Susan Warner - Nobody

"That's capital!" said Tom, half raising himself up and leaning on hiselbow. "I'll turn the care of my family over to you, and I'll seek thewilderness."

"What wilderness?" asked his sister sharply.

"Some wilderness – some place where I shall not see crinoline, nor beexpected to do the polite thing. I'll go for the sea, I guess."

"What have you in your head, Tom?"

"Refreshment."

"You've just come from the sea."

"I've just come from the sea where it was fashionable. Now I'll findsome place where it is unfashionable. I don't favour Saratoga any morethan you do. It's a jolly stupid; that's what it is."

"But where do you want to go, Tom? you have some place in your head."

"I'd as lief go off for the Isles of Shoals as anywhere," said Tom, lying down again. "They haven't got fashionable yet. I've a notion tosee 'em first."

"I doubt about that," remarked Philip gravely. "I am not sure but the

Isles of Shoals are about the most distinguished place you could go to."

"Isles of Shoals. Where are they? and what are they?" Julia asked.

"A few little piles of rock out in the Atlantic, on which it spends itswrath all the year round; but of course the ocean is not always raging; and when it is not raging, it smiles; and they say the smile is nowheremore bewitching than at the Isles of Shoals," Philip answered.

"But will nobody be there?"

"Nobody you would care about," returned Tom.

"Then what'll you do?"

"Fish."

"Tom! you're not a fisher. You needn't pretend it."

"Sun myself on the rocks."

"You are brown enough already."

"They say, everything gets bleached there."

"Then I should like to go. But I couldn't stand the sea and solitude, and I don't believe you can stand it. Tom, this is ridiculous. You'renot serious?"

"Not often," said Tom; "but this time I am. I am going to the Isles ofShoals. If Philip will take you to Saratoga, I'll start to-morrow; otherwise I will wait till I get you rooms and see you settled."

"Is there a hotel there?"

"Something that does duty for one, as I understand."

"Tom, this is too ridiculous, and vexatious," remonstrated his sister.

"We want you at Saratoga."

"Well, it is flattering; but you wanted me at St. Augustine a littlewhile ago, and you had me. You can't always have a fellow. I'm going tosee the Isles of Shoals before they're the rage. I want to get cooledoff, for once, after Florida and Newport, besides."

"Isn't that the place where Mrs. Wishart is gone," said Philip now.

"I don't know – yes, I believe so."

"Mrs. Wishart!" exclaimed Julia in a different tone. " She gone to the

Isles of Shoals?"

"'Mrs. Wishart!" Mrs. Caruthers echoed. "Has she got that girl withher?"

Silence. Then Philip remarked with a laugh, that Tom's plan of "coolingoff" seemed problematical.

"Tom," said his sister solemnly, " is Miss Lothrop going to be there?"

"Don't know, upon my word," said Tom. "I haven't heard."

"She is, and that's what you're going for. O Tom, Tom!" cried hissister despairingly. "Mr. Dillwyn, what shall we do with him?"

"Can't easily manage a fellow of his size, Miss Julia. Let him take hischance."

"Take his chance! Such a chance!"

"Yes, Philip," said Tom's mother; "you ought to stand by us."

"With all my heart, dear Mrs. Caruthers; but I am afraid I should be aweak support. Really, don't you think Tom might do worse?"

"Worse?" said the elder lady; "what could be worse than for him tobring such a wife into the house?"

Tom gave an inarticulate kind of snort just here, which was not lackingin expression. Philip went on calmly.

"Such a wife – " he repeated. "Mrs. Caruthers, here is room fordiscussion. Suppose we settle, for example, what Tom, or anybodysituated like Tom, ought to look for and insist upon finding, in awife. I wish you and Miss Julia would make out the list ofqualifications."

"Stuff!" muttered Tom. "It would be hard lines, if a fellow must have awife of his family's choosing!"

"His family can talk about it," said Philip, "and certainly will. Holdyour tongue, Tom. I want to hear your mother."

"Why, Mr. Dillwyn," said the lady, "you know as well as I do; and youthink just as I do about it, and about this Miss Lothrop."

"Perhaps; but let us reason the matter out. Maybe it will do Tom good.What ought he to have in a wife, Mrs. Caruthers? and we'll try to showhim he is looking in the wrong quarter."

"I'm not looking anywhere!" growled Tom; but no one believed him.

"Well, Philip," Mrs. Caruthers began, "he ought to marry a girl of goodfamily."

"Certainly. By 'good family' you mean – ?"

"Everybody knows what I mean."

"Possibly Tom does not."

"I mean, a girl that one knows about, and that everybody knows about; that has good blood in her veins."

"The blood of respectable and respected ancestors," Philip said.

"Yes! that is what I mean. I mean, that have been respectable andrespected for a long time back – for years and years."

"You believe in inheritance."

"I don't know about that," said Mrs. Caruthers. "I believe in family."

"Well, I believe in inheritance. But what proof is there that theyoung lady of whom we were speaking has no family?"

Julia raised herself up from her reclining position, and Mrs. Carutherssat suddenly forward in her chair.

"Why, she is nobody!" cried the first. "Nobody knows her, nor anythingabout her."

" Here – " said Philip.

"Here! Of course. Where else?"

"Yes, just listen to that!" Tom broke in. "I xxow should anybody knowher here, where she has never lived! But that's the way – "

"I suppose a Sandwich Islander's family is known in the Sandwich

Islands," said Mrs. Caruthers. "But what good is that to us?"

"Then you mean, the family must be a New York family?"

"N – o," said Mrs. Caruthers hesitatingly; "I don't mean that exactly.

There are good Southern families – "

"And good Eastern families!" put in Tom.

"But nobody knows anything about this girl's family," said the ladiesboth in a breath.

"Mrs. Wishart does," said Philip. "She has even told me. The familydates back to the beginning of the colony, and boasts of extremerespectability. I forget how many judges and ministers it can count up; and at least one governor of the colony; and there is no spot or stainupon it anywhere."

There was silence.

"Go on, Mrs. Caruthers. What else should Tom look for in a wife?"

"It is not merely what a family has been, but what its associationshave been," said Mrs. Caruthers.

"These have evidently been respectable."

"But it is not that only, Philip. We want the associations of goodsociety; and we want position. I want Tom to marry a woman of goodposition."

"Hm!" said Philip. "This lady has not been accustomed to anything thatyou would call 'society,' and 'position' – But your son has positionenough, Mrs. Caruthers. He can stand without much help."

"Now, Philip, don't you go to encourage Tom in this mad fancy. It'sjust a fancy. The girl has nothing; and Tom's wife ought to be – Ishall break my heart if Tom's wife is not of good family and position, and good manners, and good education. That's the least I can ask for."

"She has as good manners as anybody you know!" said Tom flaring up. "Asgood as Julia's, and better."

"I should say, she has no manner whatever," remarked Miss Julia quietly.

"What is 'manner'?" said Tom indignantly. "I hate it. Manner! They allhave 'manner' – except the girls who make believe they have none; andtheir 'manner' is to want manner. Stuff!"

"But the girl knows nothing," persisted Mrs. Caruthers.

"She knows absolutely nothing ," – Julia confirmed this statement.