor. Such a wife as +Elinor would be, was worth a serious struggle to obtain. Then, at +other moments, this idea appeared preposterous to him; how could +the Wyllyses ever forgive him after so keen an insult, so cruel a +blow? No, it was a dream; he would not indulge in it any longer; +he would not think of marrying; he would turn out an old bachelor +diplomatist, like Mr. Henley. It is not to be supposed that Mrs. +Creighton was entirely forgotten in these reveries of Harry's, +which formed occasional interludes to his diplomatic labours +while at Rio. On the contrary she was remembered quite +frequently; and every one who knew her must always think of the +pretty widow as a charming woman; clever, graceful, gay, and +well-bred. Nor had Hazlehurst been blind to her peculiarly +flattering manner towards himself. The lady was his friend +Ellsworth's sister, which was another claim; she was generally +admired too, and this alone, with some men, would have given her +a decided advantage: since we are revealing Harry's foibles, +however, we must do him the justice to say, that he was not one +of the class referred to. When he liked, he liked honestly, for +good reasons of his own. At the time he left home with Mr. +Henley, he had not been able to decide entirely to his own +satisfaction, whether Mrs. Creighton really had any partiality +for him or not; he waited with a little interest and a little +curiosity, to know what she would do after he left Philadelphia. +News soon reached him that the lady was gay and charming as ever, +much admired, and taking much pleasure in admiration, as usual. +He had known Mrs. Creighton from a girl; she was a year or two +older than himself, and had been a married woman while he was +still a boy, and he had been long aware of her reputation as a +coquette; this had no doubt put him on his guard. As had +occasionally remarked her conduct himself; and having been so +intimate with women of very different character--his brother's +wife, Miss Wyllys, and Elinor--he knew very well that all women +were not coquettes; he had received a higher standard of female +delicacy and female truth than many young men. So long, +therefore, as he believed Mrs. Creighton a decided flirt, he was +in little danger from her: the lady, however, was no common +coquette--cleverness, tact, good taste, gave her very great +advantages; she was generally admired, and Hazlehurst expected +daily to hear that she was married. + +He had become very tired of Rio Janeiro, and very desirous of +returning home, long before Mr. Henley was recalled to exchange +the court of Brazil for that of St. Petersburgh. Sincere respect +for Mr. Henley had alone kept him at Rio; and when he arrived at +Norfolk, he was still undecided whether he should continue in the +legation or not. He found that all his friends were at Saratoga, +and he hastened there; he was anxious to see the Wyllyses, +anxious to see Elinor, and yet he dreaded the first meeting--he +had already determined to be guided entirely in his future steps +by their manner towards himself; if they did not absolutely shun +him, he would make an effort for a complete reconciliation. He +knew Elinor was unmarried; he had never heard of any engagement, +and he might then hope to regain all he had lost. He arrived, he +was received kindly, and the sight of Elinor's plain face did not +change his determination; on the contrary, he found her just what +he remembered her, just what he had always known her to +be--everything that was naturally feminine and amiable. But if +Elinor were still herself, Harry soon found that her position had +very materially altered of late; she was now an heiress, it +seemed. What a contemptible interpretation might be placed on his +advances under such circumstances! Then came the discovery of Mr. +Ellsworth's views and hopes; and his friend was evidently +sanguine of success. Thus everything was changed; he was +compelled to remain in the back-ground, to avoid carefully any +interference with his friend. + +There appeared no reason to doubt that Elinor would, ere long, +marry Ellsworth; she herself certainly liked him, and her friends +very evidently favoured his suit. On the other hand, Mrs. +Creighton seemed particularly well pleased with his own return; +she was certainly very charming, and it was by no means an +unpleasant task to play cavalier to his friend's sister. Still he +looked on with great interest, as Ellsworth pursued his +courtship; and he often found himself making observations upon +Elinor's movements. "Now she will do this"--"I am sure she thinks +that"--"I know her better than Ellsworth"--"She can't endure +Stryker"--and other remarks of the kind, which kept his attention +fixed upon his old playfellow; the more closely he observed her +the more he saw to love and admire; for their former long +intimacy had given him a key to her character, and greater +knowledge of the world enabled him fully to appreciate her purity +of principle, her native grace and modesty, the generous tone of +her mind, the unaffected sweetness of her disposition. It +appeared strange and unpleasant to him, that he must now draw +back and see her engrossed by Ellsworth, when she had so long +been his own favourite companion; still he had no right to +complain, it was his own fault that matters were so much changed. +As for Mrs. Creighton, Harry could not satisfy himself with +regard to her real feelings; there were times when he thought she +was attached to him, but just as it began to appear clear that +she was not merely coquetting, just as he began to inquire if he +could ever offer himself to a woman whom he admired very much, +but whom he did not entirely respect, the pretty widow would run +off; apparently in spite of herself, into some very evident +flirtation with Stryker, with de Vaux, with Mr. Wyllys, in fact +with any man who came in her way. Generally he felt relieved by +these caprices, since they left perfect liberty of action to +himself; occasionally he was vexed with her coquetry, vexed with +himself for admiring her in spite of it all. Had Harry never +known Mrs. Creighton previously, he would doubtless have fallen +very decidedly in love with her in a short time; but he had known +her too long, and half mistrusted her; had he never known Elinor +so thoroughly, he would not have understood Mrs. Creighton. He +involuntarily compared the two together; both were particularly +clever, well-bred, and graceful; but Harry felt that one was +ingenuous, amiable, and natural, while he knew that the other was +worldly, bright, but cold, and interested in all her views and +actions. Elinor's charm lay in the perfect confidence one reposed +in the firmness of her principles, the strength of her +affections, softened as they were by feminine grace of mind and +person. Mrs. Creighton fascinated by the brilliant gloss of the +world, the perfection of art, inspired by the natural instincts +of a clever, educated coquette. There had been moments when +Hazlehurst was all but deceived into believing himself unjust +towards Mrs. Creighton, so charmingly piquant, so gracefully +flattering was her manner; but he owed his eventual escape to the +only talisman which can ever save a young man, or an old one +either, from the wiles of a pretty, artful coquette; he carried +about with him the reflection of a purer model of womanly virtue, +one gradually formed from boyhood upon Elinor's mould, and which +at last had entirely filled his mind and his heart. + +Since the commencement of the Stanley suit, Hazlehurst had become +quite disgusted with Mrs. Creighton's conduct; art may reach a +great way, but it can never cover the whole ground, and the +pretty widow involuntarily betrayed too many variations of +manner, graduated by Harry's varying prospects; his eyes were +completely opened; he was ashamed of himself for having been +half-persuaded that she was attached to him. How different had +been Elinor's conduct! she had shown throughout a warm, +unwavering interest in his difficulties, always more frankly +expressed in his least encouraging moments; indeed she had +sometimes blushed, from the fear that her sympathy might he +mistaken for something more than friendly regard for her kinsman. +Harry saw it all; he understood the conduct of both, and he felt +Elinor's kindness deeply; he was no longer ungrateful, and he +longed to tell her so. True, she would ere long become his +friend's wife, but might he not, under the circumstances, be +permitted first to declare his feelings? It would, perhaps, be +only a just atonement for the past--only what was due to Elinor. +Harry tried to persuade himself into this view of the case, as he +looked up towards her window, invoking a blessing on her gentle +head. + +Hazlehurst's reflections, while on the piazza, had commenced with +his pecuniary difficulties, and the consequences of his late +defeat, but they gradually centered on Elinor in a very +lover-like manner, much in the shape we have given them. But at +length the moon went down behind the wood, and those whose rooms +were on that side of the house found that the sound of his +footsteps had ceased; and nothing farther disturbed the stillness +of the night. + +"Did you see the Petrel this morning, grandpapa?" said Elinor, as +she was pouring out the coffee at the breakfast-table. + +"No, I did not, my child; I took it for granted they were off +before sun-rise, and did not look for them." + +"They were behind their time; they were in sight from my window +about an hour since." + +"Some of the youngsters have been lazy, I suppose; I hope Harry +was not the delinquent." + +"I heard him pass my door quite early," observed Miss Agnes. + +"When I saw them," said Elinor, "they had drawn off from the +wharf, and were lying in the river, as if they were waiting for +something that had been forgotten; the boat looked beautifully, +for there was very little air, and she lay motionless on the +water, with her sails half-furled." + +"Perhaps they stopped for Mr. Hubbard to make a sketch," said +Ellsworth to Elinor. + +"Hardly, I should think; time and tide, you know; wait for no +man--not even to be sketched." + +"But Hazlehurst told me his friend Hubbard had promised to +immortalize the Petrel and her crew by a picture; perhaps he +chose the moment of departure; you say she appeared to great +advantage then." + +"I should think he would prefer waiting for some more striking +moment. Who knows what adventures they may meet with! Mr. de Vaux +expects to win a race; perhaps they may catch a whale, or see the +sea-serpent." + +"No doubt Mr. Stryker would try to catch the monster, if they +were to meet with him; his fishing ambition is boundless," said +Mrs. Creighton. + +"But there is no fashionable apparatus for catching +sea-serpents," observed Elinor; "and Mr. Stryker's ambition is +all fashionable." + +"Stryker is not much of an Izaak Walton, certainly," remarked +Ellsworth. "He calls it murder, to catch a trout with a common +rod and a natural fly. He will scarcely be the man to bring in +the sea-serpent; he would go after it though, in a moment, if a +regular European sportsman were to propose it to him." + +"I almost wonder we have not yet had an English yacht over here, +whale-hunting, or sea-serpent-hunting," said Mrs. Creighton; +"they are so fond of novelty and wild-goose chasing of any kind." + +"It would make a lion of a dandy, at once," said Ellsworth, "if +he could catch the sea-serpent." + +{"lion" = social celebrity} + +"A single fin would be glory enough for one lion," said Elinor; +remember how many yards there are of him." + +"If Stryker should catch a slice of the serpent, no doubt he will +throw it into his chowder-pot, and add it to the receipt," said +Mr. Wyllys. + +"Well, Miss Wyllys, I think you and I might engage to eat all the +monsters he catches, as Beatrice did Benedict's slain," said Mrs. +Creighton. + +{"Beatrice and Benedict..." = characters in Shakespeare's play +"Much Ado about Nothing"} + +"Do you intend to make up with Stryker, a la Beatrice?" asked the +lady's brother. "It is some time now that you have carried on the +war of wit with him." + +"No, indeed; I have no such intentions. I leave him entirely to +Miss Wyllys; all but his chowder, which I like now and then," +said the lady, carelessly. + +"I am sorry you will not be here, Mrs. Creighton, for the pic-nic +to the ladies, which de Vaux is to give when he comes back," said +Mr. Wyllys; "Mr. Stryker will give us a fine chowder, no doubt." + +"Thank you, sir; I should enjoy the party exceedingly. I must not +think too much of it, or I might be tempted to break my +engagement with the Ramsays." + +"Have you really decided to go so soon?--I was in hopes we should +be able to keep you much longer," said Miss Wyllys. + +"I should be delighted to stay; but in addition to my visit to +the Ramsays, who are going to town expressly for me, I must also +pick up my little niece." + +Miss Wyllys then made some inquiries about Mr. Ellsworth's little +girl. + +"She was very well and happy, with her cousins, when I heard from +my eldest sister, a day or two since," he replied. "She has been +with me very little this summer; I hope we shall be able to make +some pleasanter arrangement for the future," he added, with a +half-glance at Elinor. + +"My brother has a very poor opinion of my abilities, Miss Wyllys; +because I have no children of my own, he fancies that I cannot +manage his little girl." + +"I am much obliged to you, Josephine, for what you have done for +her, as you very well know." + +"Oh, yes; you are much obliged to me, and so forth; but you think +Mary is in better hands with Mrs. Ellis, and so do I; I cannot +keep the little thing in very good order, I acknowledge." + +"It must be difficult not to spoil her, Mrs. Creighton," remarked +Mr. Wyllys. "She is a very pretty and engaging child--just the +size and age for a pet." + +"That is the misfortune; she is so pretty that Frank thinks I +make a little doll of her; that I dress her too much. I believe +he thinks I wear too many flowers and ribbons myself; he has +become very fastidious in his taste about such matters lately; he +wishes his daughter to dress with elegant simplicity; now I have +a decided fancy for elegant ornament." + +"He must be very bold, Mrs. Creighton, if he proposes any +alteration to you." + +"I agree with you, entirely," said the lady, laughing; "for the +last year or two I have been even less successful in suiting him +than of old. He seems to have some very superior model in his +mind's eye. But it is rather annoying to have one's taste in +dress criticised, after having been accustomed to hear it +commended and consulted, ever since I was fifteen." + +"You must tolerate my less brilliant notions for the sake of +variety," said her brother, smiling. + +"I shall hope to make over Mary's wardrobe to some other +direction, before she grows up," said Mrs. Creighton; "for you +and I would certainly quarrel over it." + +The party rose from table. Elinor felt a touch of nervousness +come upon her, as she remarked that Mr. Ellsworth seemed to be +watching her movements; while his face had worn rather a +pre-occupied expression all the morning, seeming to threaten +something important. + +The day was very pleasant; and as Mr. Wyllys had some business at +certain mills on Chewattan Lake, he proposed a ride on horseback +to his friends, offering a seat in his old-fashioned chair to any +lady who chose to take it. + +{"chair" = a light, one-horse carriage} + +Mrs. Creighton accepted the offer very readily. + +"I have not been in any carriage so rustic and farmer-like these +twenty years," she said. + +"I shall be happy to drive you, if you can be satisfied with a +sober old whip like myself, and a sober old pony like Timo." + +"It is settled then; you ride I suppose, Miss Wyllys." + +Elinor assented; Mary Van Alstyne was also to go on horseback. +Mr. Ellsworth thought that he would have preferred escorting one +lady instead of two on that occasion. He seemed destined that +morning to discover, that a lover's course is not only impeded by +important obstacles, but often obstructed by things trifling in +themselves. Before the chair and horses appeared at the door, +there was an arrival from Longbridge. Mr. Taylor and his +daughter, Miss Emma, had come from New York the previous evening, +and now appeared at Wyllys-Roof; the merchant had come over with +the double object of blessing his grandchild, and taking his +share in a speculation then going on in the neighbourhood. The +Taylors had been asked to Wyllys-Roof, at any time when they +wished to see Jane, and they had now come for twenty-four hours, +in accordance with the invitation. At first Mr. Ellsworth +supposed the ride to Chewattan Lake must be abandoned, but it was +only deferred for an hour. Miss Emma Taylor, ever ready for an +enterprise of liveliness, had no sooner embraced her +sister-in-law, and learned that some of the family had proposed +riding, than she immediately expressed a great desire to join +them. Mary Van Alstyne very readily gave up her horse and habit +to the young lady; and Mr. Ellsworth walked over to Broadlawn, to +invite Bob de Vaux, a boy of sixteen, to be her especial escort. +He thought this a very clever manoeuvre of his own. While these +arrangements were going on, and the Taylors were taking some +refreshment, Mr. Taylor had found time to express his regrets at +the result of the law-suit. + +"I was much disposed, however, to anticipate such a verdict," he +observed; "Mr. Clapp is a very talented lawyer for so young a +man; this cause, which has attracted so much attention, will +probably make his fortune at the bar. But I was fearful, sir, +from the beginning, that neither yourself nor your friend, Mr. +Hazlehurst, was fully aware of Mr. Clapp's abilities." + +"I do not conceive, however, that the cause was won by Mr. +Clapp's legal acumen," observed Mr. Wyllys, drily. + +"Perhaps not; still, I understand that he succeeded in making out +a very strong case in behalf of his client." + +"Of that there is no doubt." + +"And the less foundation he had to work on, the greater his +talents must appear," said Mr. Taylor, with a look, which +expressed both admiration for Mr. Clapp, and the suspicion that +he had been assisting an impostor. + +"The kind of talent you refer to is not of a very enviable +character, I think," said Mr. Wyllys. + +"I don't know that, my dear sir," added Mr. Taylor, as he drank +off a glass of wine; "it is a talent which has gained a fine +property at least. I regret, however, that my friend, Mr. +Hazlehurst, should have suffered so heavy a loss." + +Mr. Wyllys bowed; and well aware that his own views of the case +and those of Mr. Taylor would not agree, he changed the +conversation. + +"You will find your old place much changed," observed Miss Wyllys +to the merchant. + +"Yes, madam; I understand considerable alterations have been made +at my former mansion. I had almost forgotten this morning that +the estate was no longer mine, and was half-inclined to enter the +gate as we passed it." + +"I am delighted, pa, that it is not yours any longer!" exclaimed +Miss Emma, with a liveliness which accorded particularly ill with +her deep mourning-dress. "We shall have ten times more fun at +Rockaway; Colonnade Manor was the stupidest place in creation; we +were often a whole day without seeing a beau!" + +At length, Miss Emma having declared herself more than +sufficiently rested, she put on the habit; and the chair and +horses were brought to the door. Mr. Taylor was to set out +shortly after, in another direction, to go over the manufactory +in which he was about to become interested. + +All agreed that the day was delightful. There was a fine air, the +dust had been laid by a shower, and as the road led through +several woods, they had not too much sun. For a while the four +equestrians kept together, and common-place matters only were +talked over; the Petrel was not forgotten. Miss Emma Taylor +declared she would have gone along, if she had been on the spot +when they sailed. Bob de Vaux said his brother Hubert had offered +to take him, but he did not care to go; he had rather ride than +sail, any day. + +"Here's for a gallop then!" exclaimed the young lady, and off the +two set at a rapid pace. + +"How does that flirtation come on?" asked Miss Emma, when they +lessened their pace at some distance in advance of the rest of +the party. + +"All settled, I believe," replied the youth. + +"What, actually engaged? I have been quite exercised about all +your doings over here, this summer; you must have had a lively +time, three or four flirtations all going on at once. But, do you +know I am bent on spiting Mr. Ellsworth this morning. He meant to +have a tete-a-tete, I know, and only asked YOU just to get rid of +ME. But he shan't have a moment's peace to pay for it; let's turn +round and go back again at full speed." + +Bob de Vaux had not the least objections; he liked motion and +mischief almost as much as did the lively belle; they both +enjoyed the joke exceedingly, and succeeded in provoking Mr. +Ellsworth not a little. Miss Emma and her companion were in high +glee at their success; they would first ride half a mile by the +side of the others, then gallop off to a distance, and at a +signal from the young lady, suddenly facing about they would +return, just in time, as Miss Emma thought, to cut short any +tender speech. + +"That young lady seems to have gone twice over every foot of the +road," innocently observed Mr. Wyllys, little aware of her +object. + +"What a restless creature it is!" replied Mrs. Creighton; "she +must worry her horse as much as she annoys her rational +companions." + +"Miss Taylor is a perfect rattle," remarked Mr. Ellsworth. "Quite +inferior to her sister, Mrs. Hunter, I should say." + +{"a rattle" = a chatterbox} + +"Her excess of spirits will wear itself out one of these days, I +dare say," replied Elinor. + +"It is to be hoped so," said the gentleman, drily. + +When they reached the lake they dismounted, and passed half an +hour at a farm-house, to rest, and lunch upon iced milk and +dew-berries, which the farmer's wife kindly offered them. Mrs. +Creighton professed herself rather disappointed with Chewattan +Lake; the shores were quite low, there was only one good hill, +and one pretty, projecting point, with a fine group of elms +standing in graceful relief against the sky; she thought Mr. +Hubbard's painting had flattered nature. Mr. Ellsworth would not +allow that Charlie ever flattered; but remarked that it was his +peculiar merit, to throw a charm about the simplest water scene; +and his last view of Chewattan Lake was certainly one of his +happiest pictures. + +{"dew-berries" = blackberries; "happiest" = most successful} + +On their way home, Miss Emma and her companion again commenced +their quizzing system. Towards the end of the ride, however, the +young lady relaxed a little in her vigilance; when they reached a +turnpike-gate, about two miles from Wyllys-Roof, she suddenly +proposed to Bob de Vaux to run a race with Elinor and Mr. +Ellsworth. + +"What do you say to it, Miss Wyllys?" + +"Excuse me; I had much rather not." + +"Oh, but you don't know what I mean. Now, you and Mr. Ellsworth +go cantering and trotting along, in such a sober, Darby and Joan +fashion, that I am sure Mr. de Vaux and I can turn off here, take +this by-road, which you know comes in nearly opposite your gate, +and although it is twice as far round, I bet you a pair of gloves +we are at Wyllys-Roof before you." + +{"Darby and Joan fashion" = like an old married couple} + +"Done!" exclaimed Mr. Ellsworth, delighted with the idea; and off +the young lady gallopped {sic} with her companion. + +It is not to be supposed that the gentleman allowed the half-hour +that followed to pass unimproved. He could speak at last, and he +admired Elinor too sincerely, not to express himself in terms +both warm and respectful. Although Elinor had been for some time +fully prepared for this declaration, yet she did not receive it +without betraying feeling and embarrassment. Emotion in woman, at +such moments, or in connexion with similar subjects, is generally +traced to one cause alone; and yet half the time it should rather +be attributed to some other source. Anxiety, modesty, mere +nervousness, or even vexation at this very misinterpretation, +often raise the colour, and make the voice falter. Elinor had +fully made up her mind, and she felt that a frank explanation was +due to Mr. Ellsworth, but her regard for him was too sincere not +to make the moment a painful one to her. He was rejected; but +rejected with so much consideration, so much modesty and feeling, +so much good sense, that the very act only increased his regret. +He was much disappointed, for he had been a hopeful suitor. +Elinor had always liked him, and he had thought her manner +encouraging; Mr. Wyllys and Miss Agnes had not concealed their +approbation; and Mrs. Creighton had often told him she had no +doubt of his success. He was more than mortified, however, by the +refusal, he was pained. Elinor repeated assurances of respect and +friendship, and regret that she felt herself unable to return his +regard as it deserved. She even alluded to his generosity in +overlooking her want of personal attractions; she said she had, +on that account, been slow to believe that he had any serious +object in view. At the time he had first proposed, through her +grandfather, she herself had wished to prevent his going any +farther, but her friends had desired her to defer the answer; he +himself had begged her to do so, and named the time fixed--she +had reluctantly consented to this arrangement; and, although the +more she knew of Mr. Ellsworth, the more highly she esteemed and +respected him, yet the result had been what she first foresaw; +she could not conscientiously offer him the full attachment he +had a right to expect from a wife. + +Mr. Ellsworth rode on in silence for a moment. + +"Is it then true, Miss Wyllys, that I must give up all idea of +obtaining a more indulgent hearing, at some future day?" + +"Judge for yourself if I am capricious, Mr. Ellsworth. Do not +imagine that I have lightly rejected the regard of a man whom I +esteem so highly as yourself. I could scarcely name another in my +whole acquaintance, for whom I should have hesitated so long; +but--" Elinor paused, suddenly became very red, and then deadly +pale. + +"But--what would you say, Miss Wyllys?--go on, I entreat!" +exclaimed Mr. Ellsworth. + +It was a moment before Elinor rallied. She then continued, in a +low voice, and in an agitated, hesitating manner: + +"Mr. Ellsworth, I shall speak with perfect frankness; your +kindness and forbearance deserve it. When I consented to wait so +long before giving you a final answer, it was chiefly that I +might discover if I could regain entire command over feelings +which have not always been my own. I am afraid you are not aware +of this. The feeling itself to which I allude is changed; but be +it weakness or not, it has left traces for life. I was willing to +make an experiment in favour of one who deserved the full +confidence of my friends and myself; but the trial has not +succeeded; if I know myself, it can never succeed--I shall never +marry." + +And then after a moment's silence she gently continued, in a +calmer tone: + +"But you will soon forget all this, I trust. You will find +elsewhere some one more worthy of you; one who can better repay +your kindness." + +Mr. Ellsworth chafed a little under this suggestion; though not +so much as a more passionate man might have done. + +"To forget one of so much womanly excellence as yourself, Miss +Wyllys, is not the easy task you seem to suppose." + +Elinor could have sighed and smiled as the thought recurred to +her, that Harry had not found it very difficult to forget her. +They had now reached the gate, on their way home, and turning +towards her companion as they entered, she said: + +"I hope, indeed, you will always remember that you have very +sincere friends at Wyllys-Roof, Mr. Ellsworth; believe me, +friends capable of appreciating your merits, and aware of what is +their due." + +Mr. Ellsworth thanked her, but he looked very evidently +disturbed. When they reached the piazza he helped Elinor from her +horse, perhaps more carefully than usual; Miss Emma Taylor and +her cavalier had already arrived; and the young lady immediately +attacked Mr. Ellsworth, bidding him remember his bet. When Mrs. +Creighton stepped from the chair, she looked for her brother and +Elinor, a little curious to discover if anything decisive had +passed, but both had already entered the house. + +Mr. Wyllys learned in the course of the day, from Ellsworth +himself, that he had been rejected; he was very much +disappointed, and more disposed to find fault with Elinor than he +had ever been before. + +"I am afraid you have not acted wisely, Elinor," said her +grandfather; words more like a reproof than any that Elinor could +remember to have heard fall from his lips, addressed to herself. + +Miss Agnes also evidently regretted her niece's decision; but she +said nothing on the subject. As for Mrs. Creighton, she thought +it all easy to be understood. + +"You may say what you please, Frank, about Miss Wyllys, but you +will never persuade me she is not a coquette." + +But this Mr. Ellsworth would by no means allow. + +Elinor laid her head on her pillow that night with the unpleasant +reflection, that four persons under the same roof were +reproaching her for the step she had taken that day. But she +herself knew that she had acted conscientiously. + + + +CHAPTER XXI. {XLIV} + +"Such news, my lord, as grieves me to unfold." +Henry IV. {sic} + +{William Shakespeare, "Richard III", II.iv.39} + +THE Petrel was a very pretty little schooner, pronounced a crack +craft by the knowing ones. She sat so buoyantly on the water when +motionless, and glided along so gracefully when under way, that +even landsmen and landswomen must have admired her. Let it not be +supposed that the word landswomen is here used unadvisedly: +although the Navy Department is decidedly ungallant in its +general character, and seldom allows ladies to appear on board +ship, excepting at a collation or a ball, yet it is well known +that in some of the smaller sea-port towns, the female portion of +the population are so much interested in nautical matters, and +give so much time and attention to the subject, that they are +looked upon as very good judges of spars and rigging; and it is +even affirmed, that some of these charming young "salts" are +quite capable of examining a midshipman on points of seamanship. +If fame has not belied them, such are the accomplishments of the +belles of Norfolk and Pensacola; while the wives and daughters of +the whalers at Nantucket, are said to have also a critical eye +for the cut of a jib and the shape of a hull. Hubert de Vaux +hoped they had, for he thought it a pity that the Petrel's +beauties should be thrown away. + +On the morning they sailed, when Elinor had watched the boat as +she lay in the river, they had been waiting for Bruno. Harry +wished to carry the dog with him; but after following Hazlehurst +to the boat, he had returned home again; he was, however, enticed +on board, and they hoisted sail, and slowly moved out of sight. + +In spite of some little delay, the Petrel made a very good day's +work. That night and the following the party slept on board, and +seemed very well satisfied with their quarters; they intended to +run out of sight of land before the end of their cruise, but as +yet they had landed every few hours for fresh water, vegetables, +milk, &c.; as it did not enter at all into their calculations to +be put on a short allowance of anything desirable. On the +afternoon of the third day, the Petrel reached the wharf of a +country place on Long-Island, where the party landed, according +to a previous invitation, and joined some friends for a couple of +days' shooting, which proved a pleasant variety in the excursion; +the sport was pronounced good, and the gentlemen made the most of +it. Mr. Stryker, however, complained that the pomp and +circumstance of sporting was wanted in this country. + +"So long as we have the important items of good guns, good +marksmen, and real wild-game, we need not find fault," said +Harry. + +Many lamentations succeeded, however, upon the rapid +disappearance of game from all parts of the country. + +"There I have the best of it," said Mr. Stryker to his host. "In +the next twenty years you may expect to find your occupation +gone; but I shall at least have fishing in abundance all my days; +though at times I am not quite so sure of the brook-trout." + +"I don't think Jonathan will be able to exterminate all the trout +in the land," said Hazlehurst, although he is a shamefully +wasteful fellow; but I really think there is some danger for the +oysters; if the population increases, and continues to eat them, +in the same proportion they do now, I am afraid Jonathan of the +next generation will devour the whole species." + +"Jonathan" = the American (from "Brother Jonathan")} + +>From Glen-Cove the Petrel made a reach across the Sound to +Sachem's-Head, where Mr. Stryker enjoyed to perfection the +luxuries of clam-soup, lobster-salad, and chowder. + +Their next port was Nantucket. They happened to arrive there just +before a thunder-shower, and Charlie Hubbard was much struck with +the wild, desolate look of the island. He pointed out to +Hazlehurst the fine variety of neutral tints to be traced in the +waves, in the low sand-banks, and the dark sky forming the +back-ground. Nantucket is a barren spot, indeed, all but bare of +vegetation; scarcely a shrub will grow there, and even the tough +beach-grass is often swept away in large tracts; while the forms +of the sand-hills vary with every storm. The town itself, +however, is a busy, lively little spot--one of the most nautical +in feeling and character to be found on the globe. The chief +interests of the inhabitants centre in the ocean; and even the +very ornaments of their houses are spoils of the deep, shells and +fish-bones from distant latitudes, and sailor's fancy-work in +various materials, all connected in some way with the sea. +Charlie made a sketch of the island, and determined to return +there and paint a picture of some size. The next day, which was +Sunday, they remained at Nantucket; there is a pretty little +church in the town, and Charlie, Harry, and Mr. Smith attended +service there; the rest of the gentlemen preferring to idle away +the morning in a less praiseworthy manner. + +One of young de Vaux's crew was taken sick here, and he was +obliged to secure another man before leaving the island; it was +easy to do so, however, as one who was waiting for a passage to +New York soon offered, and the matter was settled. + +Early on Monday morning they again made sail, for Martha's +Vineyard; from thence the Petrel's head was to be turned +southward, and after coasting the eastern shore of Long-Island, +they expected to return to the wharf at Broadlawn, as fast as the +winds would carry them. The Vineyard, owing to a more sheltered +position, bears a different aspect from the barren sands of +Nantucket; parts of the island are well wooded. Choosing a +pleasant bay known to their pilot, where a rude wharf had been +built, the party landed and prepared to dine, and pass some hours +there. They were no sooner on shore than Mr. Stryker made his +arrangements for fishing; having secured bait, Dr. Van Horne and +himself, with one of the men, took the Petrel's boat and rowed +off from shore, changing their ground occasionally, until they +had turned the point which formed the bay on one side, and were +no longer in sight. De Vaux and Smith took their guns and went +into the wood; Charlie brought out his sketchbook, and was soon +engaged in taking some tints, in watercolours, from a heavy bank +of clouds which had been slowly rising in the west for several +hours. Hazlehurst was lying on the grass near him, with a +spy-glass, watching a couple of sloops in the distance: turning +his head accidentally towards the spot where they were commencing +preparations for dinner, Harry saw one of the men, the new +recruit, whom he had not yet remarked, looking at him closely. It +struck Hazlehurst that he had met this man before; the sailor saw +that he was observed, and after a moment's hesitation he +approached, touching his hat with the common salutation of a +seaman, and looking as if he wished to speak, but scarcely knew +how to begin. + +"Have you anything to say to me, my friend?--It strikes me I have +seen your face somewhere lately." + +"If you are Mr. Hazlehurst, I guess, sir, you seed me not long +since," replied the man, a little embarrassed. + +It suddenly flashed upon Harry's mind, that it was during the +Stanley trial that he had seen this person; yes, he could not be +mistaken, he was one of the witnesses for the plaintiff on that +occasion. Hazlehurst gave him a keen look; the fellow faltered a +little, but begged Harry to step aside for a moment, as he wished +to speak alone with him. They moved to the adjoining bank, within +the edge of the wood, and a conversation followed of some +consequence to Hazlehurst, certainly. After a few prefatory +remarks, this man offered to make important revelations, upon +condition that he should be screened from justice--being +considered as state's evidence--and rewarded by Harry for +volunteering his services; to which Hazlehurst readily agreed. + +We shall tell his story for him, rather as it appeared at a later +day, than in the precise words in which it was first given at +Martha's Vineyard. By his disclosures, the villany {sic} of Clapp +and his client were placed beyond a doubt; and he himself was +good authority, for he was Robert Stebbins, the witness who had +sworn to having returned the pocket-book and the accompanying +documents to the plaintiff, as their rightful owner; he now +confessed that he had perjured himself for a heavy bribe, but +stood ready to turn state's evidence, and reveal all he knew of +the plot. Those papers had actually been placed in his care +thirteen years since by his own brother, Jonathan Stebbins, who +had died of small-pox in an hospital at Marseilles. This brother +had been a favourite companion of William Stanley's from his +first voyage; they had shipped together in the Jefferson, and +before sailing, Stanley had placed a package of papers and other +articles, for safe-keeping, in an old chest of Stebbins's, which +was left with the sailor's mother in Massachusetts. They were +wrecked in the Jefferson on the coast of Africa, as had been +already reported; but they were not drowned, they both succeeded +in reaching the shore, having lashed themselves to the same spar. +It was a desert, sandy coast, and they were almost starved after +having reached the land; their only shelter was a small cave in a +low ledge of rocks near the beach; they fed upon half-putrid +shell-fish thrown upon the sands by the gale, and they drank from +the pools of rain-water that had formed on the rock during the +storm; for they had saved nothing from the wreck but a sealed +bottle, containing their protections as American sailors, some +money in an old glove, and a few other papers. William Stanley +had been ill before the gale, and he had not strength to bear up +against these hardships; he declined rapidly, and aware that he +could not live, the young man charged his companion, if he ever +returned to America, to seek his family, relate the circumstances +of his death, and show the papers in the bottle--an old letter to +himself, and within it the notice of his father's marriage, which +he had cut from a paper, obtained from an American vessel spoken +on the voyage--and also the package left on shore in the old +chest, as these documents would be considered testimonials of his +veracity. He farther charged Stebbins to say that he asked his +father's forgiveness, acknowledging that he died repenting of his +past misconduct. The third day after the gale the young man +expired, and Stebbins buried him in the sand near the cave. The +survivor had a hard struggle for life; the rain-water had soon +dried away, and he set out at night in search of a spring to +relieve his thirst, still keeping in sight of the shore. As the +morning sun rose, when all but exhausted, he discovered on the +beach several objects from the wreck, which had drifted in that +direction, the wind having changed after the gale. He found a keg +of spirits and some half-spoiled biscuit, and by these means his +life was prolonged. He made a bag of his shirt, bound a few +things on his back, and buried others in the sand, to return to +if necessary, and then continued to follow the shore northward, +in search of some spring or stream. Fortunately, he soon came to +a woody tract which promised water, and climbing a tree he +watched the wild animals, hoping to discover where they drank; at +length, following a flock of antelopes, he came suddenly upon the +bank of a stream of some size; and to his unspeakable joy, saw on +the opposite bank a party of white men, the first human beings he +had beheld since Stanley's death; they proved to be Swedes +belonging to a ship in the offing; and immediately took him into +their boat. The vessel was bound to Stockholm, where she carried +young Stanley's shipmate; from there he went to St. Petersburgh, +where he met with the brother who related his story to +Hazlehurst, and both soon after enlisted in the Russian navy. +They were sent to the Black Sea, and kept there and in the +Mediterranean for five years, until the elder brother, Jonathan +Stebbins, died of small-pox in a hospital at Marseilles, having +never returned to America since the wreck of the Jefferson. +Before his death, however, he left all his effects and William +Stanley's papers to his brother. This man, Robert Stebbins, +seemed to have paid very little attention to the documents; it +was by mere chance that he preserved the old letter, and the +marriage notice within it, for he confessed that he had torn up +the protection, once when he wanted a bit of paper: he had never +known William Stanley himself, the inquiries about the young man +had ceased before he returned to America, and he had attached no +importance whatever to these papers. He had left them where they +had first been placed, in the old sea-chest at his mother's +house, near New Bedford, while he led the usual wandering life of +a sailor. He told Harry that he had at last quite forgotten this +package, until he accidentally fell in with a man calling himself +William Stanley, at a low tavern, only some five or six years +since, and, to his amazement, heard him declare he had been +wrecked in the Jefferson. + +{"protection" = a paper testifying to the American citizenship of +a seaman, carried to protect him against being forced into the +British Navy as an Englishman. Stebbins' survival reflects +descriptions of a shipwreck on the Atlantic coast of North Africa +in James Fenimore Cooper's "Homeward Bound" (1838)} + +"The fellow was half-drunk," said Stebbins; "but I knew his yarn +was a lie all the time, for I had sailed with him in another +ship, at the time my brother Jonathan was wrecked in the +Jefferson. He shipped then under the name of Benson, but I knew +his real name was Edward Hopgood--" + +"Edward Hopgood!" exclaimed Harry, passing his hand over his +forehead--" surely I have heard that name before. Wait a moment," +he added, to Stebbins; while he endeavoured to recollect why that +name, singular in itself, had a familiar sound to him. At length +his eye brightened, the whole matter became more clear; he +recollected when a mere child, a year or two before Mr. Stanley's +death, while staying at Greatwood during a vacation, to have +heard of the bad conduct of a young man named Edward Hopgood, a +lawyer's clerk in the adjoining village, who had committed +forgery and then run away. The circumstances had occurred while +Harry was at Greatwood, and had been so much talked of in a +quiet, country neighbourhood, as to make a decided impression on +himself, child as he was. Harry also remembered to have heard Mr. +Stanley tell Mr. Wyllys that this Hopgood was very distantly +related to himself, through the mother, who had made a very bad +connexion; adding, that this lad had been at Greatwood, and would +have been assisted by himself, had he not behaved very badly, and +done so much to injure his own son that he had been forbidden the +house. Harry farther remembered, that Clapp had belonged to the +same office from which this Hopgood had run away. There was, +however, one point which he did not understand; he thought he had +since heard that this Hopgood had turned actor, and died long +since of yellow-fever, at New Orleans. Still, he felt convinced +that there was a good foundation for Stebbins's story, and he +hoped soon to unravel the whole plot, from the clue thus placed +in his hands. + +"Go on," said Harry, after this pause. "You say this man, whom +you knew to be Hopgood, called himself William Stanley. What +became of him?" + +"It is the same chap that hoisted your colours, Mr. Hazlehurst; +him that the jury gave the verdict to in Philadelphia." + +"Yes; I knew it must be the same individual before you spoke," +said Harry, with a view to keep his informant accurate. "But how +did you know that his name was Hopgood? for you say he had +shipped under another." + +"I knew it because he had told me so himself. He told me how he +had run away from a lawyer's office in Pennsylvany, gone to New +Orleans and turned play-actor a while, then shammed dead, and had +his name printed in the papers among them that died of +yellow-fever. He told me all that in his first voyage, when we +were shipmates, and that was just the time that my brother +Jonathan was wrecked in the Jefferson." + +"When you afterwards heard him say he was William Stanley, did +you tell him you knew his real name?" + +"Yes; I told him I knew he lied; for my brother had buried +Stanley with his own hands, and that I had his papers at home. +Then he told me, he was only laughing at the green-horns." + +"Did you mention to any one at the time that you knew this man +was not William Stanley?" + +"No, sir, for I didn't speak to him until we were alone; and we +parted company next morning, for I went to sea." + +"When did you next see Hopgood?" + +"Well, I didn't fall in with him again for a long while, until +this last spring. When I came home from a voyage to China in the +Mandarin, last May, I went to my mother's, near New Bedford, and +then I found a chap had been to see her in the winter, and +persuaded her to give him all the papers in the old chest, that +had belonged to William Stanley, making out he was one of the +young man's relations. It was that lawyer Clapp; and Hopgood had +put him on the track of them 'ere papers." + +"What were the documents in your chest?" + +"Most of what they had to show came from me: to be sure, Hopgood +had got some letters and papers, written to himself of late years +under the name of William Stanley; but all they had before the +wreck of the Jefferson came from me." + +"Were there any books among the articles in your possession?" + +"No, sir; nothing but the pocket-book." + +"Are you quite sure? Was there not one book with William +Stanley's name in it?" + +"Not one; that 'ere book they had in court didn't come from me; +how they got it I don't know," replied Stebbins positively; who, +it seemed, knew nothing of the volume of the Spectator. + +"Where did you next meet Hopgood?" + +"Well, I was mad when I found he had got them papers; but the +lawyer had left a message with my mother, saying if I came home, +she was to tell me I'd hear something to my advantage by applying +to him. So I went after him to the place where he lives; and sure +enough there was Hopgood, and he and Clapp as thick as can be +together. I guess they'd have liked it better if I had never +showed myself again: but they got round me, and told me how it +was all settled, and if I would only lend a hand, and keep quiet +about Hopgood, and speak for them once in a while, they would +enter into an agreement to give me enough to make a skipper of me +at once. Them 'ere lawyers they can make black look like +white--and so I agreed to it at last." + +Hazlehurst strongly suspected that less persuasion had been +necessary than the man wished him to believe. + +"Did they tell you all their plan?" + +"Pretty much all; they said it was easy to make people believe +Hopgood was William Stanley, for he looked so much like the young +man, that he had been asked if that wasn't his name. He said it +was that first gave him the notion of passing off for William +Stanley--that, and knowing all about the family, and the young +man himself. He said Stanley had no near relations who would be +likely to remember him; there was only one old gentleman they was +afraid of, but they calculated they knew enough to puzzle him +too. Hopgood had been practising after Stanley's handwriting; he +was pretty good at that trade when he was a shaver," said +Stebbins, with a look which showed he knew the story of the +forgery. "He was bred a lawyer, and them 'ere lawyers are good at +all sorts of tricks. Clapp and him had made out a story from my +papers and what they know'd before, and got it all ready in a +letter; they agreed that from the time of the wreck, they had +better keep pretty straight to Hopgood's real life; and so they +did." + +"They seem to have laid all their plans before you." + +"Well, they couldn't help it, for they wanted me to tell them all +I heard from my brother; but I told 'em to speak first. They made +out that Hopgood had a right to the property; for they said that +old Mr. Stanley had no family to leave it to, that you was a +stranger, and that Hopgood was a relation." + +"This Hopgood, who first helped to corrupt William Stanley, even +if he had actually been a near relation, would have been the last +human being to whom Mr. Stanley would have left his property," +said Harry, coolly. "But go on with your story; why did they not +show the pocket-book before the trial?" + +"They settled it so, because they thought it would look better +before the jury." + +"Why did you change your own mind so soon after the trial? You +should have come to me before." + +"Hopgood and I had a quarrel only three days ago, when he was +drunk; he swore they could have done without me, and I swore I'd +be revenged. Then that fellow, Clapp, wouldn't pay me on the spot +according to agreement, as soon as they had gained the cause. I +had kept my part, and he hadn't lifted a finger yet for me; nor +he wouldn't if he could help it, for all he had given me his +word. I know him from more than one thing that came out; he is +one of your fellows who sham gentlemen, with a fine coat to his +back; but I wouldn't trust him with a sixpence out of sight; no, +nor out of arm's length," and Stebbins went on, swearing roundly +at Clapp and Hopgood, until Harry interrupted him. + +"I know them 'ere lawyers, they think they can cheat Jack any +day; but I won't trust him an hour longer! I know your real +gentleman from your tricky sham at a minute's warning, though +their coats be both cut off the same piece of broadcloth. I +haven't served under Uncle Sam's officers for nothing. Now I'll +trust you, Mr. Hazlehurst, as long as it suits you; I'd no more +have talked to Clapp without having his name down in black and +white, as I have to you, than I'd be shot." + +"The agreement I have made shall be strictly kept," replied +Harry, coldly. "Had you come to me before the trial, you would +have had the same reward, without the crime of perjury." + +"Well, that 'ere perjury made me feel uncomfortable; and what +with having sworn vengeance on Clapp and Hopgood, I made up my +mind to go straight back to Philadelphy, and turn state's +evidence. I was waiting for a chance to get to New York when I +saw you on the wharf at Nantucket, and I knew you in a minute." + +The conversation was here interrupted by a call from the beach, +which attracted Harry's attention, after having been so much +engrossed during the disclosures of Stebbins, as to be quite +regardless of what was going on about him. It was de Vaux who had +called--he now approached. + +"I couldn't think where that fellow, Stebbins, had got to; if you +have nothing for him to do here, Hazlehurst, he is wanted +yonder." + +Harry and the sailor accordingly parted. After exchanging a few +words to conclude their agreement, they both returned to the +beach. + +The Petrel seemed to be getting under way again; Smith and de +Vaux, who had just returned from the wood with their guns, and +Charlie, who had just left his sketching apparels, were standing +together looking on when Harry joined them. + +"I didn't know what had become of you," said Charlie. "What a +long yarn that fellow seemed to be telling you!" + +"It was well worth hearing," said Harry, with a significant look +at his friend. + +"Really? I had some hope it might prove so from the man's look," +added Charlie, comprehending at once the drift of the +conversation, though he had little idea of its complete success +in unravelling the plot + +"You shall hear it before long," added Harry. + +"When you please; in the mean time I wish you joy of any good +news!" + +"But what are you about here, de Vaux? I thought we were to +remain on the island till sun-set." + +"So we shall; but it seems that fellow, Black Bob, has forgot the +vegetables I ordered him to bring from Nantucket; we have +discovered a house with something like a garden on the opposite +point, and I am going to send Bob with the boy Sam on a foraging +expedition; I dare say they will find potatoes and onions at +least. That is the spot; do you see the apple-trees? With the +glass I saw a woman moving about, and milk-pans drying in the +sun." + +"Why don't you send the boat?" + +"Stryker hasn't come back yet, and there is wind enough to carry +the Petrel over and back again in half an hour." + +"Smith and I are going as commanding officers; and you will have +a much better dinner for our exertions, no doubt," said Charlie. + +"Holloa, there, Bob--Sam!--tumble on board; mind you bring all +the garden-stuff they can spare. You Bob, see if you can pick up +half you contrived to forget, sir, at Nantucket. You deserve to +be made to swim across for it," said de Vaux. + +"Never could swim a stroke in my born days, sir," muttered Black +Bob. + +"There isn't much choice of sa'ace at Nantucket, anyway," added +the boy Sam. + +{"sa'ace" = sauce, a slang term for vegetables} + +"Here we go," said Charlie, jumping lightly on board, followed by +Smith. + +"It is possible you may find some melons, Hubbard; don't forget +to ask for them," said de Vaux. + +"Ay, ay, sir," replied Charlie, nodding as the Petrel moved off. +The boy was steering, while Black Bob and the gentlemen tended +the sails; and the little schooner glided gracefully on her way, +with a light breeze, sufficiently favourable. + +Harry went to take a look at Charlie's sketch, which he found +just as the young artist had left it--spirited and true to nature +as usual, but only half-finished. De Vaux looked into the chowder +pot, where all seemed to be going on well. He then joined Harry, +and the young men continued walking together near the shanty, +where preparations for dinner were going on under the charge of +Stebbins and the acting steward of the cruise. + +"It is nearly time Stryker made his appearance with the fish," +said Harry. + +"If the sport is good, we shan't see him this hour yet," replied +de Vaux. "He will only come back in time to put the finishing +stroke to the chowder." + +"If he waits too long he will have a shower," observed Harry, +pointing eastward, where dark clouds were beginning to appear +above the wood. + +"Not under an hour I think," said de Vaux. "He will take care of +himself at any rate--trust to Stryker for that," They turned to +look at the Petrel. Some ten or fifteen minutes had passed since +she left the little wharf, and she was already near her +destination; the point on which the farm-house stood being +scarcely more than a mile distant, in a direct line, and a single +tack having proved sufficient to carry her there. + +"The wind seems to be falling," said Harry, holding up his hand +to feel the air. "It is to be hoped they will make a quick +bargain, or they may keep your potatoes too late to be boiled for +to-day's dinner." + +De Vaux took up the glass to look after their movements. + +"They have made the point, handsomely," he said; "and there is a +woman coming down to the shore, and a boy, too." + +The friends agreed that there seemed every prospect of a +successful negotiation; for a woman was seen going towards the +garden with a basket, and Sam, the boy, had landed. Before long a +basket was carried down from the house; while Sam and the woman +were still busy in the garden. + +"They had better be off as soon as they can," said de Vaux, "for +the wind is certainly falling." + +"There is a shower coming up over the island, Captain de Vaux," +said Stebbins, touching his hat. + +"Coming, sure enough!--look yonder!"--exclaimed Harry, pointing +eastward, where heavy clouds were now seen rising rapidly over +the wood. + +"We shall have a shower, and something of a squall, I guess," +added Stebbins. + +There could not indeed be much doubt of the fact, for a heavy +shower now seemed advancing, with the sudden rapidity not unusual +after very warm weather; the position of the bay, and a wooded +bank having concealed its approach until close at hand. + +"We shall have a dead calm in ten minutes," said de Vaux; "I wish +the Petrel was off." + +But still there seemed something going on in the garden; the +woman and Sam were very busy, and Charlie and Smith had joined +them. + +"They must see the shower coming up by this time!" exclaimed de +Vaux. + +"There will be a squall and a sharp one, too," added Stebbins. + +The wind, which had prevailed steadily all the morning in a +light, sultry breeze from the south, was now dying away; the +sullen roll of distant thunder was heard, while here and there a +sudden flash burst from a nearer cloud. + +"Thank Heaven, they are off at last!" cried de Vaux, who was +watching the schooner with some anxiety. + +Harry and the two men were busy gathering together under cover of +the shanty, the different articles scattered about, and among +others Charlie's half-finished sketch. + +The sun was now obscured; light, detached clouds, looking heated +and angry, were hurrying in advance with a low flight, while the +heavens were half-covered by the threatening mass which came +gathering in dark and heavy folds about the island. Suddenly the +great body of vapour which had been hanging sullenly over the +western horizon all the morning, now set in motion by a fresh +current of air, began to rise with a slow movement, as if to meet +the array advancing so eagerly from the opposite direction; it +came onward steadily, with a higher and a wider sweep than the +mass which was pouring immediately over the little bay. The +landscape had hung out its storm-lights; the dark scowl of the +approaching gust fell alike on wood, beach, and waters; the birds +were wheeling about anxiously; the gulls and other water-fowl +flying lower and lower, nearer and nearer to their favourite +element; the land-birds hurrying hither and thither, seeking +shelter among their native branches. But not a drop of rain had +yet fallen; and the waves still came rolling in upon the sands +with the measured, lulling sound of fair weather. + +The air from the south revived for a moment, sweeping in light, +fitful puffs over the bay. Favoured by this last flickering +current of the morning's breeze, the Petrel had succeeded in +making her way half across the bay, though returning less +steadily than she had gone on her errand an hour before. + +"Give us another puff or two, and she will yet be here before the +squall," said de Vaux. + +The little schooner was now indeed within less than half a mile +of the wharf; but here at length the wind entirely failed her, +and she sat idly on the water. De Vaux was watching her through +the glass; there seemed to be some little hesitation and +confusion on board; Sam, the boy, had given up the tiller to +Black Bob. Suddenly the first blast of the gust from the east +came rustling through the wood, making the young trees bend +before it; then as it passed over the water there was a minute's +respite. + +"How she dodges!--What are they about?" exclaimed Harry. + +"What do they mean?--Are they blind?--can't they see the squall +coming?" cried de Vaux in great anxiety, as he watched the +hesitation on board the Petrel. + +"As my name is Nat Fisher, that nigger is drunk!--I thought so +this morning!" exclaimed the steward. + +"And Smith and Hubbard know nothing of a boat!" cried de Vaux, in +despair. + +The words had scarcely passed his lips before the wind came +rushing over the wood, in a sudden, furious blast, bringing +darker and heavier clouds, accompanied by quick, vivid flashes of +lightning, and sharp cracks of thunder; the rain pouring down in +torrents. It was with difficulty the young men kept their footing +on the end of the wharf, such was the first fury of the gust; but +they forgot themselves in fears for their friends. + +"Are they mad!" cried de Vaux, as he marked the uncertainty of +their movements; while the wind was sweeping furiously over the +darkened waters towards them. + +A heavy sheet of rain, pouring in a flood from the clouds, +completely enveloped the party on the wharf; another second and a +shout was indistinctly heard amid the tumult of the winds and +waters; a lighter cloud passed over, the bay was partially seen +again; but neither the white sails of the Petrel nor her buoyant +form could be traced by the eager eyes on the wharf. She had been +struck by the gust and capsized. + +"She is gone!" exclaimed de Vaux, with a cry of horror. + +"Charlie can't swim!" cried Harry. + +"Nor Bob, for certain," said the steward. "I don't know about the +others." + +Three shots from a fowling-piece were rapidly fired, as a signal +to the party in the Petrel that their situation was known to +their friends on shore. The steward was instantly ordered to run +along the beach to the farthest point, and carry the boat from +there to the spot; it was a distance of more than two miles by +land, still de Vaux thought it best to be done; while he himself +and Stebbins seized another pair of oars, and set off at full +speed in the opposite direction, to the nearest point, about a +mile from the wharf, beyond which Stryker was fishing with their +own boat, intending to carry her instantly to the relief of the +party in the schooner. + +Harry thought of his friend; Charlie could not swim, he himself +was a remarkably good swimmer. It must be some little time before +either boat could reach the capsized schooner, and in the +interval, two at least of the four individuals in the Petrel, +were helpless and in imminent peril. The idea of Charlie's danger +decided his course; in a moment he had cast off his clothes, and +with Bruno at his side--a faithful ally at such a moment--he had +thrown himself into the water, confident that he could swim the +distance himself with ease. + +The next half-hour was one of fearful anxiety. The gust still +raged with sullen fury; the shower from eastward, collected among +the mists of the ocean, and the array from the west, gathered +amid the woods and marshes of the land, met with a fierce shock +on the shores of the Vineyard. The thunder and lightning were +unusually severe, several bolts falling within a short distance +about the bay; the rain pouring down in a dense sheet, as the +wind drove cloud after cloud over the spot in its stormy flight. +And amid this scene of violence four human beings were struggling +for life, while their anxious friends were hurrying to their +relief, with every nerve alive. Frederick Smith was the first who +rose after the Petrel capsized; in another moment he saw the head +of the boy emerge from the water at a little distance; the lad +could swim, and both had soon gained the portion of the little +schooner's hull which was partially bare, though constantly +washed by the waves. Another minute, and Smith saw amid the spray +Charlie's head; he knew that Hubbard could not swim, and moved +towards him with a cry of encouragement. + +"Here!" replied the young painter; but he had disappeared before +Smith could reach him. + +A fresh blast of wind, rain, and hail passed over the spot; Smith +moved about calling to Hubbard and the negro; but he received no +answer from either. + +"There's one of them!" cried the boy eagerly; he swam towards the +object he had seen, but it proved to be only a hat. + +Both returned to the Petrel's side, watching as closely as the +violence of the wind and rain would permit. Not a trace of the +negro was seen; yet Smith thought he must have risen to the +surface at some point unobserved by them, for he was a man of a +large, corpulent body, more likely to float than many others. A +second time Smith was relieved by seeing Charlie rise, but at a +greater distance from the Petrel's hull; a second time he +strained every nerve to reach him, but again the young man sunk +beneath the waves. + +A shout was now heard. "It is the boat!" said Smith, as he +answered the call. He was mistaken; it was Hazlehurst who now +approached, with Bruno at his side, guided by the voices of Smith +and the boy. + +"Charlie!" cried Harry, as he made his way through the water. +Charlie!" he repeated again. + +"Hubbard has sunk twice, and the negro is gone!" cried Smith. + +"Come to the hull and take breath," added Smith. + +But just as he spoke, Harry had seen an arm left bare by a +passing wave; he made a desperate effort, reached the spot, and +seized Charlie's body, crying joyfully, "It is Hubbard; I have +him!--Charlie, do you know me?--Charlie, speak but a word, my +good fellow!" + +But the young man had lost his consciousness; he returned no +answer either by look or word. Harry grasped his collar, holding +his face above the water, and at the same time moving towards the +Petrel's hull as rapidly as he could. + +"Here Bruno, my noble dog! That's right, Smith, get a firm hold +on the schooner; we must draw him up, he has fainted; but the +boats must be here soon." + +Smith was following Hazlehurst's directions; but ere Bruno had +joined his master, Harry, now within a short distance of the +schooner, suddenly cried, "Help!"--and in another second both he +and Charlie had disappeared beneath the water, in a manner as +incomprehensible, as it was unexpected and distressing to Smith. + +"He's sunk!" cried the boy. + +"How?--where? Surely he was not exhausted!" + +A howl burst from Bruno. + +"Perhaps it's the cramp," said the lad. + +"Both sunk!--Hazlehurst too!" again exclaimed Smith, as much +amazed as he was distressed. He and the boy threw themselves from +the schooner's side again, looking anxiously for some trace of +Hazlehurst. + +"Look sharp, my lad, as you would save a fellow-creature!" + +"There's one of them!" cried the boy, and in another instant he +had caught Charlie by the hair. But not a trace of Hazlehurst was +seen since he first disappeared, and the waters had closed so +suddenly over him. Charlie was carried to the Petrel's side; and +while Smith and the lad were endeavouring to raise him on the +schooner, Bruno was swimming hither and thither, howling +piteously for his master. + +A shout was now heard. + +"The boat at last, thank Heaven!" cried Smith, returning the +call. + +A minute passed; nothing was seen of Harry; Charlie was raised +entirely above water; when at length the Petrel's boat dashed +towards them, urged by all the strength of four rowers. + +"Hubbard!--Bob!" cried de Vaux, as the first glance showed him +that both Smith and the boy were safe. + +"Hubbard is here, insensible--Bob gone--Hazlehurst sunk, too!" + +"Hazlehurst and Bob, too!--Merciful powers!" exclaimed the party. + +A hurried, eager search succeeded, as soon as Charlie, with Smith +and Sam, now somewhat exhausted by fatigue and agitation, were +taken on board. Hubbard was quite insensible; young Van Horne, +the physician, thought his appearance unfavourable, but instantly +resorted to every means possible under the circumstances, with +the hope of restoring animation. Still nothing was seen of Harry; +his entire disappearance was quite incomprehensible. + +"It must have been cramp; yet I never knew him have it, and he is +one of the best swimmers in the country!" said de Vaux. + +"He must have felt it coming, and had presence of mind to loosen +his hold of Hubbard at the same moment he cried for help," +observed Smith. + +Bruno was still swimming, now here, now there, encircling the +Petrel in wider or narrower reaches, howling from time to time +with a sound that went to the hearts of all who heard him. +Different objects floating about beguiled the party for an +instant with hope, but each time a few strokes of the oars +undeceived them. + +Suddenly Bruno stopped within a short distance of the Petrel, and +dove; those in the boat watched him eagerly; he rose with a sharp +bark, calling them to the spot; then dove again, rose with a +howl, and for a third time disappeared beneath the water. +Convinced that he had found either Harry or the negro, de Vaux +threw off his coat and plunged into the water, to examine the +spot thoroughly. The dog soon rose again with a rope in his +mouth, pulling it with all his strength, uttering at the same +time a smothered cry. The rope was seized by those in the boat, +and de Vaux dove; he touched first one body, then another; but +all his strength was unequal to the task of raising either. After +a hurried examination, it was found that one body, that of the +negro, was entangled in a rope and thus held under water from the +first; while Harry's leg was firmly clenched in the dying grip of +Black Bob, who must have seized it as Hazlehurst passed, and +drawn him downward in that way. + +In as short a time as possible, Hazlehurst and the negro were +placed in the boat by the side of Hubbard, who had not yet showed +any sign of life; every effort was made to revive them by some of +the party, while the others rowed with all their strength towards +the shore. + +All watched the face of Van Horne, the young physician, with the +greatest anxiety, as he leaned first over one, then over another, +directing the labours of the rest. + +"Surely there must be some hope!" cried de Vaux to him. + +"We will leave no effort untried," replied the other; though he +could not look sanguine. + +The boat from the most distant point, rowed by the steward and a +boy from the farm-house, now joined them; and those who could not +be of use in assisting Van Horne, passed into her, taking their +oars, and towing the boat of the ill-fated Petrel with her +melancholy burden towards the beach. Bruno could not be moved +from his old master's side; it was painful to see him crawling +from one body to the other, with as much watchfulness, as much +grief, and almost as much intelligence as the surviving friends; +now crouching at the cold feet of Hazlehurst, now licking the +stiff hand, now raising himself to gaze wistfully at the +inanimate features of the young man. + +The shower was passing over; the rain soon ceased, the clouds +broke away, the sun burst again in full glory upon the bay, the +beach, the woods, throwing a brilliant bow over the island. But +three of those upon whom it had shone only an hour earlier, were +now stretched cold and lifeless on the sands; while the mourning +survivors were hanging in heartfelt grief over the bodies of the +two friends and the negro sailor. + + + +CHAPTER XXII. {XLV} + +"And e'en to wakeful conscience unconfest, +Her fear, her grief, her joy were his alone." +COLERIDGE. {sic} + +{Reginald Heber (English poet, 1783-1826), "Morte d'Arthur: A +Fragment" lines II.534-535} + +THE melancholy disaster of the Petrel happened on Monday; it was +not until the Thursday following that the evil tidings reached +Longbridge. + +Elinor, accompanied by Mary Van Alstyne, set out quite early in +the morning to pay some visits at different country-houses in the +neighbourhood. They had been out some little time, having driven +several miles, and made three or four calls, when they reached +Mrs. Van Horne's. On entering the parlour they found the mistress +of the house was not there, but a much less agreeable person, the +elder Mrs. Tibbs, the greatest gossip in Longbridge. + +"I am glad to see you this morning, young ladies," she said. + +"Thank you, ma'am; it is a very pleasant morning, certainly," +replied Elinor, as she took a seat on the sofa. + +"Very pleasant, yes; but I was fearful you might have been kept +at home by the bad news we Longbridge people have just heard." + +"It does not seem to have kept you at home either, Mrs. Tibbs, +whatever it may be," replied Elinor, smiling; for she knew that +any news, whether good or bad, always set this lady in motion. +Little did the poor young girl suspect the nature of the +intelligence that awaited her! + +"No; I thought my good friend, Mrs. Van Horne, might feel uneasy +about her son, and came over to be with her." + +"Mrs. Van Horne! Has anything happened to the family?" + +"You haven't heard the news then?--I am surprised at that. But +here is an account of the accident in the New Haven Eagle. It has +made us all feel quite dreadfully at home!" + +"What has happened?--Pray tell us!" exclaimed Elinor, now looking +alarmed. + +"Here is the account; but perhaps you had better let Miss Mary +read it; she was not so intimate with the deceased." + +"What is it?--let me see the paper, Mary. An accident to one of +the Van Hornes!" and she took the sheet from the table. Her eye +immediately fell on the following article: + +"Our city was painfully excited this morning by the intelligence +which reached here, of a distressing accident to a beautiful +little schooner, the property of Hubert de Vaux, Esq., of New +York, which was seen in our waters only a few days since, and +attracted universal admiration in our port." + +Elinor's eyes could see no farther; she stretched out the paper +to her cousin, saying in a faint voice, "Mary, read!" + +Mary Van Alstyne took the paper, and continued silently to look +over the passage. + +"This little schooner, bound on a cruise of pleasure, had reached +Martha's Vineyard, when, during the sudden squall which passed +over this section also on Monday, she capsized, and melancholy to +relate, four persons lost their lives. The party consisted of Mr. +de Vaux himself, Colonel Stryker, and Mr. Van Horne, of New York; +Charles Hubbard, Esq., the distinguished young artist; Henry +Hazlehurst, Esq., our secretary of Legation to the court of +Russia, where he was shortly to proceed with Mr. Henley, our +Envoy; and also Frederick Smith, Esq., a young gentleman from +Philadelphia. There were in addition five men in the crew. We +regret to add that Mr. Hazlehurst and Mr. Hubbard, a negro sailor +known as Black Bob, and another man, name not mentioned, were +drowned; the bodies were all recovered, but every effort to +restore life proved unavailing." + +Mary Van Alstyne had strong nerves, but the suddenness of these +melancholy tidings, and a dread of the effect upon Elinor, made +her turn deadly pale. + +"Tell me, Mary," said her cousin faintly. + +Mary waited a moment to recover herself, when the question was +anxiously repeated. She took Elinor's hand and sat down by her +side, using every precaution of delicacy and tenderness in +breaking the bad news to her cousin; she approached the worst as +gradually as she could, and mentioned every favourable +circumstance first; while Elinor sat trembling in every limb, yet +endeavouring to retain command over her senses and her feelings. +But it was in vain; when Mary was at length forced to confess +that two of their friends were among the lost, Elinor put her +hand to her heart, while her eyes were fixed on her cousin's +lips; when the name of Hazlehurst was at length reluctantly +pronounced, she started from her chair, and fell quite insensible +on the floor, at her companion's feet. + +It was a long time before she could be restored. Mrs. Van Horne +and the doctor, who was happily in the house, did all in their +power to relieve their young friend; and Mrs. Tibbs was really +quite distressed and mortified, when she found the effects of her +allusion to the accident were so serious. + +"Poor young thing!--I'd no notion, Mrs. Van Horne, that she would +have taken it so much to heart. Do you suppose she was engaged to +one of the young gentlemen?" + +An imploring look from Mary Van Alstyne said to the doctor as +plainly as look could speak, "Do send her away!" + +The doctor was very ready to do so, and by virtue of his medical +authority requested the gossip to walk into the other room, where +he permitted himself to give her a sharp reprimand for having +been in such haste to tell the evil tidings. + +It was some time before Elinor fully recovered her consciousness; +her first words expressed a wish to be carried home. + +"Home, Mary," she said faintly. + +Mrs. Van Horne, who was deeply interested in her young friend, +was anxious she should remain where she was until her strength +had entirely returned. + +"I am strong now," said Elinor feebly, making an effort to rise. + +Mary looked inquiringly at the doctor. + +"You shall go in a few minutes, my dear Miss Elinor," said the +doctor after an instant's hesitation; he thought it best that she +should do so, but determined that his wife and himself would +accompany her to Wyllys-Roof. + +"Mary," said Elinor, with an effort, looking towards Mrs. Van +Horne, "ask if--" + +Mary guessed that she wished to know if the Van Hornes had heard +anything in addition to the account in the paper. Without +speaking, she looked the question. + +"We have had a few lines, sent us by Mrs. de Vaux from New York," +said Mrs. Van Horne, gently. + +Elinor closed her eyes, and fell back again on the cushion. + +"You must not talk, my dear," said the doctor kindly. + +Young de Vaux had in fact written a line or two to his mother, +who was in New York, by the boat which he sent off immediately to +engage a small steamer, as soon as the squall had passed over; +and this note had been considerately forwarded by Mrs. de Vaux to +the Van Hornes, as it mentioned the safety of their own son. It +ran as follows: + +"Martha's Vineyard. + +"MY DEAR MOTHER:--We are greatly distressed by a melancholy +accident which befell us scarce an hour since. The Petrel +capsized; most of our party are safe; but two of my friends are +gone, Hazlehurst and Hubbard! You will understand our grief; mine +especially! We shall return immediately. + +"Your son, H. de V." + +The doctor handed this note to Mary, at a moment when Mrs. Van +Horne was bending over Elinor. + +In a few minutes Elinor made another request to be carried home. + +"Pray take me home, doctor," she said; "I can go now." + +The doctor felt her pulse, and observing that although very +feeble, she seemed to have command of herself, he thought the air +and motion would be of service. The carriage was ordered, she +took a restorative, and making a great effort to rally, leaning +on the doctor's arm she walked to the door. Dr. and Mrs. Van +Horne accompanied her, as well as her cousin. + +"Thank you," she said with her usual gentleness, as she remarked +their kind intention, and then throwing herself back in her seat +she closed her eyes; her face was deadly pale, large tears would +force themselves slowly from beneath her eyelids, and a shudder +pass over her limbs; and yet it was evident she made a strong +effort to control her emotion. There was something in her whole +expression and manner, that bore all the stamp of the deepest +feeling; it was no common nervousness, no shock of sudden +surprise, nor merely friendly sympathy; it was the expression of +unalloyed grief springing from the very depths of a noble heart. + +Even Dr. Van Horne, whose nerves had been hardened by the +exercise of years amid scenes peculiar to his calling, could +scarcely refrain from shedding tears, as he looked with +compassion and with respect at his young friend. She seemed quite +indifferent to the observation of others; her heart and mind were +apparently engrossed by one idea, one feeling, and all her +strength engaged in facing one evil. + +Mrs. Van Horne had not supposed that the bad news would have +affected her so deeply, nor was Mary Van Alstyne prepared for the +result; but however Elinor might have hitherto deceived herself, +however much her friends might have misunderstood her, the truth +was now only too clear; her heart had spoken too loudly to be +misunderstood--it was wholly Hazlehurst's. + +They drove on steadily and slowly, the silence only interrupted +by occasional remarks of Elinor's companions, as they offered her +some assistance. When they came in sight of the Hubbard cottage, +Mary Van Alstyne's heart sunk anew, as she remembered the blow +which had also fallen upon their good neighbours. + +Elinor's efforts for self-command increased as she drew near +home--for the sake of her friends, her aunt and grandfather, she +strained every nerve; but on reaching the house it was in vain, +her resolution gave way entirely when she saw Bruno lying in his +usual place on the piazza. She became so much agitated that it +was feared she would again fall into a deep swoon, and she was +carried from the carriage to a sofa in the drawing-room. Neither +Miss Agnes nor Mr. Wyllys was at home; they had gone to their +afflicted neighbours the Hubbards. An express had brought a +report of the melancholy catastrophe, not half an hour after +Elinor had left Wyllys-Roof in the morning; the lifeless body of +our poor young friend, Charlie, was to reach Longbridge that +afternoon, and Hubert de Vaux had come to request Miss Agnes to +break the sad truth to the bereaved mother and sister. Jane also +was absent, she was in New York with the Taylors; but Elinor's +faithful nurse and the old black cook came hurrying to her +assistance, as soon as they knew she had reached the house so +much indisposed. + +{"express" = special messenger} + +Miss Agnes was sent for; but Elinor had revived again when her +aunt returned, though she was still surrounded by the anxious +circle, Mary, the Van Hornes, her nurse, and old Hetty. When she +heard the footsteps approaching, she made an effort to raise +herself, with a sort of instinctive desire to spare her aunt a +sight of all her weakness. + +"You had better lie still, my dear Miss Elinor," said the doctor +kindly, offering her a glass of some restorative. + +Miss Agnes entered the room and advanced anxiously to the sofa. + +"My poor child!" exclaimed Miss Wyllys. "What is it, +doctor?--illness?" she added anxiously. + +The doctor shook his head. "She heard the news too suddenly," he +said. + +Mr. Wyllys now followed his daughter. Elinor turned her eyes +towards the door as he entered; a cry burst from her lips--she +saw Hazlehurst! + +Yes, Hazlehurst standing in the doorway, looking pale and +distressed, but living, breathing, moving! + +In another second Elinor had started to her feet, sprung towards +him, and thrown herself in his arms--heedless of the family, +heedless of friends and servants about her, forgetting in that +one sudden revulsion of feeling, the whole world but Harry. + +{"revulsion" = a sudden change of feeling} + +Hazlehurst seemed quite forgetful himself of the everyday {sic} +rules of society, and the merely friendly position in which they +had stood at parting, but a week before; his whole expression and +manner now betrayed an interest in Elinor too strong to be +disguised, and which could be explained in one way only. + +All this was the work of a moment; the various degrees of +amazement, produced by the sudden appearance of Harry, on some +individuals of the group of spectators, the surprise of others at +the strong emotions betrayed by the young couple had not +subsided, when an exclamation from Hazlehurst himself again fixed +their attention entirely on Elinor. + +"She has fainted!" he cried, and carried her to the sofa. + +But joy is life to the heart and spirits; Elinor lost her +consciousness for a moment only. She raised her eyes and fixed +them upon Hazlehurst, who still held one of her hands. + +"It is Harry!" she exclaimed, and burst into tears. She felt that +he was safe, that he was by her side; she already felt that he +loved her, that they understood each other; and yet she was still +quite incapable of giving anything like a reason for what had +passed. It was all confusion in her mind, all indistinct but the +blessed truth that Harry was safe, accompanied by a hope she had +not dared to cherish for years. She was still feeble and +agitated, her colour varying with every beat of her heart; her +face now covered with a deep natural blush at the sound of +Harry's voice, at the expression of his eye; now deadly pale +again as she caught some allusion to the Petrel. + +The doctor recommended that she should be left alone with Miss +Wyllys. Her grandfather kissed her tenderly and left the room, as +well as the rest of the party; with one exception, +however--Hazlehurst lingered behind. + +Having reached the adjoining room, explanations were exchanged +between the friends. Mr. Wyllys learned that Elinor and the Van +Hornes had supposed Harry lost, from the paper, and the first +hurried note of de Vaux. When they arrived at Wyllys-Roof, there +was no one there to give them any later information; Mammy Sarah, +the nurse, knew no more than themselves; she had heard the +Broadlawn story, after having seen young de Vaux leave the house +with Miss Agnes, when they first went to the Hubbards'. +Hazlehurst had not accompanied his friend, for he had seen Mr. +Wyllys in a neighbouring field, and went there to give him the +information; and thence they had both gone to the cottage, where +they remained until Mrs. Clapp and Mr. Joseph Hubbard arrived +from Longbridge. Neither Mr. Wyllys nor Miss Agnes had received +the least intimation of the accident, until they heard a correct +account from de Vaux, and Harry himself; consequently they had +not felt the same alarm for Hazlehurst. + +Dr. and Mrs. Van Horne were much gratified by hearing, that +Hazlehurst's restoration was owing to the devoted perseverance of +their son; for it was only after every one else had given up the +hope of reviving him, after long and ceaseless exertions, that +signs of life were discovered. They also now learned the +circumstances of the accident, the fact that two instead of four +persons were lost, and they found that it was in endeavouring to +save Charlie that Harry had so nearly lost his own life. But we +leave them together to express their natural feelings of +gratitude for those who had escaped, sympathy with the sufferers, +their surprise at Harry's appearance, and all the varying +emotions of such a moment. + +While this conversation was passing in one room, Elinor was in +some measure recovering from the first sudden shock of the +morning in the other. Harry seemed fully determined to maintain +his post at her side, and still kept possession of her hand; in +fact, the solemn, anxious moment, hallowed by grief, at which the +disclosure of their mutual feelings had been made, seemed to +banish all common, petty embarrassments. Miss Agnes and Harry +required but a word and a look to explain matters; the aunt +already understood it all. + +"Poor Charlie!" exclaimed Elinor, with a half-inquiring look, as +if with a faint hope that he too might have returned, like Harry. + +"Our friend is gone, dearest!" said Harry, his eyes moistened +with tears as he spoke. + +Elinor wept, and a silence of a minute ensued. "His poor mother, +and his sister!" she exclaimed at length. + +"His two mothers, rather," said Harry, with a faltering voice. + +After another silence, Elinor turned to Hazlehurst with an +anxious look, saying: + +"And your other friends?" + +"All safe; love." + +"The crew too?" + +"One of the crew is lost; Black Bob, a sailor from Longbridge." + +"I remember him; he had no family I believe, Aunt," she said. + +"None, my child, that I have ever heard of." + +"The heaviest blow has fallen upon the Hubbards," said Harry. + +After a pause, in which aunt and niece had prayed for the +mourners, Elinor again made some inquiries. + +"Were all in the Petrel at the time?" asked Elinor. + +"Smith and our poor Charlie, the negro and a boy were crossing a +bay in the Petrel, when she capsized, by the bad management of +the negro, who had been drinking. The rest of us were on shore." + +"You were not in any danger then?" said Elinor, as if relieved +that he had not even been exposed to past peril. + +"I owe my life to my friend Van Horne," he replied. + +Elinor shuddered, and turned deadly pale again. Harry threw his +arms about her and embraced her fervently, until Elinor, who had +now partially recovered the common current of her ideas, made a +gentle struggle to release herself. + +"But you were not in the Petrel?" she said again, as if anxious +to understand all that related to him. + +"We all went to our friends as soon as we saw the schooner +capsize," said Harry. + +"Hubert de Vaux told me that Harry swam some distance, with the +hope of saving poor Charles, who could not swim himself," said +Miss Agnes. "It was in that way, my child, that he was exposed." + +"To save Charlie!--that was like you," said Elinor, with a glow +on her cheek. + +"There was no danger--no merit whatever in doing so--I have often +swum farther," said Harry; "the only difficulty was caused by my +becoming entangled in some ropes, which drew me under water." + +"But where was the boat?" + +"It was not at hand at the moment; they brought it as soon as +possible." + +"Did Charlie speak?" asked Elinor, sadly. + +"My poor friend was insensible when I reached him." + +Again a moment's pause ensued. + +"I must not forget to tell you, love, that we owe a great deal to +another friend of ours," said Harry, smiling. "You will be glad +to hear that Bruno behaved nobly; he first discovered the ropes +in which we were entangled." + +"Bruno!--Where is my noble dog? Pray call him; let me see him!" + +Harry went to the door, and there was Bruno lying across the +threshold, as if waiting to be admitted; he came in at Harry's +call, but not with his usual bound; he seemed to understand that +if his old master had been saved, his master's friend was lost. +The noble creature was much caressed by Miss Wyllys and Elinor; +and we are not ashamed to confess that the latter kissed him more +than once. At length, Miss Agnes observing that her niece was +very much recovered, rose from her seat, and stooping to kiss +Elinor's forehead, placed her hand in that of Harry, saying with +much feeling, as she joined them, "God bless you, my children!" +and then left the room. + +As for what passed after Miss Agnes left her young friends, we +cannot say; Bruno was the only witness to that interview between +Harry and Elinor, and as Bruno was no tell-tale, nothing has ever +transpired on the subject. We may suppose, however, that two +young people, strongly attached to each other, united under such +peculiar circumstances, did not part again until a conclusive and +satisfactory explanation had taken place. Harry no doubt was +enabled to quiet any scruples he may have felt with regard to +Ellsworth; and probably Elinor was assured, that she had entirely +mistaken Hazlehurst's feelings during the past summer; that Mrs. +Creighton was his friend's sister, and a charming woman, but not +the woman he loved, not the woman he could ever love, after +having known his Elinor. Then, as both parties were frank and +warm-hearted, as they had known each other for years, and had +just been reunited under circumstances so solemn, there was +probably more truth, less reserve, and possibly more tenderness +than usual at similar meetings. Doubtless there were some smiles; +and to judge from the tone of both parties on separating, we +think that some tears must have been shed. We are certain that +amid their own intimate personal communications, the young friend +so dear to both, so recently lost, was more than once remembered; +while at the same time it is a fact, that another communication +of some importance to Harry, the disclosures of Stebbins, was +forgotten by him, or deferred until the interview was +interrupted. Mr. Wyllys entered to let Harry know that Hubert de +Vaux had come for him. + +"De Vaux is here waiting for you, Harry," said Mr. Wyllys, +opening the drawing-room door. + +"Is it possible, my dear sir?--Is it so late?" exclaimed Harry. + +It was in fact de Vaux, come to accompany Harry to Longbridge, to +meet the body of our poor Charlie: so closely, on that eventful +day, were joy and sadness mingled to the friends at Wyllys-Roof. + +Elinor had risen from her seat as her grandfather approached. + +"You feel better, my child," he said kindly. + +"I am happy, grandpapa!--happy as I can be TO-DAY!" she added, +blushing, and weeping, and throwing her arms about his neck. + +"It is all right, I see. May you be blessed, together, my +children!" said the venerable man, uniting their hands. + +After an instant's silence, Elinor made a movement to leave the +room. + +"I am going to Longbridge, but I shall hope to see you again in +the evening," said Harry, before she left him. + +"When you come back, then. You are going to Longbridge, you say?" + +"Yes," Said Harry sadly; "to meet Van Horne and Smith, with--" + +Elinor made no reply; she understood his sad errand; offered him +her hand again, and left the room. She retired to her own +apartment, and remained there alone for a long time; and there +the young girl fell on her knees, and offered up most fervent, +heartfelt thanksgivings for the safety of one she loved truly, +one she had long loved, so recently rescued from the grave. + +That afternoon, just as the autumn sun was sinking towards the +woods, throwing a rich, warm glow over the country, a simple +procession was seen moving slowly and sadly over the Longbridge +highway. It was the body of Charlie Hubbard, brought home by his +friends, to pass a few hours beneath his mother's roof, ere it +was consigned to its last resting-place under the sod. We have +not yet dared to intrude upon the stricken inmates of the old +grey cottage; we shall not attempt to paint their grief, such +grief is sacred. The bereaved mother, half-infirm in body and +mind, seemed to feel the blow without fully understanding it: +Patsey, poor Patsey felt the affliction fully, comprehended it +wholly. Charlie had been her idol from infancy; she had watched +over the boy with an engrossing affection, an earnest devotion, +which could be only compared to a mother's love, which might +claim a mother's sacred name. She was entirely overcome when the +young artist's body was brought into the house, and placed in the +coffin, beneath his father's portrait. + +"My boy!--my brother!--Charlie!" she cried wildly; all her usual +calmness, her usual firmness giving way at the moment, as the +young face she loved so tenderly was first disclosed to her view, +pale and lifeless. But the fine features of the young artist, +almost feminine in their delicate beauty, returned no answering +glance--they were rigid, cold, and partially discoloured by +death. + +Hazlehurst and de Vaux passed the night beside the body of their +friend; Miss Agnes and Mrs. Van Horne were with the bereaved +mother and sisters. + +Early on the following morning, Mr. Wyllys and Elinor came to +take a last look at their young friend. + +'Can it indeed be true?--Charlie gone for ever, gone so +suddenly!' thought Elinor, as she leaned over his body, weeping +with the sincere, heartfelt grief of a true friend, until +Hazlehurst, pained by her emotion, gently drew her away; not, +however, before she had bent over poor Charlie, and gently kissed +the discoloured forehead of her young companion, for the first +and the last time. + +Patsey's grief, though not less deep, was more calm than at +first. Again and again she had returned to her young brother's +coffin, with varying feelings; now overwhelmed by poignant grief, +now partially soothed by the first balm of holy resignation; now +alone, now accompanied by her friends. Once, early that morning, +the infirm mother was brought into the room to look for the last +time on the face of her son; she was carried in a chair and +placed by the coffin, then assisted to rise by Miss Agnes and her +daughter Kate. Her tears flowed long, falling on her boy's cold, +but still beautiful features; she wiped them away herself, and +with an humble phrase of resignation, in the words of Scripture, +expressed the thought that ere long she should be laid by his +side. Her's was not the bitter, living grief of Patsey; she felt +that she was near the grave herself. Tears of gentle-hearted +women were not the only tears which fell upon Charlie's bier; his +uncles, his elder brothers, and more than one true friend were +there. But amid all the strong, contending emotions of those who +crowded the humble room, who hung over the coffin, still that +youthful form lay rigid in the fearful chill, the awful silence +of death; he, whose bright eye, whose pleasant smile had never +yet met the look of a friend without the quick glance of +intellect, or the glow of kindly feeling. Patsey felt the change; +she felt that the being she loved was not all there, the dearer +portion was already beyond her sight--and with this reflection +came the blessed consolations of Christian hope; for the +unfeigned faith and the penitent obedience of the Christian, had +been known to Charlie Hubbard from childhood; nor had they ever +been forgotten by the young man. + +Soon after sun-rise, friends and neighbours began to collect; +they came from miles around, all classes and all ages--for the +family was much respected, and their sudden bereavement had +excited general compassion. The little door-yard and the humble +parlour were filled, with those who justly claimed the name of +friends; the highway and an adjoining field were crowded with +neighbours. + +After a solemn prayer within the house, those who had loved the +dead fixed their eyes for the last time on his features; the +coffin was closed from the light, the body was carried for the +last time over the threshold, it was placed on a carriage, and +the living crowd moved away, following the dead, with the slow, +heavy movement of sorrow. The mother, the sisters, and the +nearest female friends remained in privacy together at the house +of mourning. As the funeral train moved along the highway towards +Longbridge, it gradually increased in length; the different +dwellings before which it passed had their windows closed, as a +simple token of sympathy, and on approaching the village, one +bell after another was heard, tolling sadly. The hearse paused +for a moment before the house of Mr. Joseph Hubbard; those who +had come thus far in carriages alighted, and joined by others +collected in the village, they moved from there on foot. Several +brother artists from New York, and other associates of the young +man's, bore the cloth which covered his coffin; and immediately +after the nearest relatives, the elder brothers, and the uncles, +came Hazlehurst and de Vaux, with the whole party of the Petrel, +and the crew of the little schooner: and sincerely did they mourn +their young friend; it is seldom indeed that the simple feeling +of grief and compassion pervades a whole funeral train so +generally as that of the young artist. But our poor Charlie had +been much loved by all who knew him; he was carried to the grave +among old friends of his family, in his native village--and there +were many there capable of admiring his genius and respecting his +character. As the procession entered the enclosure it passed +before a new-made grave, that of the negro sailor, who had been +decently interred by the directions of de Vaux, on the preceding +evening, the party of the Petrel having also attended his +funeral. On reaching the final resting-place of the young artist, +among the tombs of his family, by the side of his father the +minister, an impressive prayer and a short but touching address +were made; the coffin was lowered, the earth thrown on it, and +the grave closed over Charlie Hubbard: the story of his life was +told. + +{"entered the enclosure" = at Christ Episcopal Church, in +Cooperstown, which Susan Fenimore Cooper attended, +African-Americans were at this time buried just inside the +churchyard entrance, away from the other graves; "was told" = was +ended} + +Harry was the last to leave the spot. While the funeral train +returned with the mourners to the house of Mr. Joseph Hubbard, he +remained standing by the grave of his friend, his mind filled +with the recollection of the brilliant hopes so suddenly +extinguished, the warm fancies so suddenly chilled, the bright +dreams so suddenly blighted by the cold hand of death. The solemn +truth, that the shadow of death had also passed over himself was +not forgotten; life in its true character, with all its real +value, all its uncertainties, all its responsibilities, rose more +clearly revealed to him than it had ever yet done; he turned from +Charlie's grave a wiser man, carrying with him, in the +recollection of his own unexpected restoration, an impulse for +higher and more steadfast exertion in the discharge of duty. + +But if Hazlehurst's thoughts, as he retraced his solitary way +towards Wyllys-Roof, were partly sad, they were not all gloomy. +Wisdom does not lessen our enjoyment of one real blessing of +life; she merely teaches us to distinguish the false from the +true, and she even increases our happiness amid the evils and +sorrows against which we are warned, by purifying our pleasures, +and giving life and strength to every better thought and feeling. +When Harry entered the gate of Wyllys-Roof, his heart beat with +joy again, as he saw Elinor, now his betrothed wife, awaiting his +return on the piazza; he joined her, and they had a long +conversation together in the fullness of confidence and +affection. They were at length interrupted by Miss Agnes, who +returned from the Hubbards'. The young people inquired +particularly after Miss Patsey. + +"She is much more calm than she was yesterday; more like herself, +more resigned, thinking again of others, attending to Mrs. +Hubbard; she seems already to have found some consoling +thoughts." + +"It seems, indeed," said Harry, "as if Hubbard's memory would +furnish consolation to his friends by the very greatness of their +loss; his character, his conduct, were always so excellent; the +best consolation for Miss Patsey." + +"It is touching to see that excellent woman's deep affection for +one, so different from herself in many respects," observed Mr. +Wyllys. + +"Fraternal affection is a very strong tie," said Miss Agnes +gently. + +She might have added that it is one of the most honourable to the +human heart, as it is peculiar to our race. Other natural +affections, even the best, may be partially traced among the +inferior beings of creation; something of the conjugal, paternal, +and filial attachment may be roused for a moment in most living +creatures; but fraternal affection is known to man alone, and +would seem in its perfect disinterestedness, almost worthy to +pass unchanged to a higher sphere. + +"I have often thought," said Mr. Wyllys, "that the affection of +an unmarried sister for a brother or a sister, whose chief +interests and affections belong by right to another, if not the +most tender, is surely the most purely disinterested and generous +which the human heart can know: and single women probably feel +the tie more strongly than others." + +Mr. Wyllys was thinking when he spoke, of his daughter Agnes and +Patsey Hubbard; and he might have thought of hundreds of others +in the same circumstances, for happily such instances are very +common. + +"I have never had either brother or sister, but I can well +imagine it must be a strong tie," said Elinor. + +"I flattered myself I had been a sort of brother to you in old +times," said Harry smiling. + +"Your romantic, adopted brothers, Nelly, are not good for much," +said her grandfather. "We tried the experiment with Harry, and +see how it has turned out; it generally proves so, either too +much or too little. Don't fancy you know anything about plain, +honest, brotherly affection," he added, smiling kindly on his +granddaughter, who sat by his side. + +Probably Harry was quite as well satisfied with the actual state +of things. + +"But Charlie was also a son to Miss Patsey," he added, after a +moment. + +"Yes; he had been almost entirely under her care from an infant," +replied Miss Agnes. + +"Poor Charlie!--little did I think that bright young head would +be laid in the grave before mine!" said Mr. Wyllys. + +A moment's pause ensued. + +"Much as I loved Hubbard, much as I regret his loss," said Harry, +"I shall always think of him with a melancholy pleasure." + +"Excepting his loss, there does not seem indeed to be one painful +reflection connected with his name," observed Miss Agnes. + +"Cherish his memory then among your better recollections," added +Mr. Wyllys, to Harry and Elinor. "And an old man can tell you the +full value of happy recollections; you will find one day the +blessing of such treasures of memory." + +"It is a legacy, however, which the good alone can leave their +friends," said Miss Agnes. + +And so it proved, indeed; after the first severe grief of the +sudden bereavement had passed away, the young man was remembered +among his friends with a peculiar tenderness, connected with his +youth, his genius, his excellent character, his blameless life, +and early death. Life had been but a morning to Charlie Hubbard, +but it was a glowing summer morning; its hours had not been +wasted, abused, misspent; brief as they were, yet in passing they +had brought blessings to himself, to his fellow-beings; and they +had left to those who loved him the best consolations of memory. + + + +CHAPTER XXIII. {XLVI} + +"Is not true love of higher price +Than outward form, though fair to see?" +COLERIDGE. + +{Samuel Taylor Coleridge (English poet, 1772-1834), "Separation" +lines 9-10} + +HARRY had a busy autumn that year. He had two important objects +in view, and within a few weeks he succeeded in accomplishing +both. He was very desirous, now all difficulties were removed, +that his marriage with Elinor should not be deferred any longer +than was absolutely necessary. + +"There cannot be the shadow of a reason, love, for waiting," he +said to her within a few days of the explanation. "Remember, it +is now six years since you first promised to become my +wife--since we were first engaged." + +"Six years, off and on," said Elinor smiling. + +"Not really off more than a moment." + +Elinor shook her head and smiled. + +"No; not really off more than a very short time." + +"Very well," said Elinor archly; "but don't you think the less we +say about that second year the better? Perhaps the third and the +fourth too." + +"No indeed; I have been thinking it all over; and in the first +place there has not been a moment in those six years when I have +not loved you; though to my bitter mortification I confess, there +was also a moment when I was IN LOVE with another, but it was a +very short moment, and a very disagreeable one to remember. No; I +wish you to look well into those six years, for I honestly think +they will appear more to my credit than you are at all aware of. +I shan't be satisfied until we have talked them over again, my +part at least; I don't know that you will submit to the same +examination." + +"Oh, you have already heard all I have to say," she replied, +blushing deeply; "I shan't allude to my part of the story again +this long while." + +Nevertheless, Harry soon succeeded in obtaining her consent to be +married within six weeks; in fact she made but few objections to +the arrangement, although she would have preferred waiting +longer, on account of the recent afflictions of Jane and the +Hubbards. + +The important day soon arrived, and the wedding took place at +Wyllys-Roof. A number of friends and relatives of both parties +were collected for the occasion; Mrs. Stanley, Robert Hazlehurst +and his wife, the late Mrs. George Wyllys and her new husband, or +as Harry called them, Mr. and Mrs. Uncle Dozie, the Van Hornes, +de Vauxes, Bernards, and others. Mary Van Alstyne was bridesmaid, +and Hubert de Vaux groomsman. The ceremony which at length united +our two young friends, was impressively performed by the +clergyman of the parish to which the Wyllyses belonged; and it +may be doubted whether there were another couple married that +day, in the whole wide world, whose feelings as they took the +solemn vows were more true, more honourable to their natures, +than those of Harry and Elinor. + +Talking of vows, it was remarked by the spectators that the groom +made his promises and engagements in a more decided tone of +voice, a less embarrassed manner than usual; for, strange to say, +your grooms, happy men, are often awkward, miserable swains +enough in appearance; though it would be uncharitable in the +extreme, not to suppose them always abounding in internal +felicity. There was also another observation made by several of +the wedding-guests, friends of Harry, who were then at +Wyllys-Roof for the first time, and it becomes our duty to record +the remark, since it related to no less a person than the bride; +it was observed that she was not as pretty as a bride should be. + +"Mrs. Harry Hazlehurst is no beauty, certainly," said Albert +Dangler to Orlando Flyrter. + +"No beauty! She is downright ugly--I wonder at Hazlehurst's +taste!" + +Unfortunately for Elinor, the days are past when benevolent +fairies arrive just at the important moment, and by a tap of the +wand or a phial of elixir, change the coarsest features, the most +unfavourable complexion, into a dazzling image of everything most +lovely, most beautiful. Nor had she the good luck of certain +young ladies of whom one reads quite often, who improve so +astonishingly in personal appearance between fifteen and +twenty--generally during the absence of the hero--that they are +not to be recognized, and a second introduction becomes +necessary. No; Elinor was no nearer to being a beauty when Harry +returned from Brazil, than when he went to Paris; she was just as +plain on the evening of her wedding as she was six years before, +when first presented to the reader's notice. + +Jane, though now in widow's weeds, was just as beautiful too, as +when we first saw her; she was present at her cousin's wedding, +as Elinor wished her to be there, although in a deep mourning +dress. Patsey Hubbard was also in the drawing-room during the +ceremony, and in deep black; but she left her friends as soon as +she had expressed her warmest wishes for the happiness of her +former pupil: she wept as she turned from the house, for she +could not yet see that well-known, cheerful circle at +Wyllys-Roof, without missing one bright young face from the +group. + +Among those who had declined invitations to the wedding, were Mr. +Ellsworth and Mrs. Creighton, although both had expressed many +good wishes for the affianced couple; the gentleman wrote +sincerely, but a little sadly perhaps, as it was only six weeks +since his refusal; the lady wrote gracefully, but a little +spitefully it is believed, since it was now generally known that +Harry must recover entire possession of his fortune. + +This vexatious affair was, in fact, finally settled about the +time of Harry's marriage; and, thanks to the disclosures of +Stebbins, it was no longer a difficult matter to unravel the +plot. As soon as William Stanley's representative, or in other +words, Hopgood, found that Stebbins had betrayed him, he ran off, +but was arrested shortly after, tried and convicted. He was no +sooner sentenced, than he offered to answer any questions that +might be asked, for he was anxious that his accomplice, +Clapp--who had also taken flight, and succeeded in eluding all +pursuit--should be punished as well as himself. It appeared that +his resemblance to the Stanleys was the first cause of his taking +the name of William Stanley; he was distantly related to them +through his mother, and, as we may often observe, the family +likeness, after having been partially lost for one or two +generations, had appeared quite strongly again in himself; and as +usual, the peculiarities of the resemblance had become more +deeply marked as he grew older. Being very nearly of the same +age, and of the same pursuit as William Stanley, he had actually +been taken for the young man on several occasions. He had been in +the same lawyer's office as Clapp, whom he had known as a boy, +and had always kept up some intercourse with him; meeting him one +day accidentally, he related the fact of his having passed +himself off for William Stanley by way of a joke. "The sight of +means to do ill deeds, makes deeds ill done:" Clapp seemed from +that moment to have first taken the idea of the plot; he +gradually disclosed his plan to Hopgood, who was quick-witted, a +good mimic, and quite clever enough for the purpose. The idea was +repeatedly abandoned, then resumed again; Hopgood having +purposely shipped under the name of William Stanley, several +times, and practised an imitation of William Stanley's hand by +way of an experiment. Finding no difficulties in these first +steps, they gradually grew bolder, collecting information about +the Stanleys, and carefully arranging all the details. Stebbins +had frightened them on one occasion; but after having obtained +possession of the papers in his hands, Clapp determined to carry +out their plan at once; he thought the probability of success was +strongly in their favour, with so much evidence within their +reach; and the spoils were so considerable, that they were in his +opinion worth the risk. The profits of their roguery were to be +equally divided, if they succeeded; and they had also agreed that +if at any moment matters began to look badly, they would make +their escape from the country together. Hopgood, who was +generally supposed by those who had known him, to have died at +New Orleans twenty years since, had been often with William +Stanley when a lad in the lawyer's office; he knew the house and +neighbourhood of Greatwood perfectly, and had a distinct +recollection of Mr. Stanley, the father, and of many persons and +circumstances that would prove very useful. Clapp easily obtained +other necessary information, and they went to Greatwood, +examining the whole house and place, in order to revive Hopgood's +recollections; while at the same time they made but little +mystery of their excursion, hoping rather that when discovered it +would pass off as a natural visit of William Stanley to the old +home which he was about to claim. The whole plan was carefully +matured under Clapp's cunning management; on some doubtful points +they were to be cautious, and a set of signals were agreed upon +for moments of difficulty; but generally they were to assume a +bold, confident aspect, freely offering an interview to the +executors, and sending a specimen of the forged handwriting as a +letter to Mrs. Stanley. The volume of the Spectator was a thought +of Clapp's; he bribed a boy to admit him into the library at +Greatwood one Sunday, when the housekeeper was at church, and he +selected the volume which seemed well suited to his purpose; +removing the boy from the neighbourhood immediately after, by +giving him high wages in a distant part of the country. As for +Mr. Reed he was completely their dupe, having been himself +honestly convinced of the identity of Clapp's client. It was nine +years from the time the plot first suggested itself, until they +finally appeared as public claimants of the estate and name of +William Stanley, and during that time, Clapp, who had never +entirely abandoned the idea, although Hopgood had repeatedly done +so, had been able to mature the plan very thoroughly. + +{"'The sight of means to do ill deeds...'" Shakespeare, "King +John", IV.ii.219-220} + +The declarations of Stebbins and Hopgood were easily proved; and +Harry had no further difficulty in resuming possession of +Greatwood. + +Clapp was not heard of for years. His wife, little Willie, and +two younger children, became inmates of the old grey cottage, +under the care of Miss Patsey, who still continues the same +honest, whole-souled, benevolent being she was years ago. Patsey +was now quite at her ease, and enabled to provide for her sister +Kate and the three children, and it was to poor Charlie she owed +the means of doing so; by an unusual precaution in one so young, +he had left a will, giving everything he owned to his mother and +eldest sister. Shortly after his death, some of his friends, +Hazlehurst among the number, got up an exhibition of all his +pictures; they made a fine and quite numerous collection, for +Charlie had painted very rapidly. The melancholy interest +connected with the young painter's name, his high reputation in +the particular field he had chosen, the fact that all his +paintings were collected together, from the first view of +Chewattan lake taken when a mere boy, to the sketch of Nantucket +which he was retouching but a moment before his death, and the +sad recollection that his palette was now broken for ever, +attracted unusual attention. The result of that melancholy +exhibition, with the sale of some remaining pictures, proved +sufficient to place his mother and sister, with their moderate +views, in very comfortable circumstances; thus even after his +death Charlie proved a blessing to his family. In looking over +the young man's papers, Patsey found some lines which surprised +her, although they explained several circumstances which she had +never before fully understood; they betrayed a secret, undeclared +attachment, which had expressed itself simply and gracefully in +verses full of feeling and well written. It was evident from +these lines that poor Charlie's poetical imagination, even from +early boyhood, had been filled with the lovely image of his young +companion, Jane Graham: there was a beautiful sketch of her face +among his papers, which from the date, must have been taken from +memory while she was in Paris. It was clear from the tone of the +verses, that Charlie had scrupulously confined his secret within +his own bosom, for there were a few lines addressed to Jane since +her widowhood, lamenting that grief should so soon have thrown a +shadow over that lovely head, and concluding with a fear that she +would little value even this expression of sympathy from one, to +whom she had only given careless indifference, and one who had +never asked more than the friendship of early companionship. +Patsey hesitated for a moment, but then decided that the +miniature and the verses should never be shown--they should meet +no eyes but her own; Charlie had not spoken himself, his secret +should remain untold. + +We must not omit to mention, that a few weeks after Charlie's +death young Van Horne offered himself to Mary Hubbard, the +youngest daughter of the family; he was accepted, and the +connexion, which was very gratifying to Patsey and her mother, +proved a happy one. Mrs. Hubbard survived her daughter's marriage +several years. Kate and her little ones have remained at the old +grey cottage from the time of Clapp's flight; the children are +now growing up promising young people, and they owe much to +Patsey's judicious care. Willie, the hero of the temperance +meeting, is her favourite, for she persuades herself that he is +like her lost Charlie; and in many respects the boy happily +resembles his uncle far more than his father. Last year Mrs. +Clapp received for the first time, a letter in a handwriting very +like that of her husband; its contents seemed distressing, for +she wept much, and held several consultations with Patsey. At +length quite a little sum was drawn from their modest means, Kate +packed up her trunk, took leave of her sister and children, and +set out upon a long and a solitary journey. She was absent for +months; but letters were occasionally received from her, and at +length she returned to the grey cottage in deep mourning. It was +supposed that she was now a widow; and as Patsey upon one single +occasion confirmed the report, the opinion must have been +correct, for Patsey Hubbard's word was truth itself. No public +account of Clapp's death, however, reached Longbridge, and his +name was never mentioned by the Hubbards; still, it seemed to be +known at last that Mrs. Clapp had gone to a great distance, to +attend her husband during a long and fatal illness: and Mrs. +Tibbs also found out by indefatigable inquiries, far and near, +that about the same time one of the elders of Joe Smith, the +Mormon impostor, had died of consumption at Nauvoo; that he had +written somewhere several months before his death, that a +delicate-looking woman had arrived, and had not quitted his side +as long as he lived; that immediately after his death she had +left Nauvoo, and had gone no one knew whither. It is quite +certain that a young man from Longbridge travelling at the west, +wrote home that he had seen Mrs. Clapp on board a Mississippi +steamer, just about that time. The story is probably true, +although nothing very positive is known at Longbridge. + +{"no public account" = the uncertainty surrounding Mr. Clapp's +fate resembles that of Judith Hutter, at the end of James +Fenimore Cooper's "The Deerslayer" (1841)} + +As for Hopgood, we have already mentioned that he had been +arrested, and most righteously condemned to a long imprisonment +for his share in that unprincipled, audacious conspiracy. A year +afterwards, however, it pleased those in authority to send him +out into the community again; he was pardoned-- + +As all reserve is generally dropped in the last chapter, we may +as well tell the reader a secret of Mrs. Creighton's. We have +every reason to believe that she never cared much for Harry, +although she always cared a great deal for his fortune. She was +determined to marry again, for two reasons; in the first place +she did not wish to give way to a sister-in-law, and she knew her +brother intended marrying; and then she never could manage that +brother as she wished; he was by no means disposed to throw away +as much time, thought, and money upon dissipation, as she would +have liked. She wanted a rich husband, of course; Harry did very +well in every particular but one--she thought him too much like +her brother in his tastes to be all she desired; still he suited +her better than any of her other admirers, and she would have +been quite satisfied to accept him, had he kept his fortune. +Without that fortune, it was a very different affair; he was no +longer to be thought of for a moment. We strongly suspect also, +that the pretty widow saw farther than any one else into the true +state of matters between Elinor and Harry, long before the +parties themselves had had an explanation; and for that reason, +so long as she was determined to take Hazlehurst for her second +husband, she decidedly encouraged Ellsworth's attention to +Elinor. Since we are so near the last page, we shall also admit +that Mrs. Creighton had quite a strong partiality for Mr. +Stryker, while the gentleman was thoroughly in love with her; but +neither was rich, and money, that is to say wealth, was +absolutely necessary in the opinion of both parties; so Mr. +Stryker went off to New Orleans in quest of a quadroon heiress +recommended to him, and Mrs. Creighton became Mrs. Pompey Taylor, +junior; marrying the second son of the merchant, an individual +who was nearly ten years younger than herself, and resembled his +brother in every respect except in being much less handsome. The +happy couple sailed for Europe immediately after the ceremony. + +We are sorry to say that Mr. Taylor, the father, suffered +severely, not long after the marriage of his second son, by the +great fire; he suffered also in the great panic, and in various +other panics which have succeeded one another. Still he has not +failed, but he is a poorer man than when we first had the honour +of making his acquaintance. In other respects he is much what he +was fifteen years ago, devoted as much as ever and as exclusively +as ever to making money; still valuing everything, visible or +invisible, by the market-price in gold, silver, or bank-notes; +although unfortunately much less successful than at the +commencement of his career, in accumulating dollars and cents; +his seems to be "the fruitless race, without a prize;" and yet +Mr. Taylor is approaching the time of life when the end of the +race cannot be very distant. + +{"the great fire" = the fire that destroyed much of downtown New +York City in 1835. "the great panic..." = the financial panic of +1837, and the depression that followed; "the fruitless race..." = +from William Cowper (English poet, 1731-1800), "Hope" line 25} + +Adeline is improved in many respects, her mother's advice has had +a good effect on her; still it is amusing to see her already +training up several little girls for future belles, on her own +pattern; rather it is believed to the annoyance of her quiet +husband. Emma Taylor is decidedly less lively, she too having in +some measure composed herself, after achieving belle-ship and +matrimony. + +Mr. and Mrs. Uncle Dozie removed from Longbridge not long after +their marriage; they have since returned there again, and now, by +the last accounts, they are again talking of leaving the place. + +Mrs. Hilson still continues to annoy her family with a +persevering ingenuity, for which certain silly women appear +peculiarly well qualified; at times she talks of taking the veil +in a nunnery, at others, of again entering the bands of Hymen +with some English aristocrat of illustrious lineage; she +confesses that either step would be sufficiently romantic and +aristocratic to suit her refined tastes, but which she will +eventually adopt cannot yet be known. Fortunately, her sister +Emmeline has profited much more than the "city lady" herself by +the follies of the past; she has lately married a respectable +man, one of their Longbridge neighbours, much to her father's +satisfaction. + +Mary Van Alstyne remains single, and passes much of her time with +Elinor. + +Some eighteen months after Harry's marriage, one evening as he +was sitting on the piazza at Wyllys-Roof, he received a letter +which made him smile; calling Elinor from the drawing-room, he +communicated the contents to her. It was from Ellsworth, +announcing his approaching marriage with the lovely Mrs. Taylor, +or in other words, our friend Jane. Harry laughed a good deal, +and coloured a little too, as he plainly saw by the tone of the +letter, that his friend was going through precisely the same +process as himself, during his Paris days, when he first +discovered such wisdom in the depths of Jane's dark eyes, such +delicacy of sentiment in the purity of her complexion, such +tenderness in every common smile of her beautiful lips. +Ellsworth, however, would probably not find out as soon as +himself, that all these beauties made up a lovely picture indeed, +but nothing more; for his friend was an accepted suitor, and +might indulge himself by keeping agreeable fancies alive as long +as he chose; while Harry had been rather rudely awakened from his +trance by very shabby treatment in the first place, and a refusal +at last. To Hazlehurst, the most amusing part of Ellsworth's +story was, an allusion to a certain resemblance in character +between Mrs. Taylor and 'one whom he had so much admired, one +whom he must always admire.' + +"Now, Elinor, do me the justice to say I was never half so bad as +that; I never pretended to think Jane like you, in one good +quality." + +"It would be a pity if you had--Jane has good qualities of her +own. But I am rejoiced to hear the news; it is an excellent match +for both parties." + +"Yes; though Jane is a lovely puppet, and nothing more, yet it is +a good match on that very account; Ellsworth will look after her. +It is to be hoped they are satisfied; I think we are, my sweet +wife; don't you?" + +His frank, natural, affectionate smile as he spoke, was tolerably +satisfactory, certainly as to his estimate of his own fate; and +it is to be hoped the reader is by this time sufficiently well +acquainted with Elinor and Harry, to credit his account of the +matter. From all we know of both, we are ourselves disposed to +believe them very well qualified to pass through life happily +together, making the cheerful days pleasanter, and the dark hours +less gloomy to each other. + +Harry seems to have given up his diplomatic pursuits for the +present at least; he remains at home, making himself useful both +in private and public life. Last year he and Elinor were at the +Rip-Raps, accompanied by Mr. Wyllys and Miss Agnes, and a little +family of their own--several engaging, clever, well-trained +children. The little girls, without being beauties, are not +plain; they are indeed quite as pretty as Jane's daughters; the +only ugly face in the young troop belongs to a fine-spirited +little fellow, to whom it is of no consequence at all, as he has +just discarded his petticoats for ever. Perhaps both father and +mother are pleased that such is the case; the feeling would seem +to be one of those weaknesses which will linger about every +parent's heart. Yet Elinor acknowledges that she is herself a +happy woman without beauty; and Harry, loving her as he does for +a thousand good reasons, and inclinations, and partialities, +sometimes actually believes that he loves her the better for that +plain face which appeals to his more generous feelings. Many men +will always laugh at an ugly woman, and the idea of loving her; +but is it an error in Hazlehurst's biographer to suppose that +there are others who, placed in similar circumstances, would feel +as Harry felt? + +{"the Rip-Raps" = sea resort at Hampton, Virginia; near Old Point +Comfort, where Mr. Ellsworth had seen Elinor in Vol. II, Chapter +II} + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg Etext Elinor Wyllys, by Susan Fenimore Cooper +Volume 2 + diff --git a/1928.zip b/1928.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..72be492 --- /dev/null +++ b/1928.zip diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. 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