Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1886-11-24
. "a very remarkable woman.

"A very, uery remarkable woman" the
rector replied, determined to add an adverb
in this very peculiar case.
"Wonderful energy" said the dentist.
"Most wonderful" the rector rejoined, still
on the augmentation principle
"And such face and figure!" the operator
said again
aAh, such face and figure" repeated the
rector, unable to refrain from rubbing his
hands together.
"For her years." the dentist remarked, in
an explanatory voice
20, come, GOMEZ" cried the rector, in tones
Of remonstrance u don't see that. She is
youthful, certainly, and sprightly; but still
women are not old at forty-fve."
aAt ,Dhat fivep asked the dentist, not hay
ing caught the first word.
"Forty-fve," repeated the rector, boldly
and emphatically.
"Seventy-fve, more likely" the blunt den
tist said, now intent on his tool, which was
out of repair.
20, see, see!" cried Rector Brent; "you
are talking Of her mother. We don't know
the mother The mother does not live with
them now"
"Unless Mrs Barbara Temple is herself
and her mother at the same time am not
talking Of. her mother" the dentist an
swered. "That lady is seventy years Of age,
if she is seven."
Saying this with great unconcern, he ad-
vanced to take some further measurement Of
the clergymanG mouth, and observing his
face of horror, he said, reassuringly:
"Don't be uneasy; I am not going to take
anything out"
The rector, gasping, waved him away. So
convulsive were his movements that for
moment the dentist feared that he might have
left one of his minor implements in the
patients mouth, which implement, having
been inadvertently swallowed, was, from
its unaccommodating material and unusual
shape, doing violence to nature in one or
other of the canals which traverse the human
continent.
"Do you mean to say" said the astounded
clergyman at last, "that Mrs. Barbara Tenn
ple-the lady who has three fine daughters-
is more than forty-fve!"
"Before one of those young ladies was
torn," the dentist replied, little thinking how
dreadful were his words, II made front
tooth for Mrs. Temple-not Mrs. Temple
then. She was a remarkably handsome
woman, something over forty-just a tint Of
gray in her hair. Twas not surprised when
heard, few months after, that young Cap
tain Temple was going to marry her. But
,cas little surprised when / heard subse-
quently that his wife was going to present
him with child; and when heard that this
child was followed by second, and that by
a third, I was, I confess, surprised not
little"
"But Mrs. Temple was only about two-and-
twenty when she married the second time"
the rector said, still unable to credit what he
heard.
"My dear sir" the dentist said, laughing,
II have known Mrs. Barbara Temple as
woman for five-and-forty years at the least.
Let me see"-he went through some half-audi-
BILE ca,culation-"I remember her jilting q
man in 11!l5."
"Then," the rector cried, leaping from the
chair and shifting hand against hand till the
room rang, II shall never believe anything in
this world again except the three creeds and
the Ten Commandments. Nothing is to be
trusted-not eyes nor ears nor the human rea-
son. Forty-fve-seventy-fv Tilted a man
in seventeen hundred and ninety-fve! Why,
then, she must remember the French Revolu-
ton! o dear, o dear, how very hot it has be-
Gomez
The reader who Is observant and student
Of his kind must have remarked that nature
now and then fashions q weakly sort Of brain,
which a single glass Of small beer will bemud-
die. In a similar way does that by no means
infalGble workman sometimes turn out
~; IL, {loc #
or disagreeable tidings Rector Brent was for
practical purposes tipsy that afternoon. The
disclosure had got into his head. It is true
that his legs did not stagger, but his reason
did. He did not know his right hand
from his left, and was prepared to
commit any blunder. While his mind
was in chaos of ideas that whirled round
and about like leaves in an autumnal Storm
he said to himself that something must be
DONE An insane something it was which he
fixed upon. He would 60 straight to Mrs.
Temple and tax her with dissimulation. The
excited little gentleman never considered that
the lady Lad not made any statement of her
age with which she could be confronted. Nor
did his preparation Of impending absurdity
stop here. Fully resolved as he had been to
propose to tne "iuoW, dilli dssuleu Us uo hau
felt that she both knew his intention and fav-
orably regarded it, he quite forgot in his
hurry of mind that he had never addressed
her in the way of marriage. So he actually
came before her in the posture of a betrayed
suitor, and, as will be seen, he used language
proper only to that particular part in the hui
man comedy.
But this is leaping from chapter to chapter.
As we close this one let us simply mark our
parson stepping out of his carriage at Mrs.
Barbara Temples door. His breath is hur-
ried, his face is red, his manner is disordered.
And we may be sure that these outward
marks of confusion and annoyance convey
only n very inadequate picture of the state of
bis reasoning faculties. These were, indeed,
in that state of riot and darkness which in
most cases is the acknowledged preliminary
to bedlam.