The Lieutenant's curiosity was but mildly roused at the thought of
meeting the girls. In the lofty ways of youth, he had put marriage out
of his mind. A soldier should not marry. He had given his whole soul to
his country, its flag and its service. He would be agreeable to the
ladies, of course, in deference to his commander and the honor he was
receiving at his hands.
The dinner was a success. The mother was charming and gracious in her
welcome. Something in her ways recalled his own mother.
She extended her hand with a genial smile, and took his breath with her
first remark:
"I've quite fallen in love with you, sir, because of a story I heard of
your West Point career--"
"Not in pity for my fall over the cliff, I hope," he answered gravely.
The mother's voice dropped to a whisper:
"No,--your friend Albert Sydney Johnston told me that you saved a large
part of your allowance and sent it home to your mother--"
The young officer's lips trembled, and he looked away for a moment:
"But she sent it back to me, madam."
"Yes, until you wrote that she hurt you by not keeping it--"
To relieve his evident embarrassment, the mother introduced him in rapid
succession to her daughters, the eldest Anne, the second Sarah Knox, the
youngest Elizabeth.
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