| | 281 | Author: | Hawthorne
Nathaniel
1804-1864 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Fanshawe  | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | In an ancient, though not very populous settlement, in
a retired corner of one of the New-England States, arise
the walls of a seminary of learning, which, for the convenience
of a name, shall be entitled `Harley College,'
This institution, though the number of its years is inconsiderable,
compared with the hoar antiquity of its European
sisters, is not without some claims to reverence on
the score of age; for an almost countless multitude of
rivals, by many of which its reputation has been eclipsed,
have sprung up since its foundation. At no time, indeed,
during an existence of nearly a century, has it acquired
a very extensive fame, and circumstances, which
need not be particularized, have of late years involved it
in a deeper obscurity. There are now few candidates
for the degrees that the college is authorized to bestow.
On two of its annual `Commencement days,' there has
been a total deficiency of Baccalaureates; and the lawyers
and divines, on whom Doctorates in their respective
professions are gratuitously inflicted, are not accustomed
to consider the distinction as an honor. Yet the sons
of this seminary have always maintained their full share
of reputation, in whatever paths of life they trod. Few
of them, perhaps, have been deep and finished scholars;
but the College has supplied—what the emergencies of
the country demanded—a set of men more useful in its
present state, and whose deficiency in theoretical knowledge
has not been found to imply a want of practical
ability. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 282 | Author: | Hawthorne
Nathaniel
1804-1864 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Twice-told Tales | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | There was once a time when New England groaned
under the actual pressure of heavier wrongs, than
those threatened ones which brought on the Revolution.
James II., the bigoted successor of Charles the
Voluptuous, had annulled the charters of all the colonies,
and sent a harsh and unprincipled soldier to take
away our liberties and endanger our religion. The
administration of Sir Edmund Andros lacked scarcely
a single characteristic of tyranny: a Governor and
Council, holding office from the King, and wholly
independent of the country; laws made and taxes levied
without concurrence of the people, immediate or
by their representatives; the rights of private citizens
violated, and the titles of all landed property declared
void; the voice of complaint stifled by restrictions on
the press; and finally, disaffection overawed by the first
band of mercenary troops that ever marched on our
free soil. For two years our ancestors were kept in
sullen submission, by that filial love which had invariably
secured their allegiance to the mother country,
whether its head chanced to be a Parliament, Protector,
or popish Monarch. Till these evil times, however,
such allegiance had been merely nominal, and the colonists
had ruled themselves, enjoying far more freedom,
than is even yet the privilege of the native subjects
of Great Britain. —I have received the First and Second Parts of your North
American Arithmetic, and am highly pleased with the plan of the work, and
the manner of its execution thus far. It unites simplicity with fulness. and
will thus be sure to interest the beginner, whilst it furnishes, at the same time.
an ample guide to the more advanced pupil. —I have examined the Third Part of Mr. Emerson's
Arithmetic with great pleasure. The perspicuity of its arrangement, and
the clearness and brevity of its explanations, combined with its happy adaptation
to the purposes of practical business, are its great recommendations.
I hope it will soon be introduced into all our schools, and take the place of
ill-digested treatises, to which our instructors have hitherto been compelled
to resort. [Conclusion of a letter to the Author.] I should think it hardly possible
that a child could be faithfully conducted through these two works [First and
Second Parts] without being vastly better acquainted with the subject than
children formerly were. Being judiciously compelled in some measure to
invent their own rules, they can scarcely fail of being able to assign a proper
reason for the process, as well as to recollect it for future use. Indeed, I do
not know any one particular in which, for the use of very young pupils, they
could be improved. I have carefully examined the Third Part of the North American
Arithmetic, by Mr. Emerson; and am so well satisfied that it is the best
treatise on the subject with which I am acquainted, that I have determined
to introduce it as a text-book into my school. Notwithstanding the obvious improvements of the study, both in a practical
point of view and as an intellectual exercise, arithmetic is perhaps
the science which is most negligently taught in common schools, and the
true principles of which are left in the greatest obscurity in the minds of
scholars. One reason of this is the imperfection of the common treatises used
in our schools. The Arithmetic of Dr. Adams was a decided improvement
upon its predecessors in the way of lucid explanations, and, as might be expected,
others followed which went still farther in the track of inductive
illustration. The North American Arithmetic, by Frederick Emerson, appears
to me to exhibit the science in a manner more clear, simple and practical,
better adapted to the use of schools and the benefit of teachers, who
may not themselves be thoroughly conversant with arithmetic, than any book
I have seen. The doctrine of Ratio and Proportion is treated in the way in
which it can alone be rendered perfectly intelligible to the pupil, and far
more satisfactory than in any English or American Arithmetic that has fallen
under my notice. —Having examined your North American Arithmetic
with much care, and made some use of it as a text-book in my classes, I do
not hesitate to regard it as better adapted than any other, to the schools of
the United States. It has long been objected to the books on this subject in
common use, that they are deficient in explanation, and unscientific in arrangement;
more apt to check than develop the powers of reasoning and calculation.
To your work, certainly, these objections are inapplicable. No
pupil, it seems to me, can go through Parts First, Second, and Third, with
ordinary attention, without acquiring a facility of analysis, a readiness both
of rule and reason, and a dexterity of practice, not easily to be derived from
any other books yet published. —I have examined the First Class Reader, by B. D. Emerson;
and, in my view, the selections are judiciously made, and characterized
by great purity and elegance of style, and yet are not so elevated
as to be unintelligible by those for whose use it is designed. The work is
throughout, so far as I have discovered, unexceptionable in the sentiment
with which it is fraught. It is introduced by some very useful “Suggestions
to Teachers,” with regard to the examination of their pupils on the lessons
read. On the whole, I know not of a reading book of higher merit, for the
more advanced classes in our schools. —Allow me to express my cordial approbation of the selection
of pieces introduced into the First Class Reader. In correctness of sentiment,
manliness of style, and elegance of diction, this approaches more
nearly than any of the previous compilations with which I am acquainted, to
what a book should be, which is designed to be a reading manual for youth. I have carefully examined the Reading Books prepared by Mr.
B. D. Emerson, and cordially bear testimony to the merits of the work. I
am much pleased with the character of the selections, and highly approve of
the system of instruction recommended by Mr. E. in his “Suggestions to
Teachers.” I hope these books will gain the extensive circulation to which
they are justly entitled. Having examined the series of School Reading Books, entitled the “First
Class Reader,” the “Second Class Reader,” and the “Third Class Reader,”
by B. D. Emerson, the undersigned regard them as having very high claims
to the notice and approbation of the public. The books form a regular series,
carefully graduated according to the advancement of classes in good
English Schools. The selections are very judiciously made, both in matter
and style. Each piece is adapted to the comprehension of the scholar, and
conveys some useful truth, either moral or scientific. Specimens are presented
of the best writers in the English language, and throughout the series
is given a very great deal of historical and general information. Having examined the First and Second Class Readers, compiled by
Mr. B. D. Emerson, I take great pleasure in recommending them to the public,
as highly deserving their patronage. I consider these works a decided improvement
upon those of a similar character now in use. The selections are
made with much taste and judgment, and are peculiarly adapted to the capacities
and wants of those for whose use they are intended. I shall introduce
them into the series of reading books used by my pupils. —I have attentively examined your series of Readers. The lessons
are selected with much taste, and are well calculated to produce a good
moral influence. It is desirable that these works should be extensively used
in our High Schools and Academies. Your Third Class Reader is used in
all our District Schools and highly approved. Emerson's Class Readers. * * * * The selections are made with
reference to purity of sentiment, and to moral impression; and are, on that
account, worthy of all commendation. * * * * In short, we can say of
these Readers, that we know of no books, which, for beauty of selection,
purity of sentiment, and for variety of expression, will compare with them.
The sooner they are introduced into our schools the better. The First Class Reader and The Second Class Reader.—
* * We are pleased with these selections, for we think they are executed on
the plan proposed; that “each extract should contain some useful truth—
something of more importance than the mere amusement of a passing hour.” —Having given Mr. Emerson's Reading Books a
careful examination, I feel confident that they possess merits equal to those
of any other Readers now in use. The experience of many years in school-keeping
has convinced me that a change of books is of primary importance
in acquiring an art so much neglected, yet so ornamental and useful as good
reading. It is not to be supposed that children can profit much by reading
again and again what has, from their earliest recollections, been sounded
over and over in their ears, till every section and almost every word are as
familiar to them as the walls of their school-room. To make ready readers
there is need of some novelty. We not unfrequently meet with those who
can read fluently and well the worn pages of a school book, but yet who
hesitate and blunder over the columns of a newspaper, or the pages of a
strange book. I am, therefore, glad to see your Readers, and it will give
me pleasure to encourage their introduction into our schools. —Having received and examined, with some attention, a
copy of your “American Universal Geography.” I have no hesitation in giving
it the preference to other works intended for School Geographies, and
for the following reason, viz.: Your Geography contains the copperplate
Maps in the same volume with the text; it embraces matter far greater in
quantity, and in my opinion superior in quality; it unites History with Geography
as History and Geography should be united; and, finally, its value
is much enhanced by the stereotype Maps. From a cursory examination, we feel no hesitation in expressing our decided
approbation of Blake's New American School Geography. The form
of the volume being such as to admit the insertion of the Maps, together
with the minuteness of detail presented by the author, we think, gives the
work a decided superiority over those of the kind now in use. We have used “Bailey's First Lessons in Algebra,” in the Public Writing
Schools of Boston, respectively committed to our instruction, and can testify
with confidence to its high value. The peculiar excellence of the work consists
in its serving not only as a text-book, but in a great measure as a teacher.
The plainness, simplicity, and fulness with which the subject is treated, enable
the scholar to proceed in the exercises understandingly, with little or no
aid, other than that which is to be found on the pages of the book. I have, with much attention and satisfaction, examined “Bailey's First
Lessons in Algebra.” As a first course of lessons in this very interesting
science, this book, I do not hesitate to say, far exceeds any other that I have
seen. No scholar will consider Algebra a dry study while attending to this
system. I am very glad to find that Algebra has been introduced into many
of our town schools; and am positive that there is no better way to make
scholars understand Arithmetic well, than that they should devote part of
their time to the study of Algebra. I most cordially recommend the work to
the attention of School Committees and Teachers. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 283 | Author: | Hawthorne
Nathaniel
1804-1864 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | The Gentle Boy : | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | In the course of the year 1656, several of the people called
Quakers, led, as they professed, by the inward movement of the spirit,
made their appearance in New England. Their reputation, as holders
of mystic and pernicious principles, having spread before them, the
Puritans early endeavored to banish, and to prevent the further intrusion
of the rising sect. But the measures by which it was intended
to purge the land of heresy, though more than sufficiently vigorous,
were entirely unsuccessful. The Quakers, esteeming persecution as a
divine call to the post of danger, laid claim to a holy courage, unknown
to the Puritans themselves, who had shunned the cross, by providing
for the peaceable exercise of their religion in a distant wilderness.
Though it was the singular fact, that every nation of the earth rejected
the wandering enthusiasts who practised peace towards all men,
the place of greatest uneasiness and peril, and therefore in their eyes
the most eligible, was the province of Massachusetts Bay. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 284 | Author: | Hawthorne
Nathaniel
1804-1864 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | The Celestial Rail-road | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | Not a great while ago, passing through the
gate of dreams, I visited that region of the earth
in which lies the famous city of Destruction. It interested
me much to learn, that, by the public spirit
of some of the inhabitants, a railroad had recently
been established between this populous and flourishing
town, and the Celestial City. Having a little
time upon my hands, I resolved to gratify a liberal
curiosity, by making a trip thither. Accordingly,
one fine morning, after paying my bill at
the hotel, and directing the porter to stow my
luggage behind a coach, I took my seat in the vehicle,
and set out for the Station-house. It was
my good fortune to enjoy the company of a gentleman—one
Mr. Smooth-it-away—who, though
he had never actually visited the Celestial City,
yet seemed as well acquainted with its laws,
customs, policy, and statistics, as with those of the
city of Destruction, of which he was a native
townsman. Being, moreover, a director of the
railroad corporation, and one of its largest stockholders,
he had it in his power to give me all
desirable information respecting that praiseworthy
enterprise. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 285 | Author: | Hawthorne
Nathaniel
1804-1864 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | The Scarlet Letter | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | A throng of bearded men, in sad-colored garments
and gray, steeple-crowned hats, intermixed with women,
some wearing hoods, and others bareheaded, was
assembled in front of a wooden edifice, the door of
which was heavily timbered with oak, and studded with
iron spikes. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 288 | Author: | Irving
Washington
1783-1859 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Tales of a Traveller | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | I was once at a hunting dinner, given by a
worthy fox-hunting old Baronet, who kept Bachelor's
Hall in jovial style, in an ancient rook-haunted
family mansion, in one of the middle
counties. He had been a devoted admirer of the
fair sex in his young days; but having travelled
much, studied the sex in various countries with
distinguished success, and returned home profoundly
instructed, as he supposed, in the ways
of woman, and a perfect master of the art of
pleasing, he had the mortification of being jilted
by a little boarding school girl, who was scarcely
versed in the accidence of love. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 289 | Author: | Kirkland
Caroline M.
(Caroline Matilda)
1801-1864 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | A New Home - Who'll Follow? | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | Our friends in the “settlements” have expressed so
much interest in such of our letters to them, as happened
to convey any account of the peculiar features
of western life, and have asked so many questions,
touching particulars which we had not thought, worthy
of mention, that I have been for some time past contemplating
the possibility of something like a detailed
account of our experiences. And I have determined
to give them to the world, in a form not very different
from that in which they were originally recorded for
our private delectation; nothing doubting, that a veracious
history of actual occurrences, an unvarnished
transcript of real characters, and an impartial record
of every-day forms of speech (taken down in many
cases from the lips of the speaker) will be pronounced
“graphic,” by at least a fair proportion of the journalists
of the day. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 293 | Author: | Poe
Edgar Allan
1809-1849 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | With a feeling of deep yet most singular affection
I regarded my friend Morella. Thrown by accident
into her society many years ago, my soul, from our
first meeting, burned with fires it had never before
known; but the fires were not of Eros; and bitter
and tormenting to my spirit was the gradual conviction
that I could in no manner define their unusual
meaning, or regulate their vague intensity. Yet we
met; and fate bound us together at the altar; and I
never spoke of passion, nor thought of love. She,
however, shunned society, and, attaching herself to
me alone, rendered me happy. It is a happiness to
wonder;—it is a happiness to dream. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 294 | Author: | Sargent
Epes
1813-1880 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Fleetwood, Or, the Stain of Birth | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | Midnight brought with it no abatement of the
violence of the gale. During the day it had swept
in eddying gusts through the broad avenues and
narrow cross-streets of the city, carrying desolation
and dismay—prostrating chimneys—scattering
the slates from the roofs—and making sad havoc
with the wooden signs, which adorned the districts
devoted to traffic. One man, as he was passing up
Broadway, had been knocked on the head by the
shaft of a canvass awning, and instantly killed.
Others had been severely bruised by the flying
fragments, strewn at random by the blast. “You were decidedly right in resisting your
mother's importunities to leave Soundside until you
had heard from me. I shall not forget such a proof
of your attachment and fidelity. My business here
is of that importance that I cannot possibly quit the
city till Friday afternoon. Otherwise I would
most gladly fly to you at once. Under these circumstances,
and since your mother is so exceedingly
anxious to have you accompany her, I do not
see but that we had better yield to her wishes.
Our marriage can as well take place here as at
Soundside; and I see no good reason why it should
be deferred beyond the period we originally fixed.
Present my respects to your mother, and tell her
that for her daughter's sake she shall be dear.
Should you see Glenham, remember me to him
kindly. I owe him much. Poor fellow! he has
cause to envy me your affection; but I know that
he is incapable of any such passion. Apply to him
unreservedly, should you have occasion for friendly
and discreet advice. Let me know you mother's
address, that I may call as soon as you reach the
city. I am compelled to write in haste, as I only
received your letter a few minutes since, and mine
will miss the mail if I delay even to tell you with
how much sincerity and love, | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 295 | Author: | Sedgwick
Catharine Maria
1789-1867 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Mary Hollis | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | Many persons, in the village of ———, in Massachusetts,
remember Mary Lowe, a diligent, ingenious
little girl of a respectable family, who was left an orphan
when quite young, with a very slender provision,
which her guardians wisely expended, in obtaining for
her a decent education and the tayloring trade. She
went from house to house, eating her bread in singleness
of heart. She was approved by the elderly and
judicious, for her prudent, industrious, and quiet ways;
and she made herself the delight of all the children, by
her obliging disposition and good humour. The little
boys said, “Mary would always put pockets in their
clothes;” and the older boys, who longed to be emancipated
from the indignity of having their clothes made
by a woman-taylor, were still conciliated by Mary's
gentle manners, and a little, too, by the smart look
which she contrived to give to their apparel. I think
I can see her now bending over her goose, and as it
heavily trod the seams, singing some playful song to
the little group around her; and smiling and blushing
as she caught the approving glances of the elders of
the family. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 296 | Author: | Sedgwick
Catharine Maria
1789-1867 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Redwood | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | On the last day of June, in the
year —, a small vessel, which traversed
weekly the waters of Lake Champlain,
was seen slowly entering one of the
most beautiful bays of that most beautiful
lake. A travelling carriage with
handsome equipments, a coachman in
livery and an outrider, were drawn up
on the shore, awaiting the approach of
the vessel. On the deck stood a group
of travellers for whom the equipage
was destined: a beautiful young woman,
and her attendant, a female slave, were
surveying it with pleased and equal
eagerness, while the father of the young
lady seemed quite absorbed in the contemplation
of a scene which poetry and
painting have marked for their own.
Not a breeze stirred the waters; their
mirror surface was quite unbroken, save
where the little vessel traced its dimpled
pathway. A cluster of islands lay in
beautiful fraternity opposite the harbour,
covered with a rich growth of wood,
and looking young, and fresh, and
bright, as if they had just sprung from
the element on which they seemed to
repose. The western shore presented
every variety of form; wooded headlands
jutting boldly into the lake, and
richly cultivated grounds sloping gently
to its margin. As the traveller's delighted
eye explored still farther, it
B 2
rested on the mountains that rise in four
successive chains, one above the other,
the last in the far distance dimly defining
and bounding the horizon. A cloud
at this moment veiled the face of the
sun, and its rich beams streamed aslant
upon the mountain tops, and poured
showers of gold and purple light into
the deep recesses of the valleys. Mr.
Redwood, a true admirer of nature's
lovely forms, turned his unsated gaze to
the village they were approaching,
which was indicated by a neat church
spire that peered over the hill, on the
height and declivities of which were
planted several new and neat habitations.
“Oh Caroline, my child,” exclaimed
the father, “was there ever
any thing more beautiful!” “Some months have elapsed, dear
Alsop, since we parted, and parted with
a truly juvenile promise to keep up
an unremitting epistolary intercourse.
And this I believe is the first essay made
by either of us; a fair illustration of the
common proportion which performance
bears to such promises. You, no doubt,
have been roving from pleasure to pleasure,
with an untiring impulse, and your
appetite, like the horse-leech, has still
cried, `give, give.' If one of your
vagrant thoughts has strayed after me,
you have doubtless fancied me immured
in my study, pursuing my free inquiries,
abandoning the fallen systems of vulgar
invention, and soaring far over the
misty atmosphere of imposture and credulity.
Or, perhaps, you deem that I
have adopted your sapient advice, have
returned to my home a dutiful child,
gracefully worn the chains of filial obedience,
made my best bow to papa, and
with a, `just as you please, Sir,' fallen,
secundum artem, desperately in love
with my beautiful, and beautifully rich
cousin; have rather taken than asked
her willing hand, and thus opened for
myself the path of ambition, or the
golden gates that lead to the regions of
pleasure, and which none but fortune's
hand can open, But, alas! the most
reasonable hopes are disappointed by
our fantastic destiny. We are the sport
of chance; and as we confess no other
deity, you are bound not to deride any
of the whimsical dilemmas into which
his votaries are led. Alsop, you have
often commended the boldness of my
mind, while you laughed at a certain
involuntary homage I paid to the beautiful
pictures of goodness, which some
dreaming enthusiasts have presented to
us, or to the moral beauty which among
all the varieties of accidental combination,
is sometimes exhibited in real
life. “I am grateful for your interest, and
convinced by your arguments that I
ought no longer to doze away my brief
existence in this retirement. I have obtained
my father's consent to the arrangement
you propose; and what is still
more indispensable, an ample supply in
consideration of a promise I have given
to him, that I will solicit the hand of my
cousin immediately after my return. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 297 | Author: | Sedgwick
Catharine Maria
1789-1867 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Redwood | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | Those only who have observed the
magical effect produced upon a young
lady by the presence of a candidate for
her favour, whom she deems it worth
her efforts to obtain or retain, can have
an adequate notion of the change wrought
on Caroline Redwood since the arrival
of the Westalls. Instead of the listless,
sullen girl, who yawned away her days
in discontent or apathy, she became spirited,
active, and good-humoured. Even
her interest in the concerns of Ellen
Bruce, and her suspicions of that artless
girl's designs, were suspended in the
ardour of her present pursuit, and she
seemed to think of nothing and to care
for nothing but how she should secure
the triumph of her vanity. Every one
noticed the change; (excepting Ellen,
who had of late almost wholly withdrawn
from the family circle) indeed, it
was so manifest that Miss Deborah, who
had taken a decided dislike to Caroline,
and who was rather remarkable for the
inveteracy of her opinions, was heard to
say, that “since the girl's sweetheart
had come, she was as bright as a September
day after the fog was lifted; but
for her part she liked to see people have
sunshine within them like Ellen.” This
declaration was made by Miss Debby in
an imprudently loud tone of voice, as
she stood at a window gazing on Mr.
Redwood's carriage that had been ordered
for an afternoon's drive. Mr. Redwood,
Caroline, and Mrs. Westall were
B 2
already in the carriage, and Charles
Westall had returned to the parlour in
quest of some article Mr. Redwood had
forgotten; while he was looking for it,
Deborah's comment fell on his ear, and
probably gave a new direction to his
thoughts, for during the ride Caroline
rallied him on his extraordinary pensiveness;
and finally perceiving that his
gravity resisted all her efforts to dissipate
it, she proposed that if he had not lost
the use of his limbs as well as of his
tongue, he should alight from the carriage
with her and walk to a cottage, to
which they perceived a direct path
through a field, while the carriage approached
by the high road which ran
along the lake shore and was circuitous.
Westall assented rather with politeness
than eagerness; but when he was alone
with Caroline, when she roused all her
powers to charm him, he yielded to the
influence of her beauty and her vivacity.
Never had she appeared so engaging—
never so beautiful—the afternoon was
delicious—their path ran along the skirts
of an enchanting wood—its soft shadows
fell over them, the birds poured forth
their melody; and, in short, all nature
conspired to stimulate the lover's imagination
and to quicken his sensibility.
Charles forgot the sage resolutions he
had made to withhold his declaration till
he had satisfied certain doubts that had
sometimes obtruded on him, that all in
Caroline was not as fair and lovely as it
seemed; he forgot Miss Deborah's hint
—forgot every thing but the power and
the presence of his beautiful companion,
and only hesitated for language to express
what his eyes had already told her.
At this moment both his and Miss Redwood's
attention was withdrawn from
themselves to a little girl who appeared
at the door of the cottage, from which
they were now not many yards distant.
On perceiving them she bounded over
the door step, then stopped, put up her
hand to shade her eyes from the sun,
and gazed fixedly on them for a moment,
then again sprang forward, again stopped,
covered her eyes with both her
hands, threw herself at full length on the
grass, laid her ear to the ground and
seemed for a moment to listen intently;
she then rose, put her apron to her eyes
and appeared to be weeping, while she
retraced her way languidly to the cottage.
Caroline and Westall, moved by
the same impulse, quickened their pace,
and in a few moments reached the cottage
door, to which a woman had been
attracted by the sobs of the child, and
was expostulating with her in an earnest
tone. “God help us, Peggy, you'll just
ruin all if you go on in this way;” she
paused on perceiving that the child had
attracted the attention of the strangers;
and in reply to Westall's asking what
ailed the little girl, she said, “it's just
her simplicity, Sir; but if you and the
lady will condescend to walk into my
poor place here, I will tell you all about
it, or Peggy shall tell it herself, for when
she gets upon it her tongue runs faster
than mine: but bless me, here comes a
grand coach—look up, Peggy, you never
saw a real coach in your life.” Peggy
now let fall the apron with which she
had covered her face—a face if not
beautiful, full of feeling and intelligence.
She seemed instantly to forget her affliction,
whatever it was, in the pleasure of
gazing on the spectacle of the real coach.
“Ah, aunt Betty,” she exclaimed, “it
is the grand sick gentleman that is staying
at Mr. Lenox's.” The carriage drew
up to the door, and Mrs. Westall and
Mr. Redwood, attracted by the uncommonly
neat appearance of the cottage,
alighted and followed Caroline and
Charles, who had already entered it.
The good woman, middle-aged and of a
cheerful countenance, was delighted with
the honour conferred on her, bustled
around to furnish seats for her guests—
shook up the cushion of a rocking chair
for Mr. Redwood, and made a thousand
apologies for the confusion and dirt of
her house, which had the usual if not the
intended effect of calling forth abundance
of compliments on its perfect order
and neatness. “And now, Peggy,” she
said, as soon as they were all quietly
seated, “take the pitcher and bring some
cold water from the spring, that's what
the poor have, thank God, as good as
the rich, and it is all we have to offer.”
The little girl obeyed, and as soon as she
was out of hearing, the woman turned to
Westall. “It was your wish, Sir, to
know what ailed the child; the poor
thing has just got the use of her eyesight,
and she has been expecting some
one that she loves better than all the
world; and when she saw this young
lady with you, she thought it was her
friend—though to be sure she is shorter
than this lady; but then Peggy, poor
thing, does not see quite right yet, and
then when she is puzzled she just lies
down to the ground as you saw her, for
that was her way to listen, and she knows
Miss Ellen's step, for as light as it is,
when my poor ear can't hear a sound.” | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 298 | Author: | Sedgwick
Catharine Maria
1789-1867 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Redwood | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | It was a fine afternoon in the month
of August when our travellers passed
the romantic road which traverses the
mountain that forms the eastern boundary
of the valley of Hancock. The
varied pleasures they had enjoyed during
the day, and the excitement of drawing
near to the object of their long journey,
animated them both with unusual spirits.
Deborah's tongue was voluble in praise
of the rich farms that spread out on the
declivities of the hills, or embosomed in
the protected vallies, called forth, as
they deserved, the enthusiastic commendations
of our experienced rustic. Ellen
listened in silence while she gazed with
the eye of an amateur upon this beautiful
country, which possesses all the elements
of the picturesque. Green hills
crowned with flourishing villages—village
spires rising just where they should
rise; for the scene is nature's temple, and
the altar should be there—lakes sparkling
like gems in the distant vallies—Saddle
mountain lifting his broad shoulders to
the northern sky, and the Catskills defining
with their blue and misty outline
the western horizon. “I guess you will be surprised to see
my pot-hooks and trammels, and puzzled
enough you will be to read them;
but I could not let so good an opportunity
pass without letting you know that
the Lord has spared our lives to this date,
and that all your friends at Eton are
well, except the minister, who enjoys
a poor state of health. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
| 299 | Author: | Sedgwick
Catharine Maria
1789-1867 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | The Travellers | | | | Published: | 1997 | | | | Subjects: | University of Virginia Library, Modern English collection | UVA-LIB-Text | University of Virginia Library, Early American Fiction, 1789-1875 | UVA-LIB-EarlyAmFict1789-1875 | | | | Description: | In the month of June, (the jubilee month
of poets and travellers) in the year eighteen
hundred and eighteen, Mr. Sackville,
his wife, and their two children, Edward
and Julia, made the grand tour of Niagara,
the lakes, Montreal, Quebec, &c. Both
parents and children kept journals, in
which they recorded with fidelity whatever
they observed which they deemed worthy
of note. We have been favored with the
perusal of them all, and have been permitted
to make a few extracts from them, which
we intend to combine into a brief narrative,
that we are sure will amuse our young
readers, provided their delicate essence
does not escape our unskilful hands. | | | Similar Items: | Find |
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