The International Monthly, Volume 3, No. 3, June, 1851Various
History
The International Monthly, Volume 3, No. 3, June, 1851
Various
Art, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Science -- History -- Periodicals
He was very young
yet, and had sense enough to get over this very soon. Of course, she
would never hear any repetition of such language from him; and, on her
part, she would never mention what had occurred to any one--especially
not to Mr. Harrison (it was the first time he had ever heard her
allude to the existence of that gentleman); and then she wound up with
a look which said as plainly as the words could have done, "Now, you
may go."
Ashburner moved off in a more than usual state of confusion. As he
approached the door it opened suddenly, and he nearly walked over one
of the little Bleeckers, a flourishing specimen of Young New-York,
with about three yards of green satin round his throat, and both his
hands full of French novels, which he had been commissioned to bring
from the circulating library. Ashburner felt like choking him, and it
was only by a great effort that he contrived to pass him with a barely
civil species of nod. But as he went out, he could not refrain from
casting one glance back at Mrs. Harrison. She had taken off her bonnet
(which in America is denominated a hat), and was tranquilly arranging
her hair at the glass.
Somehow or other he found his way down stairs, and rushed off into the
country on a tearing walk, enraged and disgusted with every thing, and
with himself most of all. When a man has made up his mind to commit a
sin, and then has been disappointed in the fruition of it--when he has
sold the birthright of his integrity, without getting the miserable
mess of pottage for it which he expected, his feelings are not the
most enviable. Ashburner was angry enough to marry the first heiress
he met with. First, he half resolved to get up a desperate flirtation
with Mrs. Benson; but the success of his first attempt was not
encouraging to the prosecution of a second. To kill himself was not in
his line; but he felt very like killing some one else. He still
feared he might have been made a screen for some other man. But if the
other man existed, he could only be reached by fighting successively
all the single men of "our set," and a fair sprinkling of those in the
second set. Then he thought he must at least leave the place, but his
pride still revolted at the idea of running away before a woman.
Finally, after walking about ten miles, and losing his dinner, he
sobered down gradually, and thought what a fool he had been; and the
issue of his cogitations was a very wise double conclusion. He formed
a higher opinion of the virtue of American women, and he never
attempted any experiments on another.
From Sharpe's London Magazine.
THE MAN OF TACT.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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