FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51  
52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   >>  
s, you see." I saw and tasted, and found it very good. He was still fumbling about the closet, with profane ejaculations, and finally emerged with something in his hand that I at first took for a small book. But he unblushingly put on the table that pasteboard volume sometimes called the Devil's Bible. "Come," he said, "where's the harm? Let us have a quiet game of Casino or California Jack, or something else. It is better than perishing of stupidity." I demurred. I was not over-scrupulous, but I had sufficient of my early breeding left to have a qualm of conscience at the thought of playing cards on Sunday. "Oh, nonsense!" said Fred, carelessly, as he proceeded to deal the cards for Casino. "There, you have an ace and little Casino right before you. Go ahead, old man!" I made a feeble show of protesting, but took up my cards, and, finding that I could capture the ace and little Casino, took them. From that the play went on; I became quite absorbed, and dismissed my scruples, when, as the sun was getting low, a shadow passed the window. "Great Jupiter!" I exclaimed, looking up. "Does that second-story piazza go all the way round here?" "To be sure," answered Fred, whose back was to the window. "Why not? What did you see,--a spook?" "My mother-in-law!" "The devil!" "No, Mrs. Pinkerton!" "Well, what do you care? You are your own boss, I hope." "Yes, of course; but she will be terribly offended, and I think it would be pleasanter for all concerned to keep in her good graces." "Gammon! Assert your rights, be master of yourself, and teach the old woman her place. D---- me, if I would have a mother-in-law riding over me, or prying around to see what I was about!" "Oh, I am sure she passed the window by accident. She would never pry around; it isn't her style; she has a fine sense of propriety, has my mother-in-law!" "Oh, yes, old Pink is the pink of propriety, no doubt about that!" said the rascal, laughing heartily at his heartless pun. But I couldn't laugh. I saw plainly enough that I had lost more than all the ground that I had gained in my mother-in-law's favor, and my task would be harder than ever. I had no more desire to play cards, and sauntered down stairs and out of doors as if nothing had happened. At the tea-table Mrs. Pinkerton was very impressive in her manner, but showed no direct consciousness of anything new. On the piazza, after tea, she was uncommonly affable to her daugh
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51  
52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   >>  



Top keywords:

Casino

 

mother

 

window

 
passed
 
propriety
 

Pinkerton

 
piazza
 

prying

 

riding

 

terribly


offended
 

Gammon

 

Assert

 

rights

 

master

 
graces
 

pleasanter

 

concerned

 

stairs

 
happened

sauntered

 
harder
 

desire

 

impressive

 

affable

 

uncommonly

 

consciousness

 
manner
 

showed

 

direct


gained

 

accident

 

plainly

 

ground

 

couldn

 

rascal

 

laughing

 

heartily

 

heartless

 

shadow


perishing

 

stupidity

 

California

 

demurred

 

scrupulous

 

thought

 
playing
 

Sunday

 

nonsense

 

conscience