F. Colburn (Francis Colburn) Adams
Chapter 52
of the St. Cecilia, as is also the prettiest and most popular
unmarried parson. And the parson being excellent material for
scandal, Mother Rumor is sure to have a dash at him. Nor does this
very busy old lady seem over-delicate about which of the belles she
associates with the parson, so long as the scandal be fashionable
enough to afford her a good traffic.
There is continually coming along some unknown but very
distinguished foreigner, whom the society adopts as its own,
flutters over, and smothers with attentions, and drops only when it
is discovered he is an escaped convict. This, in deference to the
reputation of the St. Cecilia, we acknowledge has only happened
twice. It has been said with much truth that the St. Cecilia's worst
sin, like the sins of its sister societies of New York, is a passion
for smothering with the satin and Honiton of its assemblies a
certain supercilious species of snobby Englishmen, who come over
here, as they have it (gun and fishing-rod in hand), merely to get
right into the woods where they can have plenty of bear-hunting,
confidently believing New York a forest inhabited by such animals.
As for our squaws, as Mr. Tom Toddleworth would say, (we shall speak
more at length of Tom!) why! they have no very bad opinion of them,
seeing that they belong to a race of semi-barbarians, whose sayings
they delight to note down. Having no society at home, this species
of gentry the more readily find themselves in high favor with ours.
They are always Oxonians, as the sons of green grocers and
fishmongers are sure to be when they come over here (so Mr.
Toddleworth has it, and he is good authority), and we being an
exceedingly impressible people, they kindly condescend to instruct
us in all the high arts, now and then correcting our very bad
English. They are clever fellows generally, being sure to get on the
kind side of credulous mothers with very impressible-headed
daughters.
There was, however, always a distinguished member of the St. Cecilia
society who let out all that took place at its assemblies. The