Fifteen Days: An Extract from Edward Colvil's JournalPutnam, Mary Lowell
General
Fifteen Days: An Extract from Edward Colvil's Journal
Putnam, Mary Lowell
Diary fiction; Slavery -- United States -- Fiction
Westlake made a sign with his hand that he was going to take his horse
to the stable. I went out to him, Harry following. I welcomed him as
cordially as I could, but his manner was reserved at first. We had not
met in a way to be obliged to shake hands since Shaler went away.
Westlake knew that I was greatly dissatisfied with him at that time.
Not more so, though, than he was with himself, poor fellow! He was
evidently sincerely glad to see Harry again, and Harry greeted both
him and his horse very kindly. Westlake is always well-mounted, and
deserves to be: he loves his horses both well and wisely. It is
something to be thoroughly faithful in any one relation of life, and
here Westlake is faultless. The horse he rode that afternoon--one
raised and trained by himself--bore witness in high spirit and gentle
temper to a tutor who had known how to respect a fiery and
affectionate nature. We all three gave our cares to the handsome
creature, and this common interest put me quite in charity with my
unexpected guest before we went into the house.
"This is a way to treat an old friend!" cried Westlake, as he gave his
hand to the Doctor, who had come down the door-steps to meet him. "I
cannot get two whole days from you, and then you come here and stay on
as if you meant to live here!"
Tabitha watched my mother's reception of the new-comer, and, seeing it
was hospitable, placed another chair at the table with alacrity. She
knew he was out of favor here, but had never thought very hardly of
him herself. Her race often judges us in our relations with itself
more mildly than we can judge each other. In its strange simplicity,
it seems to attribute to itself the part of the superior, and pities
where it should resent.
"You cannot make it up to me, Borrow," Westlake went on, as soon as we
had taken our places, "except by going right back with me to-night, or
coming over to me to-morrow morning, and giving me as many days as you
have given Colvil. Next week is the very time for you to be with us. I
want you to see us at a gala season: next week is the great marrying
and christening time of the year. It usually comes in June; but this
year we have it two months earlier, on account of Dr. Baskow's
engagements. My little Fanny is to give all the names. She has a fine
imagination."
"Westlake, I would do all but the impossible to show my sense of your
kindness. For the rest, my appreciation of little Miss Fanny's
inventive powers could not be heightened."
"Does that mean no? Borrow, I shall think in earnest that you have
done me a wrong in giving so much time away from me, if these are
really your last days in our parts."
"We will make it up to you. I will tell you how we will make it up to
you. Come to us,--come to Massachusetts: I will give you there a week
of my time for every day we have taken from you here. Come to us in
June: that is the month in which New England is most itself. Come and
renew old associations."
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