The Last of the Foresters: Or, Humors on the Border; A story of the Old Virginia FrontierCooke, John Esten
General
The Last of the Foresters: Or, Humors on the Border; A story of the Old Virginia Frontier
Cooke, John Esten
Frontier and pioneer life -- Fiction; Virginia -- Fiction
"You know I am a great artist in the cutting line, sir," said Mr.
Jinks, with dignity; "and that nobody can do your fine work but me,
sir. You know I have the right to mature my conceptions in private,
sir,--and that circumstances of another description render this
privacy desirable, sir! And yet, sir, you intrude upon me, sir,--you
intrude! How do you do, young man?--I recognize you," added Mr. Jinks,
slightly calmed by his victory over O'Brallaghan, who only muttered
his sentiments in original Gaelic, and bore the storm without further
reply.
"I will, for once, break my rule," said Mr. Jinks, magnanimously, "and
do for this gentleman, who is my friend, what I will do for no other.
Henceforth, sir, recollect that I have rights;" and Mr. Jinks frowned;
then he added to Verty, "Young man, have the goodness to stand upon
that bench."
O'Brallaghan and Roundjacket retreated to the outer room, where they
were, soon after, joined by Verty, who was laughing.
"Well," muttered the young man, "I will not tell anybody that
Mr. Jinks sews, if he don't want it to be known--especially Miss
Sallianna. I reckon he is right--women don't like to see men do
anything better than them, as Mr. Jinks says."
And Verty began to admire a plum-colored coat which was lying on the
counter.
"I like this," he said.
O'Brallaghan grew eloquent on the plum-colored coat--asserting that it
was a portion of a suit made for one of his most elegant customers,
but not sent for. He could, however, dispose of it to Mr. Verty, if he
wished to have it--there was time to make another for the aforesaid
elegant customer.
Verty tried the coat on, and O'Brallaghan declared, enthusiastically,
that it fitted him "bewchously."
Mr. Roundjacket informed Verty that it would be better to get the
suit, if it fitted, inasmuch as O'Brallaghan would probably take
double the time he promised to make his proper suit in--an observation
which O'Brallaghan repelled with indignation; and so the consequence
was, that a quarter of an hour afterwards Roundjacket and Verty issued
forth--the appearance of the latter having undergone a remarkable
change.
Certainly no one would have recognized Verty at the first glance. He
was clad in a complete cavalier's suit--embroidered coat-ruffles and
long flapped waistcoat--with knee-breeches, stockings of the same
material, and glossy shoes with high red heels, and fluttering
rosettes; a cocked hat surmounted his curling hair, and altogether
Verty resembled a courtier, and walked like a boy on stilts.
Roundjacket laughed in his sleeve at his companion's contortions,
and on their way back stopped at the barber and surgeon's. This
professional gentleman clipped Verty's profuse curls, gathered them
together carefully behind, and tied them with a handsome bow of
scarlet ribbon. Then he powdered the boy's fine glossy hair, and held
a mirror before him.
"Oh! I'm a great deal better looking now," said Verty; "the fact is,
Mr. Roundjacket, my hair was too long."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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