Dorothy, and Other Italian StoriesWoolson, Constance Fenimore
General
Dorothy, and Other Italian Stories
Woolson, Constance Fenimore
Americans -- Italy -- Fiction; Italy -- Social life and customs -- Fiction; Short stories, American
"I think not," said her niece, smiling.
"Well, describe him, then."
"He is of medium height, neither slender nor stout; he is light, with
rather peculiar eyes because they are so blue--a deep, dull blue, like
old china; but they are not large, and he does not fully open them. He
has a long, light mustache, no beard, and very closely cut hair."
"He must be good-looking."
"No; he is not, especially. He may be anywhere between thirty and forty;
his hair in a cross-light shows a slight tinge of gray. He looks
fatigued; he looks cynical. I should not be surprised if he were
selfish. I do not like him."
"But if he should be the grandson of old Adam, I should have to invite
him to dinner," said Miss Harrison, reflectively. "I could not do less,
I think."
"I won't poison the soup. But Morgan is a common name, Aunt Ruth; this
is the fourth Morgan I have met here this spring. There isn't one chance
in a thousand that he belongs to the family you know." She was smiling
as she spoke, but did not explain her smile; she was thinking that
"Morgan" was also the name signed to that letter locked in her
writing-desk--a letter whose expressions she now knew quite well, having
obeyed Mrs. Lovell's injunction to "read it over" more than once. They
were ardent expressions; it might be said, indeed, that they were very
ardent.
But now and then that one chance in a thousand, so often summarily
dismissed, asserts its existence and appears upon the scene. It turned
out in the present case that the stranger was the grandson of the old
Adam Morgan whom Miss Harrison remembered. Miss Stowe, in the meantime,
had continued to meet him; but now she was to meet him in a new
way--when he would be more upon her hands, as it were; for Miss Harrison
invited him to dinner.
Miss Ruth Harrison was an invalid of nearly sixty years of age; she had
been for ten years in Europe, but had only had her orphaned niece with
her during the past eighteen months. She had a large fortune, and she
gave Margaret every luxury; especially she liked to see her richly
dressed. But it was quite well understood between them that the bulk of
her wealth was to go to another relative in America who bore her family
name. It was understood between them, but it was not understood outside.
On the contrary, it was generally believed in Florence that Miss Stowe
would inherit the whole. It is just possible that this belief may have
had a remote influence in shaping the opinion which prevailed
there--namely, that this young lady was "handsome" and "gracious," when,
in truth, she was neither. But Mr. Morgan, the new-comer, exhibited so
far, at least, no disposition to fall in with this fiction. In his
estimation Miss Stowe was a conventionally agreeable, inwardly
indifferent young lady of twenty-six, who carried herself well, but was
too ironical as well as too dark. He came to dinner. And did not change
his opinion.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account