Mary Baldwin College - Bluestocking Yearbook (Staunton, VA)

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Till ' Afary Baldwui Seminary. ■ ' 1 particularly attracted my attention. It was that of a short man resplendent in a suit of Tyrian l)loom, and blue silk breech- es; his face was pock-marked and his attention was completely taken up in the management of the sword at his side, and an enormous gold-headed cane which he carried. Now and again he made desperate efforts at conversation , floundered hopelessly and was silent. Something familiar about the figure made me stop and think, when suddenly I grew scarlet, this man was no other than the Oliver whom I had been so basely wronging when the dwarf had appeared. The spirit broke in upon my embarrassment, and said in casual accents but with an under- tone of malice. By the way, could you tell me Goldsmith ' s exact date? I clutched my hair wildly. O that memory of mine! How I had been crannning dates for examination and now, here in this great emergency, I couldn ' t for the life of me remember, whether Goldsmith was 1720 or 1728. Rack- ing my brains I stood at loss for an answer, confused by the Shaw sprite ' s malicious gaze. Lower and lower sank my head with shame, vague sounds flitted around me, till suddenly — I awoke! The clock striking ten broke the stillness of the old room, over which peace reigned supreme. But one terrible thought flashed through me, as I dragged my dazed conscious- ness back to earth — Bed-time and two more pages of Shaw to learn, while all that remained to me of the past wasted hour, was but, the shadow of a dream. Alice Peyton. IN CHINA. Land in sight, shouted the captain. A great commo- tion followed as the passengers rushed to the side of the large ocean steamer and strained their eyes to catch the first glimpse of China ' s shores. It was a relief, after seeing the vast ex- tent of water for so many days, to look upon the gray line just above the horizon. Oh, won ' t we have a delightful time seeing all these queer sights in China ? Mr. Wood looked down with a smile upon the speaker, inwardly congratulating himself that it was

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20 The Anmial of Marcia, Cato, and the rest. I did my dut) ' , faithfully clapping hits that I didn ' t understand at all, till finally the curtain fell in a wild thunder of applause. The crowd now began rushing in one direction, carrying me with it by main force, and soon halted before one of the boxes. Inside stood a stout man with a genial, benevolent face and shy, awkward manners. He was shaking hands with all, but was evidentl} ' hopelesslj embar- rassed by the congratulations showered upon him. Suddenly like a cyclone some one rushed by me and precipitated himself on the neck of the portly gentleman. Oh, my dear Jo ! thou hast surpassed thj ' self, it was glorious! fine! and I realized that this impulsive person must be the lovable Dick Steele. Raising mj self on tip-toe, I caught a glimpse of the two as they left the house. ' Dick ' s eyes were shining with triumph at the success of his friend Addison, whose neck he still encir- cled with a protecting arm. The dwarf caught me by the dress, and pushing our way through the throng, we once more stood before the Kit-Kat. The lamps illumined with feeble rays the long crooked streets, and I caught sight of a vague figure approaching through the gloom. This person, whoever he might be, took the greatest care to touch each lamp-post as he passed, and once when he missed one, he calmly retraced his steps, touched it and then came on. Arriving before the club he paused, biting his nails in evident indecision. Wy heart gave a leap as I recognized in this uncleanly individual with snuff-colored suit, big hands, and scorched wig, the writer of that famous classic — Johnson ' s Dictionary. The illustrious Samuel was joined by an ac- quaintance, and they immediately plunged into deep conversa- tion, slowly wending their z.y toward the Kit-Kat. As the mighty door swung slowly to on them Johnson ' s voice came floating faintly back — No sir! why sir, you don ' t see your way through the question at all, sir! The spirit and I now strolled through the foggy night air, halting at last before a large house from which came music and the sound of many voices. This we entered and, preceded by powdered footmen, who struck awe to my unsophisticated heart, were ushered into a drawing room, filled with a crowd of chattering society people. The central figure of one group,

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22 The Anmial of he who was taking his bridal tour with the dainty little person standing by his side. Yes, dear, but I am afraid that some of the travelling will be hard for you. Oh, that doesn ' t make any difference, we will have a good time anyway. Gradually the evening shades hid the land from their view, and the chilling breeze compelled the passengers to withdraw to the brilliantly lighted saloon. The next morning, all was hurry and confusion. The great vessel majestically neared the wharf, and the gang-way was lowered. Then came a hasty leave-taking of their fellow passengers and Mr. and Mrs. Wood found themselves on the wharf in the midst of a crowd of white and yellow faces. With difficulty, Mr. Wood found his trunks and passed them through the Custom House. Having decided not to spend their time in the port but in the interior, Mr. Wood secured the services of an interpreter, who soon hired a boat for them. The boat was divided into four parts. In the prow, which like most Chinese boats was square instead of pointed, was a deck large enough for five or six persons to sit com- fortably without fear of falling into the water. Opening upon the deck was a small room, whose ceiling was not quite high enough for a person to stand erect. Two broad seats on either side of the room left only enough space to serve as a passage between the deck and the central cabin. This cabin was ar- ranged for a sitting-room, bed-room, dining-room, and parlor. The furniture although rather scanty, was very suitable, as it consisted of a seat, somewhat larger than a single bed, a table and one stool. On two sides of the room were three small windows, and in the back was a tiny door leading out on a deck, where the boatmen ate, slept, and worked. With great interest, the two travellers studied all these details, and, having acquainted themselves with their sur- roundings, they whiled away their time by looking out of the windows. The extreme flatness of the country impressed them. But their attention was attracted especially by the sight of the peasants carrying their burdens on the ends of poles ; and of the buffalo patiently turning the wheel by which