What was to happen in the near future no one at this early period could Cassandra-like predict, and yet there was in the political horizon a small pillar of portentous8 appearance, which was destined9 to cover the whole heavens with gloom and bring death to thousands of peaceful citizens in this country, through the clash of arms and fratricidal strife10 in which brothers were arrayed against brothers, and fathers against sons.
My father was an old line Whig and believed in the theory of government advocated by Alexander Hamilton, yet he recognized the autonomy of the States and approved some of the tenets of Mr. Thomas Jefferson, but did not agree with him generally, being in favor of a strong central government at Washington, though disagreeing with the extremists of both sections.
Being a close student of the political history of our country he subscribed11 to, and carefully read every page of, the National Intelligencer, owned and published by the Seaton brothers, which was the best exponent12 of the legislation of the time that has ever been issued; the editorials were clear and forcible and the reports of the debates in Congress were correct and complete. The political disputes on the floor of Congress began to be warm, and indeed acrimonious13 between the Northern and Southern members, which brought out the great efforts for peace of Henry Clay, of Kentucky, and prevented at that time a clash of arms between the sections. The admission of Kansas into the union under the Lecompton Convention was but a link in the chain of events leading to the great Civil War. Well do I recall my respected parent’s remark that the trend of the speeches by the Free-Soil, or Abolition14, party in the North and those of the Secessionists of the South, would certainly bring about a disruption of the United
States if persisted in; and alas15! his children lived to see his remark verified in the year 1861.
Our family moved from old Fairfield to Magnolia farm, only about two miles north of Richmond, which place was then owned by the Nortons, and it was a quiet, pleasant home “far away from the madding crowd” in a sociable16 and agreeable neighborhood; it is at the present time owned by the “Hartshorne” Colored Female Institute and now is included within the corporate17 limits of the city of Richmond, Va. How rapidly the wheel of time brings changes in our surroundings. My father’s children are advancing in years, the older ones are sent off to boarding schools, my oldest brother had just returned from Philadelphia, where he had attended the Jefferson Medical College as an office student of Dr. Thomas C. Mutter, the president of the college, who was first cousin of my mother—her maiden18 name was Frances Mutter.
From Magnolia we moved to “Rose Cottage,” owned by a Mr. Richardson, the object in this move being to be near “Washington and Henry” Academy, a boarding and day school carried on by a Mr. and Mrs. Dunton; she was in charge of the small boys and the girls, while her husband taught the large boys. I was in Mrs. Dunton’s department, being but a small chap, and as to whether I learned anything at this time it is a matter of considerable doubt. My mother furnished six pupils to this institution. The principals would come over to “Rose Cottage” two or three times per month, bringing their boarders with them, which visits they appeared to enjoy greatly as a good supper, with a large and shady yard to play in, was certainly well calculated to afford mirth and pleasure to both old and young. A Mr. Osborne, a Presbyterian minister, boarded at the academy, being a unique character and one of the
best men to be found anywhere; he formed the plan of teaching the scholars, young and old, the catechism of the Presbyterian Church, and all those who committed it to memory received a nice book as a prize. The climax19 of the scheme was an offer of a grand prize to any scholar that would repeat the whole of it without a hitch20 or halt. The children were thoroughly21 inoculated22 with Presbyterianism. The final trial of reciting, or memorizing, the catechism came off at the residence of Mr. Thomas Gardner. The contest was one long to be remembered, a Miss Fannie Shelton scoring the first honor, and Miss Newell Gardner the second. The supper provided for this happy occasion was a first class one in every respect. The best that a well-stocked farm house could produce, both in substantials and nicknacks, such for instance, as broiled23 chicken, roast lamb and barbecued pig, with dessert of ice cream, yellow cake and pies in abundance; it was in short one of the finest “lay-outs” that I ever saw, and being an appreciative24 youngster I did ample justice to it indeed, and fairly revelled25 in the many good eatables so generously spread before us, and to this day I remember it with pleasure. “Rose Cottage” was truly a delightful26 home. The never-failing wheel of time was turning fast, and the water of life that once passed over it will never again turn it. We were all growing fast as we advanced in years. At this time my father bought a place on Nine Mile Road, about two and a half miles from the city, it was named “Auburn,” and to it we moved bag and baggage.
Just as with “Fairfield” and “Magnolia,” we found hospitable27 neighbors, and genial28 intercourse29 was conspicuous30. Among them were Colonel Sherwin McRae and family, a Mrs. Gibson, Mr. Tinsley Johnson, Mr. Galt Johnson, and many other well known families, nearly all of whom have
now moved away or have passed to the other side of the river. Mr. William Galt Johnson lived about a quarter of a mile from us, and there was a considerable intercourse between the two families. “Galt,” as he was called, was a character of renown31 and possessed32 of much personality; one of his traits was never to give a word its correct pronunciation and yet he thought he was right always. I was visiting there one evening, and as supper was placed on the table the bell rang; Galt arose from his seat and in a clear voice said “the bell has pronounced supper ready, let’s go.” His wife, who was a cultivated lady, attempted to correct him by saying “announce, William,” but she could never get him to change his mode of speech. Another of his peculiarities33 was his lack of fondness of church-going. Mrs. Johnson, his wife, was a regular attendant to the church and naturally desired her husband to accompany her, a most reasonable wish, but Galt made several excuses for not complying, and finally he urged as a last resort that he could not sit in a pew unless he could whittle34 a stick, and could not collect his thoughts sufficiently35 to listen to the sermon; so she told him that should not be a good excuse, and that he could take a stick along and trim it as much as he chose, and he consented to go with her, but did not receive much benefit from the sermon.
My mother determined36 to send me to live with my eldest37 brother, Doctor William H. Macon, who had recently married Miss Nora C. Braxton, the daughter of Mr. Carter Braxton, of “Ingleside,” Hanover County, the owner of the celebrated38 plantation39 “New Castle,” situated40 on the Pamunkey River. The name of by brother’s home was “Woodland,” about three miles below the well-known tavern41 at Old Church. The reason of my being sent to live with him was to be convenient to enter the school kept
by a Count Larry, one of the best teachers of his day and time. The school house was distant about three miles from my brother’s place, and not too far away for a little boy to walk at that time. I was duly enrolled42 as a day scholar in Count Larry’s establishment, which consisted of an unpretentious structure, about thirty feet square, with two doors, one for entry and the other for exit, and was lighted by two windows with which to admit the sunshine and fresh air in the summer time, and to shut out the “cold, chilly43 winds of December.” The school was composed of both boys and girls, and the Count sat in a large wooden chair, with a table at his side similar to those now seen in a modern dairy lunch room in the cities. On the table was placed all his text books and such other teacher’s implements44, or fixings, and then to descend45 as it were from the “sublime to the ridiculous,” he installed, within easy reach, a large earthen “spittoon,” or more modernly speaking, “cuspidor.” The master, enthroned as like a ruler, or king, surveyed his pupils with great dignity and gravity. And although very kind and lenient46 in his dealings with his young charges, yet when occasion required it he could wield47 the birch with great effect, but always with prudence48 and moderation. He always kept a sharp pen-knife ready for use in making or mending quill49 pens, for steel pens were not then in use for the children; the goose quills50 were the only kind of pens we knew about, and it was no small job to keep a lot of chaps well supplied with writing materials, for he was constantly called upon.
We were given an hour at playtime, and about a mile and half away was a mill pond, which is probably there now unless dried up, and to this, in the warm weather, the boys, both large and small, repaired in great glee, but the girls did not accompany us.
Well school boys are proverbially as prone51 to mischief52 as are the sparks to fly upwards53, and when the Count would be absorbed in study the boys would throw torpedoes54 upon the floor which would quickly arouse him from his studies, but was soon made to believe that it was but an accidental match dropped and trodden upon, though in truth it was pure deviltry on the part of some of the larger boys. An incident fraught55 with much concern to me in connection with a boy by the name of Benjamin Tucker, who was about my age, but much stouter56 and had by some means gotten me under a sort of “hack,” and it becoming very annoying I finally concluded that the thing had gone far enough, so one day I lost patience with Benjamin and I just “pitched into” him and gave him a gentle thrashing; he had on a brand-new nine-pence straw hat which I got hold of and tore to smithereens. Well, after this “scrap” I had no further trouble with Master Benjamin Tucker.
Another rather humorous matter which happened about this time at school was about a boy who was called “Phil.” He was the pet and idol57 of his mother, who took a pair of his father’s old pants and made him a pair from them, but the trouble was that the cloth was not sufficient for the garment, and resulted in their being too small and too tight in the body when his burly form was encased therein, and became as solid as a drumhead, and we had a popular game called hard ball and the mischievous58 fellows selected him as a special target, and when the ball struck him plumb59 it rebounded60 as if it was rubber, but at last he got tired of being made a butt61 of ridicule62 and a target in the game, so he complained to his mother and she reported the matter to our teacher, requesting that gentleman that the boys should be made to stop the treatment to her son; the Count, after giving it careful consideration, told his
mother that the only remedy that he could suggest was to get her boy a new and a more roomy pair of trousers, and cast the old ones which had caused his annoyance63 aside. Our old teacher was a good and faithful one, and if his pupils did not profit by his knowledge and training, it surely was not his fault. He possessed of course some objectionable habits, such as when school closed he would get on a “spree” and remain on it until school was assembled for work, when all traces of his riotous64 living had disappeared.
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1
baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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obeisance
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| n.鞠躬，敬礼 | |
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maker
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| n.制造者，制造商 | |
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dire
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| adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的 | |
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omens
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| n.前兆，预兆( omen的名词复数 ) | |
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precursors
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| n.先驱( precursor的名词复数 )；先行者；先兆；初期形式 | |
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7
vouchsafed
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| v.给予，赐予( vouchsafe的过去式和过去分词 )；允诺 | |
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8
portentous
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| adj.不祥的，可怕的，装腔作势的 | |
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destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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10
strife
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| n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争 | |
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subscribed
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| v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意 | |
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12
exponent
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| n.倡导者，拥护者；代表人物；指数，幂 | |
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13
acrimonious
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| adj.严厉的，辛辣的，刻毒的 | |
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14
abolition
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| n.废除，取消 | |
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alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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16
sociable
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| adj.好交际的，友好的，合群的 | |
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corporate
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| adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的 | |
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maiden
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| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
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climax
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| n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点 | |
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hitch
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| v.免费搭(车旅行)；系住；急提；n.故障；急拉 | |
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21
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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22
inoculated
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| v.给…做预防注射( inoculate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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23
broiled
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| a.烤过的 | |
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24
appreciative
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| adj.有鉴赏力的，有眼力的；感激的 | |
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revelled
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| v.作乐( revel的过去式和过去分词 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉 | |
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delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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hospitable
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| adj.好客的；宽容的；有利的，适宜的 | |
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genial
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| adj.亲切的，和蔼的，愉快的，脾气好的 | |
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intercourse
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| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
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conspicuous
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| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
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renown
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| n.声誉，名望 | |
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32
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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peculiarities
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| n. 特质, 特性, 怪癖, 古怪 | |
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34
whittle
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| v.削（木头），削减；n.屠刀 | |
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sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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eldest
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| adj.最年长的，最年老的 | |
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celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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plantation
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| n.种植园，大农场 | |
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situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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41
tavern
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| n.小旅馆，客栈；小酒店 | |
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42
enrolled
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| adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起 | |
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43
chilly
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| adj.凉快的，寒冷的 | |
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44
implements
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| n.工具( implement的名词复数 )；家具；手段；[法律]履行（契约等）v.实现( implement的第三人称单数 )；执行；贯彻；使生效 | |
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45
descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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46
lenient
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| adj.宽大的，仁慈的 | |
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47
wield
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| vt.行使，运用，支配；挥，使用(武器等) | |
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48
prudence
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| n.谨慎，精明，节俭 | |
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49
quill
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| n.羽毛管；v.给（织物或衣服）作皱褶 | |
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50
quills
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| n.（刺猬或豪猪的）刺( quill的名词复数 )；羽毛管；翮；纡管 | |
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51
prone
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| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
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52
mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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53
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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54
torpedoes
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| 鱼雷( torpedo的名词复数 )； 油井爆破筒； 刺客； 掼炮 | |
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55
fraught
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| adj.充满…的，伴有(危险等)的；忧虑的 | |
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56
stouter
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| 粗壮的( stout的比较级 )； 结实的； 坚固的； 坚定的 | |
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57
idol
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| n.偶像，红人，宠儿 | |
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mischievous
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| adj.调皮的，恶作剧的，有害的，伤人的 | |
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plumb
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| adv.精确地，完全地；v.了解意义，测水深 | |
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rebounded
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| 弹回( rebound的过去式和过去分词 )； 反弹； 产生反作用； 未能奏效 | |
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61
butt
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| n.笑柄；烟蒂；枪托；臀部；v.用头撞或顶 | |
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ridicule
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| v.讥讽，挖苦；n.嘲弄 | |
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annoyance
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| n.恼怒，生气，烦恼 | |
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64
riotous
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| adj.骚乱的；狂欢的 | |
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