Aunt Julia

“ May felt herself lost in pale endless beauty of which Aunt Julia was a part. Love in the darkness. Love in her own room at night when she was alone and hugged her pillow to her wet face. Through the window she saw the trees in the street leaning together and mingling their odd shadows. An arc light was a blurred circle through the branches and the stiff leaves shaking and dropping occasionally to earth. ”

“ Gabriel glanced down at his aunts and, seeing the large smile on Aunt Julia’s face and the tears which had risen to Aunt Kate’s eyes, hastened to his close. He raised his glass of port gallantly, while every member of the company fingered a glass expectantly, and said loudly:
“Let us toast them all three together. Let us drink to their health, wealth, long life, happiness and prosperity and may they long continue to hold the proud and self-won position which they hold in their profession and the position of honour and affection which they hold in our hearts.” ”

“ Julia made a forward step, and Mittie sprang to the open door, where she stood as if meditating flight.
"Don't get cross, Aunt Julia, 'cause, if you're cross, I won't give it you at all," the child said saucily, and she shook her great mane of flaxen hair, looking out from the bush with soft black eyes. "Mother always says people have got to keep good-tempered, whatever anybody does. It isn't lady-like to be cross, you know."
"Francesca! make her give it to me!" gasped Julia, not daring to advance, lest child and letter should vanish.
Mrs. Trevor laughed. ”

“ Of course she wanted to know where I was going and what I was going to get, and—well, you know Aunt Julia!" She turned toward him with a pretty gesture of impotence, and he smiled, nodding appreciatively. "Of course Aunt Julia is—Aunt Julia, and all that, but she wouldn't understand why I should want an extra set of plates, just because the Bowerses were coming to dinner, after we'd had all that lovely china given to us when we were married. You know, Ellery,"—her tone pleaded for comprehension, "to Aunt Julia a plate is a plate, and she wouldn't see why—"
"Of course. That's all right. ”

“ After which her glance fell upon Mittie's troubled face, and the hall-sobbing question reached her— "O cousin Hermione, have you heard?"
"Heard what?"
"About—about Aunt Julia and Uncle Harvey?"
"I don't understand. What have they done?"
"The horses ran away, and the carriage is all smashed, and—and—poor Emperor is dead," sobbed Mittie. "And mother has gone off to Aunt Julia. And Marjory came here, and stayed with me ever so long—she did, cousin Hermione—and you were so dreadfully late, she couldn't wait any longer. And Aunt Julia is very bad, and Uncle Harvey is hurt too." ”

“ And I hope you’ll congratulate her, girls, though nobody knows better than I what a good housekeeper you’ve lost! I’ll tell you the facts of the matter, and you can judge for yourself. If ever two people were made for each other, those two are your Aunt Jule and me. We love the country, and we love this farm, and what’s very important, we love the same way of living.”
“That’s quite true, Carrie—lyn,” Aunt Julia interposed, the tears in her eyes, but a new decision in her voice. ”

“ OLIVIA. Aunt Julia wants to see the pigs, dear. I wish you'd take her down. I'm rather tired, and your uncle has some business to attend to.
LADY MARDEN. I've always said that you don't take enough exercise, Olivia. Look at me—sixty-five and proud of it.
OLIVIA. Yes, Aunt Julia, you're wonderful.
DINAH. How old would Olivia be if she took exercise?
GEORGE. Don't stand about asking silly questions, Dinah. Your aunt hasn't much time.
BRIAN. May I come, too, Lady Marden?
LADY MARDEN. Well, a little exercise wouldn't do you any harm, Mr. Strange. You're an artist, ain't you? ”

“ Meyner, Marjorie, and Maurice—were staying in Aunt Julia’s house. It was a lonely old house, much too big for that one wicked old lady; it stood outside a North Yorkshire village, just where a grand, dignified old hill drew back its skirts, with a sharp sweep, from contamination with human dwelling-places. Aunt Julia owned quarries at the foot of the hill, and got therefrom more money than was good for her. The time was December, and the moors looked bleak and cold. But it was a comfortable house. Aunt Julia had devoted her [207] many years to the study of comfort—her own comfort. ”

“ You must learn to be self-reliant." Without glancing behind her, Aunt Julia passed quickly up the stairs and disappeared into her room. The door shut.
To May it was as if Aunt Julia knew everything already and put her aside because of what she had done. She was dead and corroded with shame. Lonely, she wandered out into the back yard. The sky, in the late sunshine, was covered with a pale haze like faint blue dust. A shining wind blew May's hair about her face and swirled the long stems of uncut grass. ”

“ Her half-sister, Julia, had the opposite knack of hating nearly everybody. Julia was old and unmarried, and had a wonderful tongue; she dressed perfectly, had snowy hair, a kind face, a sweet smile, gentle ways, and a perfectly venomous disposition. Marjorie did not like her Aunt Julia. She did not like Miss Matthieson much better—a sentimental woman. Miss Dean was too chilly a person to like exactly; Marjorie respected her sometimes. But she did like Maurice, and she liked the music that he was playing now. ”

“ It wasn’t anything your poor foolish Aunt Julia said. It isn’t anything, anyhow, but being up too much and having too much excitement. People get to thinking all kinds of queer things when they’re tired. Mother knows. Mother knows best.”
She had prepared a glass of bromide, and now, lifting Lydia as though she were still the child she felt her to be, she held it to her lips. ”

“ She smiled happily, and a moment later, elevated to the jetty by the boatman, was enveloped, smothered, overwhelmed by Fanny.
“Oh, Aunt Julia!” cried the girl between her kisses. “Just to think you are here at last! Something is actually happening on this old island. Oh, promise me that you will take me away with you.”
“Yes, yes, indeed,” gasped Julia, her spirits unaccountably dashed. “Of course I will, darling. How beautiful you are!”
“Oh, am I? Much good it has done me so far. I’ve just spoken to a young man for the first time in my life, and he has gray hair.” ”

“ She loved Aunt Julia. She wanted Paul to love her.
May wondered if Paul despised her because she never resented it when he kissed her. But the suspicion of his contempt, while it confused her, did no more than emphasize her conviction of helplessness.
Suddenly Paul ceased humming. He leaned toward her and took her hand. She pretended not to notice, but she was happy. Her fingers in his grew cold and covered with sweat. "I think you're unkind to them, Paul." Her voice shook. There was a waiting feeling in her when he touched her. ”

“ No I'll tell you the truth, kid. I wanted you, Julie. You went off and married that—whatever that stage-door johnny's name was—and it broke me all up.'
Aunt Julia was staring at him. She is what they call a well-preserved woman. It's easy to see that, twenty-five years ago, she must have been something quite extraordinary to look at. Even now she's almost beautiful. She has very large brown eyes, a mass of soft grey hair, and the complexion of a girl of seventeen. ”

“ She continued to meditate disapprovingly upon Henry Rooter. "Old thing!" she murmured gloomily, for she had indeed known moments of apprehension concerning the grape-seeds. "Nothing but an old thing—what he is!" she repeated inaudibly.
"Florence," said Mrs. Atwater, "don't you want to slip over to grandpa's and ask Aunt Julia if she has a very large darning needle? And don't forget not to look supercilious when you meet people on the way. Even your grandfather has been noticing it, and he was the one that spoke of it to me. ”

“ Now don't be afraid, but come right out and see them!”
“Why, bless your heart, Lorando, I'm not afraid,” a familiar voice answered; and Aunt Julia appeared before them, cool in blue checked gingham, with an enveloping white apron and familiarly floury hands.
“I'm just beating up some biscuit for tea,” she explained, “but I guess you can shake hands with me, girls “; and as she extended both arms hospitably they saw upon her floured left hand an unmistakable shining gold band.
“Aunt Jule!” they gasped together. “Are you—is it—”
“That's it exactly,” said Cousin Lorando Bean. “She is. ”

“ The motive that prompted this declaration was between aunt Julia and her conscience; but it was a great emotion to the girl to find her entertainer so beautiful. She was tall and exquisitely slim; she had hair more exactly to Rose Tramore’s taste than any other she had ever seen, even to every detail in the way it was dressed, and a complexion and a figure of the kind that are always spoken of as “lovely.” Her eyes were irresistible, and so were her clothes, though the clothes were perhaps a little more precisely the right thing than the eyes. ”

“ You know perfectly well, Aunt Julia, grandpa's just bound to hate this dog, and you know just exactly how he'll act about him."
"No, I don't," said Julia. "Not just exactly."
"Well, anyway, you know he'll behave awful."
"It's probable," the aunt admitted.
"He always does," Florence continued. "He behaves awful about everything I ever heard about. He——"
"I'll go pretty far with you, Florence," Julia interposed, "but we'd better leave him a loophole. You know he's a constant attendant at church and contributes liberally to many good causes." ”

“ There's Newland Sanders and Noble Dill and that old widower, Ridgley, that grandpa hates so, and Mister Clairdyce and George Plum and the two new ones from out of town that Aunt Fanny Patterson said you had at church Sunday morning—Herbert said he didn't like one of 'em's looks much, Aunt Julia. And there's Parker Kent Usher and that funny-lookin' one with the little piece of whiskers under his underlip that Noble Dill got so mad at when they were calling, and Uncle Joe laughed about, and I don't know who all! Anyhow, [Pg 45] there's an awful lot more than three, Aunt Julia. ”

“ One boot stood upright, its limp upper fallen down: the fellow of it lay upon its side. He wondered at his riot of emotions of an hour before. From what had it proceeded? From his aunt’s supper, from his own foolish speech, from the wine and dancing, the merry-making when saying good-night in the hall, the pleasure of the walk along the river in the snow. Poor Aunt Julia! She, too, would soon be a shade with the shade of Patrick Morkan and his horse. ”

“ She had burst into tears, and she sobbed there for a moment, trying hard to recover herself, so as to go downstairs without showing any traces of emotion, passing before the servants and again perhaps before aunt Julia. Mrs. Tramore was too old to cry; she could only drop her knitting and, for a long time, sit with her head bowed and her eyes closed.
Rose had reckoned justly with her aunt Julia; there were no footmen, but this vigilant virgin was posted at the foot of the stairs. She offered no challenge however; she only said: “There’s some one in the parlour who wants to see you.” ”

“ Aunt Julia is very kind, but I could never talk to her as I do to you and Mother. The things that puzzle me most are what it is proper to do and what isn't. For one thing, they say it isn't proper to speak to people unless one has been introduced. ”

“ Julia said, with a rueful laugh. "But it's like being in a bad dream. There is sorrow that you have to bear, don't you know, Aunt Sanna, like crippled children, or somebody's death, or being poor; and then there are these other unnatural trials, that you just rebel against! I say to myself that I'll just be patient and sweet, and go on filling my time with Anna and calls and dinner parties, until Jim comes to his senses and tells me what an angel I am, but it's awfully hard to do it! ”

“ Aunt Julia says it is very rude to stare at a person who has anything odd or unfortunate about him. I have seen this little boy before. I wonder if he will know me!"
"Of course he won't. Come, let us go out on the veranda."
"I am going to speak to Johnny first," said Emma. "Come, Amity."
"She just wants to show how good she is, and that Amity is just such another," said Maud to her companions, as they went out of the room. "She knows she is homely, and she means to try the good dodge." ”

“ I think it's horrid—always suggesting Aunt Julia has some mean motive in everything she does! She's one of the loveliest people on earth! She's too good for you. You just don't understand her and you're jealous."
Paul was amused. "Jealous, am I!" He would not show the child his vexation with her. All at once he was disconcerted to realize that he had become very depressed. He pitied himself. He watched May's legs as she stretched them stiffly before her, thin little legs. ”

“ Then there is your aunt. I wrote to her myself last mail."
[Pg 181]
"Aunt Julia! She is worse than nobody. She is an utter stranger, in reality, a complete woman of the world. She and I never got on; she was always saying hard things about him!"
"Well, you won't be with her long, you know! and you cannot say that you are alone in the world; you know very well that you will not be alone for long, you understand," squeezing her fingers significantly as she spoke.
Helen did understand, and coloured vividly. ”