Humorous stories; United States -- Social life and customs -- 20th century -- Fiction
"No, on father's," said Susan, "and now, Mrs. Lathrop, you see what he
is at last. He not only marries a Chinese when if he'd been patient he
might have got a white one, but he brings her home, and don't even tell
you he's brought her home, or even that he's got her, or even that he's
married her, or anything. A man might line my house with furnaces and
have his baby picture done big in every room, and I'd never forgive his
acting in such a way. I never hear the beat. It throws all the other
calamities as ever come upon anybody in this community clean out of the
shade. What will be the use of your having a pew in church; you won't
even be able to face the minister now with your son's marrying one of
them as we have to give our good money to teach to wear clothes. What
good will your having the parlor papered be with everybody ashamed to go
to see a woman who has got a Chinese daughter. To my order of thinking,
you was better off poor. Why, they eat the hen's nests, the Chinese do,
and prefer 'em to the eggs. It's small wonder I dreamed Jathrop was a
cat, with him descending on us like the wrath of heaven married to a
China woman. Jathrop's no fool though, and if you'd seen that humble
heathen going along back of him with his big valise, you'd have to see
as the man as picks out a wife like that never could have been a fool. I
felt for her, I really did, only she was watching me with the wrong eye
all the time, and it made me dizzy to try and look at her kindly. I'll
tell you what, Mrs. Lathrop, when Jathrop comes back, you'll just go for
him and give it to him good. Men must learn as they can't bring their
Chinese wives into this community. There's a principle as we'd ought to
live up to whether we enjoy it or not, and it's all against marrying
Chinese. The Chinese are all right, I hope and trust, but nothing as
feeds itself with a toothpick had ever ought to be held pressed to the
bosom of families like you and me, Mrs. Lathrop. It isn't the way we're
brought up to look at them, and it's a well-known fact as no matter what
the leopard does to the Ethiopian, he sticks to his spot just the same
as before--"
"But--" broke in Mrs. Lathrop.
"I don't want to hurt your feelings, Mrs. Lathrop,--we've been friends
too long for me not to feel kindly to you,--but Mrs. Macy is a witness
to his bringing her, even if I wasn't well known to be one as never
lies. Mrs. Macy is a witness, too, to how he's got her dressed, and a
more burning disgrace than this keeping your chosen wife in loose
overalls and a jacket as any monkey on a hand-organ would weep to see
the fit of, I never see. It may be the custom in the Klondike and may
be convenient for sliding, but this is no sliding community, and, to my
order of thinking, Jathrop would have showed you more affection and us
more respect if he'd bought his wife a bonnet and a shawl before he
brought her here."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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