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"George Washington's" Last Duel 1891 By: Thomas Nelson Page (1853-1922) |
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By Thomas Nelson Page 1891
I. Of all the places in the county "The Towers" was the favorite with the
young people. There even before Margaret was installed the Major kept
open house with his major domo and factotum "George Washington"; and
when Margaret came from school, of course it was popular. Only one class
of persons was excluded. There were few people in the county who did not know of the Major's
antipathy to "old women," as he called them. Years no more entered into
his definition of this class than celibacy did into his idea of an "old
bachelor." The state of single blessedness continued in the female
sex beyond the bloom of youth was in his eyes the sole basis of
this unpardonable condition. He made certain concessions to the few
individuals among his neighbors who had remained in the state of
spinsterhood, because, as he declared, neighborliness was a greater
virtue than consistency; but he drew the line at these few, and it was
his boast that no old woman had ever been able to get into his Eden.
"One of them," he used to say, "would close paradise just as readily now
as Eve did six thousand years ago." Thus, although as Margaret grew
up she had any other friends she desired to visit her as often as she
chose, her wish being the supreme law at Rock Towers, she had never even
thought of inviting one of the class against whom her uncle's ruddy face
was so steadfastly set. The first time it ever occurred to her to invite
any one among the proscribed was when she asked Rose Endicott to pay
her a visit. Rose, she knew, was living with her old aunt, Miss Jemima
Bridges, whom she had once met in R , and she had some apprehension
that in Miss Jemima's opinion, the condition of the South was so much
like that of the Sandwich Islands that the old lady would not permit
Rose to come without her personal escort. Accordingly, one evening after
tea, when the Major was in a particularly gracious humor, and had told
her several of his oldest and best stories, Margaret fell upon him
unawares, and before he had recovered from the shock of the encounter,
had captured his consent. Then, in order to secure the leverage of a
dispatched invitation, she had immediately written Rose, asking her
and her aunt to come and spend a month or two with her, and had without
delay handed it to George Washington to deliver to Lazarus to give
Luke to carry to the post office. The next evening, therefore, when the
Major, after twenty four hours of serious apprehension, reopened the
matter with a fixed determination to coax or buy her out of the notion,
because, as he used to say, "women can't be reasoned out of a thing,
sir, not having been reasoned in," Margaret was able to meet him with
the announcement that it was "too late," as the letter had already been
mailed. Seated in one of the high backed arm chairs, with one white hand shading
her laughing eyes from the light, and with her evening dress daintily
spread out about her, Margaret was amused at the look of desperation
on the old gentleman's ruddy face. He squared his round body before
the fire, braced himself with his plump legs well apart, as if he were
preparing to sustain the shock of a blow, and taking a deep inspiration,
gave a loud and prolonged "Whew!" This was too much for her. Margaret rose, and, going up to him, took his arm and looked into his
face cajolingly. "Uncle, I was bound to have Rose, and Miss Jemima would not have let her
come alone." The tone was the low, almost plaintive key, the effectiveness of which
Margaret knew so well. "'Not let her!'" The Major faced her quickly. "Margaret, she is one of
those strong minded women!" Margaret nodded brightly. "I bet my horse she wears iron gray curls, caught on the side of her
head with tucking combs!" "She does," declared Margaret, her eyes dancing. "And has a long nose red at the end." "Uncle, you have seen her. I know you have seen her," asserted
Margaret, laughing up at him... Continue reading book >>
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