The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-12-02
TALES OF ALL COUNTRIES.
MRS. GENERAL TALBOYS.
ny ANTHONY TRoLLoPE.

why Mrs. General Talboy. first made up her
mind TO pass the winter Of 1859 At Rome !
never clearly understood. To myself she en-.
planned her purposes, soon after her arrival a,
the Eternal City, by declaring, in her own en-.
thnslsstic manner, that she was inspired by q
burning desire 10 drink fresh At the still livius
fountains OF classical poetry and sentiment.
hut | always thought that there was something
more than this in II. Classical poetry and scntl-
inent were doubtless very dear TO her; but 40
also, | imagine, were the substantial comforts
of Hardover Lodge, the Generals house in
Berkshire; and I do not think that .hs would
have emigrated for the winter had there not
been some slight domestic misunderstanding.
Let this, however, be fully made clear. that
such Misunderstanding, II 1t existed, must have
been simply an affair Of temper. No imp-o-
priety Of conduct has, I am very sure, ever been
imputed 10 the lady. The General. as all the
world knows, Is hot; and Mrs. Talboys. when
tho sweet rivers Of her enthusiasm are unfed by
congenial waters, can, I believe. make herself
disagreesble.
But be this ~ II may, In November, 1860. Mrs.
Tslboys came among us English at Rome, and
soon succeeded In obtaining for herself q COM
Portable footing In our society. We all thought
her moro remarkable for her mental attributes
than for physical perfection; but. nevertheless,
bne was, IN nCF own way, n blRntly WOmhn. Sno
had no special brilliance, either of eye or COM
plexion. such as would produce sudden flames in
susceptible hearts; nor did she seem to demand
instant homage by the form and step of q god
dess; but we found her TO be a good looking wo-
man OF some thirty or thirty three years Of age,
with soft peach-like c~heeks-rather too like those
of chorub, with sparkling eyes which were hard
~ large enough, with good teeth, q white fore
head. q dimpled chin, and q full bust. Such,
outwardly, was Mrs. General Talboys. The de-
s~cription Of the inward woman Is the purport to
which these few pages will be devoted.
There are two qualities to which the best OF
mankind are much subject. which are nearly
related TO each other, and as to which the world
has not yet decided whether they are to be
classed among the good or evil attributes Of our
nature. Men and women are under the infu-
ence Of them both. but men oftenest undergo
the former. and women tho latter. They are
ambition and enthusiasm. Now Mrs Talboys
was an enthusiastic woman.
As TO ambition, generally as the world agrees
with Mark Antony in stigmatizlng Il a. q griev-
GUS fault. i am myself clear that IL 10 q virtue;
but with ambition at present 70 have no con-
Germ. Enthusiasm. also, as I think, leans to vir-
tues side; or, at least, II It be . fault. OF all
faults 1t Is the p~rettiest- But then, to partake
at all OF virtue, or even to be In any degree pref
~. the enthusiasm must be true.
Bad coin IL known frum good by the ring Of IL,
and 90 10 bad enthusiasm. Let the coiner be
ever 50 clever at his art. in the icolnins Of en-
thusiasm the sound OF true gold can never be
impaired to the false metal. And I doubt
whether the cleverest she In the world can make
false enthusiasm palatable TO the taste Of man.
TO the taste OF any woman the enthusiasm Of
another woman Is never very palatable.
We understood at Rome that Mrs. Talboys
had q considerable family-fouro or five children,
we were told; but she brought with her only
one daughter. Q little girl about twelve years
of age. She had torn herself asunder, as she
told me, from the younger nurslings of her
heart. and had left them to the care Of q de-
voted female attendant, whose love was all
but maternal. And then she said . word or
two about the General, In terms which made
me almost think that this quasi-maternal love
extended Itself beyond the children. The idea,
however, was q mistaken one. arising from
the strength Of her lang ,age. TO which
I was then unacc lstomed. I have since
become aware that nothing can be more decorous
than old Mrs. Upton. the excellent head nurse
Ut Hsrdover Lodge; and no gentleman more
discreet In his conduct than Gen. Talboys.
And I may rs well here declare. also. that
there could be no more %virtuous woman than
the Generals wife. Her marriage vow was TO
her paramount to all other vows and bonds
whatever. The Generals honor was quite safe
when he sent her off to Rome by herself; and he
no doubt knew that 1t was so. Ii robtr ct 9s
.srau. - -, az - Nc u
la wa u..d 90 go. ~. -. 80 ~ N".no
900 80 ,mnr,n.,.,. a. a~ nv iopSs.
,h. -, annar"un |"n a'
chilly attached herself 10 m. marriaee tie .hs
would constantly speak of Il as by no mean.
necessarily binding ON others: and. ~yirtuou.
herself as any grimm of propriety. she con-
stantly patronized. at any rate. the theory N
inhdelity in her neighbors. She was very eager
In dsnouncing the prejudices of the English
world, declaring hat she had found existence
among them TO be no longer possible for herself.
She was hot against the stern unforRiysness of
British matrons. and equally eager in repro-
batting the stif conyentionalities OF a religion
In which she said that none of its ~yotaries had
faith, though they ali allowed themselves TO be
enslayed.
We had n, ,hs, :, Pom. ~
IHh.