Travilla. She was a great
heiress; has peculiar notions, rather puritanical; but is extremely
agreeable for all that."
"Could you give me an introduction?"
She shook her head. "I must beg you to excuse me."
"But why?"
"Ah, captain, do you not know that you have the reputation of being a
naughty man? not very; but then, as I have told you, the mother is very
strict and puritanical in her ideas; the father is the same, and I should
only offend them without doing you any good; the girls would not dare, or
even so much as wish to look at or speak to you."
Growing red and angry, the captain stammered out something about being no
worse than ninetenths of the rest of the world.
"Very true, no doubt," she said; "and please understand that you are not
tabooed by me. I'm not so strict. But perhaps," she added laughing, "it
may be because I've no daughters to be endangered by young fellows who are
as handsome and fascinating as they are naughty." He bowed his
acknowledgments, then, as a noble looking young man was seen to approach
the group with the manner of one on a familiar footing inquired, "Who is
that fellow that seems so much at home with them?"
"His name is Leland; Lester Leland.
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