It was not easy to recognise, in her present gaudy trim, all flaunting
with ribbons and shining with trinkets, the same Betty who used to deal
out pecks of potatoes and superintend her basket of cantaloupes in the
Jersey market, in pasteboard bonnet and linsey petticoat. Her companions
were of the infamous class. If Arthur were still in the city, there is
no doubt that the mother and son might renew the ancient terms of their
acquaintance. "The old man, thus robbed and betrayed, sought consolation in the
bottle, of which he had been at all times over-fond. He wandered from
one tavern to another till his credit was exhausted, and then was sent
to jail, where, I believe, he is likely to continue till his death. Such, my friend, is the history of the Mervyns." "What proof," said I, "have you of the immoral conduct of the son? Of
his mistreatment of his mother, and his elopement with his father's
horse and money?" "I have no proof but the unanimous report of Mervyn's neighbours. Respectable and honest men have affirmed, in my hearing, that they had
been present when the boy treated his mother in the way that I have
described. I was, besides, once in company with the old man, and heard
him bitterly inveigh against his son, and charge him with the fact of
stealing his horse and money. I well remember that tears rolled from his
eyes while talking on the subject. As to his being seen in the city the
next day after his elopement, dressed in a most costly and fashionable
manner, I can doubt that as little as the rest, for he that saw him was
my father, and you, who know my father, know what credit is due to his
eyes and his word. He had seen Arthur often enough not to be mistaken,
and described his appearance with great exactness. The boy is extremely
handsome, give him his due; has dark hazel eyes, auburn hair, and very
elegant proportions. His air and gait have nothing of the clown in them. Take away his jacket and trousers, and you have as spruce a fellow as
ever came from dancing-school or college. He is the exact picture of his
mother, and the most perfect contrast to the sturdy legs, squat figure,
and broad, unthinking, sheepish face of the father that can be imagined. You must confess that his appearance here is a pretty strong proof of
the father's assertions. The money given for these clothes could not
possibly have been honestly acquired. It is to be presumed that they
were bought or stolen, for how else should they have been gotten?" "What was this lad's personal deportment during the life of his mother,
and before his father's second marriage?" "Very little to the credit of his heart or his intellects. Being the
youngest son, the only one who at length survived, and having a
powerful resemblance to herself, he became the mother's favourite. His
constitution was feeble, and he loved to stroll in the woods more than
to plough or sow. This idleness was much against his father's
inclination and judgment; and, indeed, it was the foundation of all his
vices. When he could be prevailed upon to do any thing it was in a
bungling manner, and so as to prove that his thoughts were fixed on any
thing except his business. When his assistance was wanted he was never
to be found at hand. They were compelled to search for him among the
rocks and bushes, and he was generally discovered sauntering along the
bank of a river, or lolling in the shade of a tree. This disposition to
inactivity and laziness, in so young a man, was very strange. Persons of
his age are rarely fond of work, but then they are addicted to company,
and sports, and exercises. They ride, or shoot, or frolic; but this
being moped away his time in solitude, never associated with other young
people, never mounted a horse but when he could not help it, and never
fired a gun or angled for a fish in his life. Some people supposed him
to be half an idiot, or, at least, not to be right in his mind; and,
indeed, his conduct was so very perverse and singular, that I do not
wonder at those who accounted for it in this way." "But surely," said I, "he had some object of pursuit. Perhaps he was
addicted to books." "Far from it. On the contrary, his aversion to school was as great as
his hatred of the plough. He never could get his lessons or bear the
least constraint. He was so much indulged by his mother at home, that
tasks and discipline of any kind were intolerable. He was a perpetual
truant; till, the master one day attempting to strike him, he ran out of
the room and never entered it more. The mother excused and countenanced
his frowardness, and the foolish father was obliged to give way. I do
not believe he had two months' schooling in his life." "Perhaps," said I, "he preferred studying by himself, and at liberty. I
have known boys endowed with great curiosity and aptitude to learning,
who never could endure set tasks, and spurned at the pedagogue and his
rod." "I have known such likewise, but this was not one of them. I know not
whence he could derive his love of knowledge or the means of acquiring
it. The family were totally illiterate. The father was a Scotch peasant,
whose ignorance was so great that he could not sign his name. His wife,
I believe, could read, and might sometimes decipher the figures in an
almanac; but that was all. I am apt to think that the son's ability was
not much greater. You might as well look for silver platters or marble
tables in his house, as for a book or a pen. "I remember calling at their house one evening in the winter before
last. It was intensely cold; and my father, who rode with me, having
business with Sawny Mervyn, we stopped a minute at his gate; and, while
the two old men were engaged in conversation, I begged leave to warm
myself by the kitchen fire. Here, in the chimney-corner, seated on a
block, I found Arthur busily engaged in _knitting stockings_! I thought
this a whimsical employment for a young active man. I told him so, for I
wanted to put him to the blush; but he smiled in my face, and answered,
without the least discomposure, 'Just as whimsical a business for a
young active woman. Pray, did you never knit a stocking?' "'Yes; but that was from necessity. Were I of a different sex, or did I
possess the strength of a man, I should rather work in my field or study
my book.' "'Rejoice that you are a woman, then, and are at liberty to pursue that
which costs least labour and demands most skill. You see, though a man,
I use your privilege, and prefer knitting yarn to threshing my brain
with a book or the barn-floor with a flail.' "'I wonder,' said I, contemptuously, 'you do not put on the petticoat as
well as handle the needle.' "'Do not wonder,' he replied; 'it is because I hate a petticoat
encumbrance as much as I love warm feet. Look there,' (offering the
stocking to my inspection:) 'is it not well done?' "I did not touch it, but sneeringly said, 'Excellent! I wonder you do
not apprentice yourself to a tailor.'