"If you don't mind," he answered."You see, you misunderstood me, Mr.Fosdick.I didn't mean any more than what I said when I asked you what real objection there was, in your opinion to Albert's marryin' your--er--Madeline, that's her name, I believe.Seems to me the way for us to get to an understandin'--you and I--is to find out just how the situation looks to each of us.When we've found out that, we'll know how nigh we come to agreein' or disagreein'
and can act accordin'.Sounds reasonable, don't it?"Fosdick nodded in his turn."Perfectly," he admitted."Well, ask your questions, and I'll answer them.After that perhaps I'll ask some myself.Go ahead.""I have gone ahead.I've asked one already.""Yes, but it is such a general question.There may be so many objections.""I see.All right, then I'll ask some: What do the lawyers call 'em?--Atlantic? Pacific? I've got it--I'll ask some specific questions.Here's one.Do you object to Al personally? To his character?""Not at all.We know nothing about his character.Very likely he may be a young saint.""Well, he ain't, so we'll let that slide.He's a good boy, though, so far as I've ever been able to find out.Is it his looks?
You've never seen him, but your wife has.Don't she like his looks?""She hasn't mentioned his looks to me."
"Is it his money? He hasn't got any of his own.""We-ell, of course that does count a little bit.Madeline is our only child, and naturally we should prefer to have her pick out a husband with a dollar or so in reserve.""Um-hm.Al's twenty-one, Mr.Fosdick.When I was twenty-one I had some put by, but not much.I presume likely 'twas different with you, maybe.Probably you were pretty well fixed."Fosdick laughed aloud."You make a good cross-examiner, Snow," he observed."As a matter of fact, when I was twenty-one I was assistant bookkeeper in a New Haven broker's office.I didn't have a cent except my salary, and I had that only for the first five days in the week.""However, you got married?"
"Yes, I did.More fool I! If I had known anything, I should have waited five years at least.I didn't have any one to tell me so.
My father and mother were both dead."
"Think you'd have listened to 'em if they had been alive and had told you? However, however, that's all to one side.Well, Albert's havin' no money to speak of is an objection--and a good honest one from your point of view.His prospects here in this business of mine are fair, and he is doin' better at it than he was, so he may make a comf'table livin'--a comf'table South Harniss livin', that is--by and by.""Oh, he is with you, then? Oh, yes, I remember my wife said he worked in your office.But she said more about his being some sort of a--a poet, wasn't it?"For the first time since the interview began the captain looked ill at ease and embarrassed.
"Thunderation!" he exclaimed testily, "you mustn't pay attention to that.He does make up poetry' pieces--er--on the side, as you might say, but I keep hopin' all the time he'll grow out of it, give him time.It 'ain't his regular job, you mustn't think 'tis."The visitor laughed again."I'm glad of that," he said, "both for your sake and mine.I judge that you and I, Snow, are in complete agreement as far as our opinion of poetry and that sort of stuff is concerned.Of course I'm not condemning all poetry, you understand.
Longfellow and Tennyson and the regular poets are all right.You understand what I'm getting at?""Sartin.I used to know 'Down went the R'yal George with all her crew complete,' and a lot more.Used to say 'em over to myself when I first went to sea and stood watch alone nights.But they were different, you know; they--they--""Sure! My wife--why, I give you my word that my own wife and her set go perfectly daffy over chaps who write stuff that rhymes and that the papers are printing columns about.Snow, if this grandson of yours was a genuine press-touted, women's club poet instead of a would-be--well, I don't know what might happen.In that case she might be as strong FOR this engagement as she is now against it."He paused, seeming a bit ashamed of his own heat.Captain Zelotes, however, regarded him with more approval than he had yet shown.
"It's been my observation that women are likely to get off the course chasin' false signals like that," he observed."When a man begins lettin' his hair and his mouth run wild together seems as if the combination had an attraction for a good many women folks.Al keeps his hair cut, though, I'll say that for him," he added."It curls some, but it ain't long.I wouldn't have him in the office if 'twas.""Well, Mr.Fosdick," he continued, "what other objections are they?
Manners? Family and relations? Education? Any objections along that line?""No-o, no; I--well, I don't know; you see, I don't know much about the young fellow.""Perhaps I can help you out.As to manners--well, you can judge them for yourself when you see him.He seems to be in about every kind of social doin's there is down here, and he's as much or more popular with the summer folks than with the year-'rounders.
Education? Well, that's fair to middlin', as I see it.He spent nine or ten years in a mighty expensive boardin' school up in New York State.""Did he? What school?"
The captain gave the name of the school.Fosdick looked surprised.
"Humph! That IS a good school," he said.
"Is it? Depends on what you call good, I cal'late.Al learned a good deal of this and that, a little bit of foreign language, some that they call dead and some that ought to be dead--and buried, 'cordin' to my notion.When he came to me he couldn't add up a column of ten figgers without makin' a mistake, and as for business--well, what he knew about business was about equal to what Noah knew about a gas engine."He paused to chuckle, and Fosdick chuckled with him.
