The Rise Of Silas Lapham By William Dean Howells Part 1 by William Dean Howells (read dune txt) 📕

Over The Water.  When People Talk To Me About The Hill,

I Can Understand 'Em. It'S Snug,  And It'S Old-Fashioned,

And It'S Where They'Ve Always Lived.  But When They Talk

About Commonwealth Avenue,  I Don'T Know What They Mean.

It Don'T Hold A Candle To The Water Side Of Beacon.

You'Ve Got Just As Much Wind Over There,  And You'Ve Got Just

As Much Dust,  And All The View You'Ve Got Is The View Across

The Street.  No,  Sir! When You Come To The Back Bay At All,

Give Me The Water Side Of Beacon."

 

"Oh,  I Think You'Re Quite Right," Said The Young Man.

"The View Here Is Everything."

 

Irene Looked "I Wonder What Papa Is Going to Say Next!"

At Her Sister,  When Their Mother'S Voice Was Heard Overhead,

Approaching the Opening in the Floor Where The Stairs Were

To Be; And She Presently Appeared,  With One Substantial

Foot A Long Way Ahead.  She Was Followed by The Carpenter,

With His Rule Sticking out Of His Overalls Pocket,  And She

Was Still Talking to Him About Some Measurements They Had

Been Taking,  When They Reached the Bottom,  So That Irene

Had To Say,  "Mamma,  Mr. Corey," Before Mrs. Lapham Was

Aware Of Him.

 

He Came Forward With As Much Grace And Speed as The

Uncertain Footing would Allow,  And Mrs. Lapham Gave

Him A Stout Squeeze Of Her Comfortable Hand.

 

"Why,  Mr. Corey! When Did You Get Back?"

 

"Yesterday. It Hardly Seems As If I Had Got Back.

I Didn'T Expect To Find You In a New House."

 

"Well,  You Are Our First Caller.  I Presume You Won'T

Expect I Should Make Excuses For The State You Find It In.

Has The Colonel Been Doing the Honours?"

 

"Oh Yes.  And I'Ve Seen More Of Your House Than I Ever

Shall Again,  I Suppose."

 

"Well,  I Hope Not," Said Lapham.  "There'Ll Be Several

Chances To See Us In the Old One Yet,  Before We Leave."

 

He Probably Thought This A Neat,  Off-Hand Way Of Making

The Invitation,  For He Looked at His Woman-Kind As If He

Might Expect Their Admiration.

 

"Oh Yes,  Indeed!" Said His Wife.  "We Shall Be Very Glad

To See Mr. Corey,  Any Time."

 

"Thank You; I Shall Be Glad To Come."

 

He And The Colonel Went Before,  And Helped the Ladies

Down The Difficult Descent.  Irene Seemed less Sure-

Footed than The Others; She Clung To The Young Man'S

Hand An Imperceptible Moment Longer Than Need be,

Or Else He Detained her.  He Found Opportunity Of Saying,

"It'S So Pleasant Seeing you Again," Adding,  "All Of You."

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"Thank You," Said The Girl.  "They Must All Be Glad

To Have You At Home Again."

 

Corey Laughed.

 

"Well,  I Suppose They Would Be,  If They Were At Home

To Have Me.  But The Fact Is,  There'S Nobody In the House

But My Father And Myself,  And I'M Only On My Way To Bar Harbour."

 

"Oh! Are They There?"

 

"Yes; It Seems To Be The Only Place Where My Mother

Can Get Just The Combination Of Sea And Mountain Air

That She Wants."

 

"We Go To Nantasket--It'S Convenient For Papa; And I

Don'T Believe We Shall Go Anywhere Else This Summer,

Mamma'S So Taken Up With Building.  We Do Nothing

But Talk House; And Pen Says We Eat And Sleep House.

She Says It Would Be A Sort Of Relief To Go And Live

In Tents For A While."

 

"She Seems To Have A Good Deal Of Humour," The Young

Man Ventured,  Upon The Slender Evidence.

 

The Others Had Gone To The Back Of The House A Moment,

To Look At Some Suggested change.  Irene And Corey Were

Left Standing in the Doorway.  A Lovely Light Of Happiness

Played over Her Face And Etherealised its Delicious Beauty.

She Had Some Ado To Keep Herself From Smiling outright,

And The Effort Deepened the Dimples In her Cheeks;

She Trembled a Little,  And The Pendants Shook In the Tips

Of Her Pretty Ears.

 

The Others Came Back Directly,  And They All Descended

The Front Steps Together.  The Colonel Was About To Renew

His Invitation,  But He Caught His Wife'S Eye,  And,

Without Being able To Interpret Its Warning exactly,

Was Able To Arrest Himself,  And Went About Gathering

Up The Hitching-Weight,  While The Young Man Handed

The Ladies Into The Phaeton.  Then He Lifted his Hat,

And The Ladies All Bowed,  And The Laphams Drove Off,

Irene'S Blue Ribbons Fluttering backward From Her Hat,

As If They Were Her Clinging thoughts.

 

"So That'S Young Corey,  Is It?" Said The Colonel,

Letting the Stately Stepping,  Tall Coupe Horse Make

His Way Homeward At Will With The Beach-Wagon. "Well,

He Ain'T A Bad-Looking fellow,  And He'S Got A Good,

Fair And Square,  Honest Eye.  But I Don'T See How A Fellow

Like That,  That'S Had Every Advantage In this World,

Can Hang Round Home And Let His Father Support Him.

Seems To Me,  If I Had His Health And His Education,

I Should Want To Strike Out And Do Something for Myself."

 

The Girls On The Back Seat Had Hold Of Each Other'S Hands,

And They Exchanged electrical Pressures At The Different

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Points Their Father Made.

 

"I Presume," Said Mrs. Lapham,  "That He Was Down In texas

Looking after Something"

 

"He'S Come Back Without Finding it,  I Guess."

 

"Well,  If His Father Has The Money To Support Him,

And Don'T Complain Of The Burden,  I Don'T See Why We Should."

 

"Oh,  I Know It'S None Of My Business,  But I Don'T Like

The Principle.  I Like To See A Man Act Like A Man.

I Don'T Like To See Him Taken Care Of Like A Young Lady.

Now,  I Suppose That Fellow Belongs To Two Or Three Clubs,

And Hangs Around 'Em All Day,  Lookin' Out The Window,--I'Ve

Seen 'Em,--Instead Of Tryin' To Hunt Up Something to Do

For An Honest Livin'."

 

"If I Was A Young Man," Penelope Struck In,  "I Would Belong

To Twenty Clubs,  If I Could Find Them And I Would Hang

Around Them All,  And Look Out The Window Till I Dropped."

 

"Oh,  You Would,  Would You?" Demanded her Father,

Delighted with Her Defiance,  And Twisting his Fat Head

Around Over His Shoulder To Look At Her.  "Well,  You

Wouldn'T Do It On My Money,  If You Were A Son Of Mine,

Young Lady."

 

"Oh,  You Wait And See," Retorted the Girl.

 

This Made Them All Laugh.  But The Colonel Recurred

Seriously To The Subject That Night,  As He Was Winding

Up His Watch Preparatory To Putting it Under His Pillow.

 

"I Could Make A Man Of That Fellow,  If I Had Him In the

Business With Me.  There'S Stuff In him.  But I Spoke

Up The Way I Did Because I Didn'T Choose Irene Should

Think I Would Stand Any Kind Of A Loafer 'Round--I Don'T

Care Who He Is,  Or How Well Educated or Brought Up.

And I Guess,  From The Way Pen Spoke Up,  That 'Rene Saw

What I Was Driving at."

 

The Girl,  Apparently,  Was Less Anxious About Her

Father'S Ideas And Principles Than About The Impression

Which He Had Made Upon The Young Man.  She Had Talked

It Over And Over With Her Sister Before They Went

To Bed,  And She Asked in despair,  As She Stood Looking

At Penelope Brushing out Her Hair Before The Glass--

 

"Do You Suppose He'Ll Think Papa Always Talks In that

Bragging way?"

 

"He'Ll Be Right If He Does," Answered her Sister.

"It'S The Way Father Always Does Talk.  You Never Noticed

It So Much,  That'S All.  And I Guess If He Can'T Make

Allowance For Father'S Bragging,  He'Ll Be A Little Too Good.

I Enjoyed hearing the Colonel Go On."

 

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"I Know You Did," Returned irene In distress.

Then She Sighed.  "Didn'T You Think He Looked very Nice?"

 

"Who? The Colonel?" Penelope Had Caught Up The Habit

Of Calling her Father So From Her Mother,  And She Used

His Title In all Her Jocose And Perverse Moods.

 

"You Know Very Well I Don'T Mean Papa," Pouted irene.

"Oh! Mr. Corey! Why Didn'T You Say Mr. Corey If You Meant

Mr. Corey? If I Meant Mr. Corey,  I Should Say Mr. Corey.

It Isn'T Swearing! Corey,  Corey,  Co----"

 

Her Sister Clapped her Hand Over Her Mouth "Will You Hush,

You Wretched thing?" She Whimpered.  "The Whole House Can

Hear You."

 

"Oh Yes,  They Can Hear Me All Over The Square.

Well,  I Think He Looked well Enough For A Plain Youth,

Who Hadn'T Taken His Hair Out Of Curl-Papers For Some Time."

 

"It Was Clipped pretty Close," Irene Admitted; And They

Both Laughed at The Drab Effect Of Mr. Corey'S Skull,

As They Remembered it.  "Did You Like His Nose?"

Asked irene Timorously.

 

"Ah,  Now You'Re Coming to Something," Said Penelope.

"I Don'T Know Whether,  If I Had So Much Of A Nose,

I Should Want It All Roman."

 

"I Don'T See How You Can Expect To Have A Nose Part

One Kind And Part Another," Argued irene.

 

"Oh,  I Do.  Look At Mine!" She Turned aside Her Face,

So As To Get A Three-Quarters View Of Her Nose In the Glass,

And Crossing her Hands,  With The Brush In one Of Them,

Before Her,  Regarded it Judicially.  "Now,  My Nose

Started grecian,  But Changed its Mind Before It Got Over

The Bridge,  And Concluded to Be Snub The Rest Of The Way."

 

"You'Ve Got A Very Pretty Nose,  Pen," Said Irene,

Joining in the Contemplation Of Its Reflex In the Glass.

 

"Don'T Say That In hopes Of Getting me To Compliment His,

Mrs."--She Stopped,  And Then Added deliberately--"C.!"

 

Irene Also Had Her Hair-Brush In her Hand,  And Now

She Sprang At Her Sister And Beat Her Very Softly On

The Shoulder With The Flat Of It.  "You Mean Thing!"

She Cried,  Between Her Shut Teeth,  Blushing hotly.

 

"Well,  D.,  Then," Said Penelope.  "You'Ve Nothing to Say

Against D.? Though I Think C. Is Just As Nice An Initial."

 

"Oh!" Cried the Younger,  For All Expression Of Unspeakable Things.

 

"I Think He Has Very Good Eyes," Admitted penelope.

 

"Oh,  He Has! And Didn'T You Like The Way His Sackcoat

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