A WALTONVILLE COMMENCEMENT AND AN INQUISITIVE STRANGER
The railroad, a fifty-mile spur of the Baltimore & Northern, ran to
Waltonville, but not beyond it. Miles away across the beautiful valley
which lay spread before Mrs. Bent's little house, the main line was
dimly discernible by the long trail of white smoke visible now and then
against the blue hills, and, when the wind blew from the west, by the
faint, distant roar of flying trains. The officials of the B. & N. had
originally intended that it should pass through Waltonville, and the
reason for their change of mind was an unusual one. The railroad
engineer brought his family to Waltonville for the summer, and
Waltonville received them as it did all unintroduced strangers. The
engineer and his wife and children did not exist for Waltonville.
Therefore, the railroad swerved far away to another village which was
reported as larger, more important, and approached with less expense,
and in the course of a few years Waltonville was made the terminus of a
branch road leaving the main line at a junction fifty miles away.
Its loss was, however, not unmixed with gain; it remained as it was,
unaspiring, peaceful, still, and beautiful. The students, the
Commencement visitors, the agents for commercial firms, the few persons
haled to court, traveled from the east and south on the B. & N. Those
who came from other directions either made a wide détour by rail or
approached, as they had approached from time immemorial, by horseback or
carriage.
The last train on the eve of Commencement Day had been late. There was
good reason for delay, traffic being heavy. Beside the usual travelers
from village to village, there were at least fifty fathers and mothers
and sisters of college boys, and there were four traveling men--in this
fashion, at least, the conductor classified his passengers. Starting was
long deferred; first the main-line train was behind time; then the
engine of the Waltonville train moved slowly, as though it felt in every
wheel and valve its heavy burden. The traveling men scolded; the staid
fathers and mothers and pretty sisters sat quietly, as though this slow
journey were a not unsuitable preparation for the solemnities of the
morrow. The lateness of the train would be one more interesting detail
of a delightful experience. In a few days the doubtful fame of the "nine
o'clock" would have spread far beyond Waltonville.
There was one passenger whom the conductor was not able to classify, a
tall man who wore a beard sharply pointed in a new fashion, young, but
how young it was hard to say. He was handsomely dressed, and his bags
were of a different pattern from the square leather cases of the agents
and the unwieldy and bulging satchels carried by other travelers.
He rode in the smoking-car and smoked steadily. Once or twice he rose
and walked up and down the aisle, complaining of the roughness of his
progress. When a passenger took the seat in front of him, he leaned
forward and made comment as though communion with a fellow being were
suddenly imperative.
"This is a beastly road!"
The newcomer turned toward him, blinking, as though his mind had to
exert itself to understand. He regarded the pointed beard and the
handsome tie near him with some astonishment.
"What did you say?"
"I said this was a beastly road. I can apply still other adjectives."
"I guess it's good enough for those that have to travel on it," answered
the mild voice. "I myself don't travel much. The testimony of our church
is rather against traveling."
The handsome young man sat back with a muttered "Humph!" He was not in
the least interested in churches or testimonies or those who thought of
them seriously; his mind was occupied with certain literary problems
which he considered important. At present he was engaged in a quest
which he expected confidently would make him famous.
For fifteen minutes he stared out the window, until the darkening pane
gave back only his own countenance. Then he turned in his seat and spoke
to the man behind him. This man was very friendly; he explained at once
that he was going to Waltonville to see his only son graduate and that
mother and the girls were in the other car. The sending of his son to
college had been a heavy expense, but the boy had justified all his
hopes and would be able to pay back into the family treasury the amount
which he had received.
"My name is Illington," said he in conclusion.
Instead of giving his name in return, the young man asked a question.
"Are you acquainted in Waltonville?"
"A little." Mr. Illington shifted his position so that he might talk
more comfortably. He thought of offering to sit with the young man.
"Did you ever hear of any one named Basil Everman?"
The answer came with a kindly, frowning effort to remember.
"No and yes. The name sounds familiar."
"Do you know whether such a person lives in Waltonville now?"
"No, sir, I don't."
"Did you _really_ ever know of such a person?"
The kindly man shook his head. "I can't say that I _really_ did. But the
name sounds--"
The young man turned away as if to say, "That will do." He lifted to the
seat beside him the smaller of his bags and opened it. Upon the top of a
pile of fine, smoothly folded clothes lay three old magazines, bound in
pale covers which were now dull with age. In each one he opened to an
anonymous article. "The Roses of Pæstum," an essay, was one; "Bitter
Bread," a story, was another. The third was a long poem, "Storm." He
opened them, evidently without any intention of exhibiting them to his
neighbor, but with the purpose of furnishing some reassurance to
himself. Having looked at them earnestly one after the other, he
returned them to the bag, closed it, and set it on the floor. Once more
he appealed to the man behind him.
"You're sure you don't know anything about any Evermans?"
"I'm afraid I don't, sir. But--"
The young man took a little notebook from his pocket and wrote in it a
few words which his neighbor, curiously peering over his shoulder, could
see plainly. "Approach to shrine. A prophet in his own country." The
inscription made the observer feel a vague mortification.
"You might ask the conductor," he suggested.
"Thank you," was the solemn answer. Then, in slightly uneven script, the
stranger added to his notes, "Ask the conductor," and placed an
exclamation point after the words.
The conductor, approaching from the rear, was halted and the question
put.
"Did you ever hear the name Basil Everman?"
"Never." The conductor also felt a kindly unwillingness to give a
negative answer. "But I've only been on this run fifteen years, and my
home's at the other end. But you can ask the brakeman; he lives in
Waltonville."
The young man's notebook was still in his hand. He wrote in it, "Ask the
brakeman about B. E., the incomparable," and followed it with three
exclamation points.
The brakeman answered that he, too, was ignorant of Basil Everman. He
perched on the arm of the inquirer's seat. He said that he lived in
Waltonville because it was cheaper and his wife liked to keep chickens.
He gave various other reasons why his wife liked the country. He
preferred the city.
When the brakeman had gone, Mr. Illington began to prophesy the probable
outcome of the next presidential election, and the young man, making
some incoherent excuse, rose to go into the other car. But the other car
was crowded, and he had to come back, heavy bags in hand. When Mr.
Illington, not in the least offended, asked him whether he was a
traveling man, he answered so gruffly that he was left in peace.
In spite of the fact that this was the eve of Commencement and that
numerous fathers and mothers were to be its guests, the Waltonville
Hotel sent no porters to the station to meet the train. It was taken for
granted that those persons who were able to travel were able also to
carry their hand luggage. Those who had trunks or sample cases sent
Black Jerry down from the hotel after they had registered.
The young man knew nothing of old Jerry, so he carried his many changes
of clothing, his silver-mounted toilet articles, and his books in his
own hand. He stepped from the train almost before it stopped, anxious to
secure for himself as good accommodations as were to be had, and asked
of the amused station agent the location of the best hotel. The agent
looked after his rapidly disappearing figure and winked at the
baggage-man as if to say, "I wonder what he will think of it when he
sees it!"
When the young man reached the hotel, having stumbled and almost fallen
on protruding bricks in the uneven pavement, the expression of weariness
on his face changed to one of disgust. The hotel was small; its
furnishings were poor and rickety; it was not clean; and it was
saturated throughout with the odors of stale beer and stale cooking. To
engage a room one must enter the bar-room and endure the scrutiny of
half a dozen pairs of curious eyes peering out of dull, bloated faces.
The young man set his bags down heavily and asked for the best room in
the house.
The landlord looked at him with a sour smile.
"They're all pretty much alike."
"Any with baths?"
"No, sir."
"Isn't this a college town?"
"I believe they call it that."
"Humph!" said the stranger. Then he wrote his name, "Evan Utterly, New
York," in a square hand in the untidy, blotted register and the landlord
gave him a key to Number Five.
"First room at the head of the stairs. You can find it. Name's on the
door."
"Thank you," said Mr. Utterly. He intended to convey stern reproof by
his tone so that the landlord should burn with mortification. But his
tone was not reproving, it was exclamatory. His eyes had lifted to a
picture hung above the dingy mirror behind the bar. It was a poor old
English print, representing the arrival of the stage at an inn door.
From the stage window leaned the head of a young girl, who looked with a
frightened expression at the coarse face of the landlord, while a little
dog barked furiously at the horses. The poor picture seemed to have some
powerful fascination for the stranger. His tone became eager.
"Did you ever hear of any one named Basil Everman?" he asked.
"Never."
"How long have you been here?"
"Ten years."
"Did you ever hear of any one by the name of Everman?"
The landlord turned to wait upon the first of the advancing fathers.
"Never," said he.
Into the face of one of the loafers came a startled look. This was the
lawyer, Bates, who had dulled a fine mind by dissipation and of whom
little Eleanor Bent lived in terror. The mention of Basil Everman seemed
to amaze him. His brow was for an instant furrowed as though he tried to
concentrate all his powers of mind upon some long-past circumstance, but
he was not able, at this hour of the day, to concentrate upon anything,
and presently the fumes of liquor and tobacco and the warm summer air
sent him back into the state of somnolence from which he had been
roused.
Utterly found a hard, uneven bed in an unaired room and spent a
wretchedly uncomfortable night filled with foolish dreams of impossible
quests. So depressed was he with the last search, which seemed to
extend over years and years and lead nowhere, that his first act upon
waking was to reach out and take in his hand the thin old magazines
which lay in his bag on a chair near by and open to "Bitter Bread."
"It was late afternoon when she reached her destination," he read.
"There, instead of the eager face of Arnold, she saw looking from the
inn door the cruel face of Corbin; there, instead of Arnold's welcoming
voice, she heard the sharp bark of Corbin's unfriendly dog."
Having read the two sentences, which seemed to restore his confidence,
Utterly rose, dressed himself in white flannel, and went down to the
dining-room.
Breakfast was, as was to be expected, poor. But among the mildly excited
persons with whom the room was filled, Utterly was at first the only one
who complained. Mothers and fathers were nervous with fear that John and
Harry might not do well; sisters watched, bright-eyed, for brothers and
the friends of brothers. Mr. Illington stopped at Utterly's end of one
of the long, untidy tables to bid him good-morning. He called him now by
his name, having consulted the hotel register, and offered in friendly
fashion to introduce him to "the girls."
There was, Utterly said to himself, but one person with a mind in the
room. The person whom he thus distinguished was Dr. Green, who came late
and brought with him the strong odor of drugs which betrayed his
profession. He moved his chair as though he would have liked to relieve
a black mood by tossing it above his head, and perhaps by slamming it
down upon the floor. His quick motions and his bright eyes indicated an
abundance of physical and mental energy, neither of which had, perhaps,
full exercise. Having waited long for a late-appearing housekeeper, he
had at last sped down the street to the hotel. Now he ordered breakfast
sharply and impatiently.
Old Jerry, waiter as well as man-of-all-work, obeyed him spryly with
many a chuckled "Yes, doctor; yes, mars'r," which indicated that the
doctor was a less formidable person than he seemed.
"That good-for-nothin' Jinnie ought to go to Geo'gia trade, mars'r,
that's where she ought to be sent a-flyin'. Didn't get you no breakfus!
Yes, mars'r, these is meant for cakes." Old Jerry looked toward the
kitchen. "That one out there's like Jinnie, mars'r. The wimmen, they is
all alike, seems to me."
The doctor looked as though he agreed with Jerry's humorous disgust with
the sex. Utterly, watching him, grew more certain that here at last was
promise of intelligence. He might have been less sure of the doctor's
intelligence could he have seen the complete turn of head and body which
followed his own exit.
"These," said Dr. Green, "go clad as the angels."
Jerry bent to pick up the doctor's napkin, and once bent to the floor,
found it difficult to rise, so convulsed was he.
"Yes, mars'r, that am so."
Stopping at the bar on his way from the dining-room, Utterly asked the
hotel-keeper the name of the teacher of English at the college. The
hotel-keeper regarded his white apparel with unconcealed astonishment,
and shook his head.
"Can't tell you. Don't believe you can do any business out there this
morning. They're having their graduating exercises. Is your line books?"
"Yes," answered Utterly. "That's my line."
His disgust with the ignorance of those whom he had encountered and his
recollection of his uncomfortable night faded as he walked, an hour
later, out toward the campus. Here was Waltonville, after all, as he
imagined it, and in order that such a Waltonville might be preserved, it
was endurable that some discomforts should be preserved also.
Here was a broad street, sloping up to the college gates; here were tall
trees and broad lawns, and everywhere masses of roses and honeysuckle
which one had a right to expect in this latitude and longitude in June.
He looked with admiration at the graceful curve of the black railing
which protected those who went up the steps to Dr. Green's office, and
stopped stock-still when he came to Thomasina's gateway and saw her
straight flagged walk and her flowers, and said, "By Jove!" when he
heard the music of the bees in the blossoming honey locust. The campus
was surrounded by a brick wall with high, thick, brick posts, all
covered with ivy which was now sending out clean, bright little shoots.
The old buildings were covered so that they seemed to be constructed of
green vines.
In the distance the academic procession was approaching, the gowned and
hooded shepherds of the flock leading, the boys and girls, similarly
gowned, following sedately after. From the chapel toward which they
advanced came the sound of music, a festival march well played on a
sweet-toned old organ. A bit of poetry came to Utterly's mind:
"Who are these coming to the sacrifice?...
What little town by river or sea shore,
Or mountain-built with peaceful citadel,
Is emptied of its folk this pious morn?"
"How delightfully Attic!" he said to himself, not without satisfaction
in the knowledge which made this comment possible.
The various members of the procession were not so set upon the
significance of their orderly march that they did not notice the
stranger as he stood watching them. All the professors saw him and
envied him a little his youth and his elegance, and were at the same
time a little amused. Eleanor Bent saw him and flushed, then grew very
white. Here, perhaps, was the stranger who was to call upon her! Her
heart was wax, as yet unwritten upon, but this day plastic and ready for
a lover's signature. She was, at the thought that Utterly might be the
coming messenger of "Willard's Magazine," at once excited and alarmed.
She was so ignorant--what should she say to so imposing and elegant a
person?
Seeing that the body of the chapel was filled, Utterly climbed one of
the two broad staircases which led to the rear gallery, and from there
looked down upon the bonnets of the ladies and upon the flower-decked
platform on which faculty and graduates were now taking their places.
There were two other occupants of the gallery--at the organ a handsome
boy, who was evidently a senior, since his black gown lay on the bench
beside him, and the same tall gentleman redolent of drugs who had
breakfasted at the hotel.
The boy was playing vigorously. His touch was clear and true, and
Utterly, who possessed, along with many other serviceable and
unserviceable bits of knowledge, an acquaintance with organ music,
listened with surprise to his spirited and accurate work. His eyes then
passed from one member of the faculty to another, resting longest upon
President Lister, short, dark-skinned, and Jewish in appearance, and
upon a tall, slender, smooth-shaven man whom he guessed to be the
Professor of English. In these two, he decided, after contemplating them
and their colleagues, was concentrated the intellectual strength of
Walton College.
When the processional was finished, the player slid off the organ bench,
slipped into his gown, straightened his shoulders, whispered a "Hello!"
at the doctor, and left the gallery. A much smaller boy emerged,
red-faced, from the interior of the organ, and to him Utterly signaled a
demand for a programme.
During the long prayer, he read the list of graduates. The first name
upon which his eye fell, that of Eleanor Bent, startled him so that he
almost exclaimed aloud, and for a few moments he continued to stare at
it as though he were not quite certain that he read aright. But the name
was unmistakable, as well as the young woman's part on the
programme--"Eleanor Bent, Valedictory." Utterly slid along the bench
toward the doctor, who was much surprised to find him close by when he
lifted his head after the prayer. There was a strange, excited look in
the doctor's eyes. At the programme which Utterly held out to him he
glared almost savagely. He did not like Utterly's looks; he was an
effeminate dandy.
Utterly had drawn a heavy line under Eleanor Bent's name, and he pointed
to it now with his pencil.
"Is that a _young_ lady?" he whispered rather stupidly.
The doctor looked at him with unfriendly astonishment.
"Naturally!"
"I mean--is there another person of that name in the town?--an aunt,
perhaps, or--"
"No," said Dr. Green, "there isn't."
"And here!" Mr. Utterly's pencil moved to another point. "'Richard
Everman Lister.' Do you know anything of him?"
The doctor jerked his head toward the organ. "That was he."
"Did you ever hear of a Basil Everman?"
It was impossible to tell whether this jerk of head signified impatience
or negation. Utterly pointed again to Richard's name. He did not
observe or choose to observe that the doctor objected to this whispered
questioning.
"Do you know anything about his relatives?"
"I know them all."
"And there is no Basil Everman?"
The doctor turned his shoulder now with an unmistakable intention to say
no more. As Utterly slid back to his place, he saw an old catalogue in
another pew and leaned forward to secure it. Among the former presidents
of the college was Richard Everman, who was also Professor of Greek.
Basil--who but a Professor of Greek would give his son such a name? Mr.
Utterly glared at Dr. Green. Was this foolish doctor trying to conceal
something from him, something which he had every right to know? He had a
moment's silly suspicion that the conductor and the hotel-keeper and the
brakeman and the doctor might have conspired against him.
Putting the old catalogue into his pocket, he gave his attention to the
speaker, that same bright-eyed, blond Richard who was beginning his
"_Auditores_, _Comites_, _Professores_," in a clear voice and with a
smiling face. Utterly smiled back, partly in response and partly at the
old-fashioned English pronunciation, antiquated even to him, though he
was years older than these children.
Between Richard Lister and Eleanor Bent came ten speakers, each
addressing a tense and motionless audience, sympathetic with aspiring
youth, sympathetic in turn with each attentive parent and sister, and
breathing audible sighs with each concluding bow. Of all the boys only
Richard was composed. The only girl in the class beside Eleanor, Cora
Scott, made no impression upon Utterly except that she was a frail
little thing, what color and prettiness she might have overshadowed,
blotted out by the black gown in which she was swathed. Of them all, no
one failed, but there were slight hesitations and cheeks red with
embarrassment. The topics which they discussed might well have excited
older heads than theirs. Especially were the theories of Mr. Darwin,
penetrating after many years to Walton College, now torn, shredded, cast
to the winds.
But Eleanor Bent--here was no blotting-out, but rather a heightening of
vivid beauty. Utterly, who did not have an enthusiastic temperament,
said to himself that he had never seen a more charming girl. She walked
well in her approach to the center of the platform, she bowed
gracefully, she had, he decided, the most wonderful gray eyes he had
ever seen, and the most musical, low voice. She was in a sense his
discovery also, and this evening he would talk to her and learn just how
remarkable she was.
Her address was merely an elaborate farewell, flowery, perhaps, but
appropriately and becomingly flowery, matching well the roses and the
honeysuckle and the Southern inflections of her sweet young voice.
While the degrees were being conferred, Utterly consulted again the
catalogue in his pocket. The name of the teacher of English was Scott,
Henry Harrington Scott; was certainly the smooth-faced gentleman. He
lived probably in one of the pleasant houses on the campus with their
domestic resemblance to the classic architecture of the large buildings.
He looked with interest at Richard Everman Lister when he returned to
his place on the organ bench for the recessional. Richard's countenance
was frank and open; there had descended to him, if he were at all
related to this mysterious Basil, no outward trace, at least, of the
interesting qualities of mind and soul which distinguished the author of
"Bitter Bread" and "Roses of Pæstum."