to nothing. No, really. You have no home, unless it’s with your father or your husband. If you can’t get a husband, when you grow old and your parents are gone, you must live with a relative and make yourself useful, as it’s not likely you’ll ever have any fortune. Females seldom inherit, you know; your money usually comes to you in a settlement when you wed. No, there’s no place for a woman alone here. Whatever do you do in America if you aren’t married?”
Faith hesitated. This was difficult. Though she’d thought the problem through logically time and again, it was never easy to explain. None of her friends who were already wedded agreed. Grandfather refused to believe it, which was why she was here. And she’d tried to explain it to Will forever, but he simply didn’t comprehend at all.
“It’s not a great deal different in America,” Faith began, but then said impatiently, “Well, no, it’s not different at all, yet. But it will be. No, truly, because we pride ourselves on being daring and modern in all our ideas, at least, we aren’t quite so ... rigid in our customs as you are here. That is to say, and I’ve discussed this with my grandfather at length, someday I hope to help him run the family business. Ah, there, you see? You’re horrified, I can see it in your face. But there’s one whopping big difference between us right there, for we see nothing wrong with trade, and since I’ve come here I’ve noticed that you don’t think any gentleperson should engage in it. But at home, we think everyone should, and if they make a great deal of money, well, more to their credit. Here, you don’t even like to talk about how you make your fortunes at all.
“Though I have noticed,” Faith continued on a smile, as she paced in front of Lady Mary like a lecturer, “that everyone whispers about how much money they think the other fellow’s got.”
Lady Mary smiled at that too, remembering the hushed conferences one so often overheard among the mamas and dowagers at every social occasion as they rated prospective suitors by their birth, appearance, and funds, although not necessarily in that order.
“I’ve a head for business. My grandfather is in shipping and trade, and I find it fascinating. He has a colliery, part ownership in several vessels, both river - and ocean-going, and deals in tobacco and cotton going to Europe, and china and linen coming from it. And he has no son, only my mama, who doesn’t care for money in the least, she only likes to spend it.”
Here both girls grinned, and then laughed together, thinking of similar females they both knew. As they laughed, Lady Mary thought with wonder at how nice Faith actually was, not at all alien or prickly as she’d thought she was until now, and Faith thought all at once about how sweet young Mary was, not a bit stiff or excessively mannered as she’d believed her to be all this time.
“My father’s in business, too, but he lives down in Virginia,” Faith said quickly, “and hasn’t the slightest interest in anything but his plantation and his crops. So who’s to carry on the family trade? Will’s a partner, and Grandfather has others. But who will carry on in the family tradition? Well, I think I will.
“Because,” she said at last, coming to the hardest part, “I don’t care to marry. My parents, you see, dislike each other enormously. They haven’t lived together for years. And for all he talks of marriage, I note Grandfather has been content to live a widower since before I was born . So why,” Faith asked militantly, “should I wish to be told what to do, to be ordered about, and to spend my entire life at someone else’s beck and call?
“After all,” Faith insisted, wheeling about, hands on her hips, facing Lady Mary as though the girl were accusing her instead of sitting wide-eyed listening to what appeared to be her idea of blasphemy, “you were right. It may not be easy to remain unwed in either of our
Faith hesitated. This was difficult. Though she’d thought the problem through logically time and again, it was never easy to explain. None of her friends who were already wedded agreed. Grandfather refused to believe it, which was why she was here. And she’d tried to explain it to Will forever, but he simply didn’t comprehend at all.
“It’s not a great deal different in America,” Faith began, but then said impatiently, “Well, no, it’s not different at all, yet. But it will be. No, truly, because we pride ourselves on being daring and modern in all our ideas, at least, we aren’t quite so ... rigid in our customs as you are here. That is to say, and I’ve discussed this with my grandfather at length, someday I hope to help him run the family business. Ah, there, you see? You’re horrified, I can see it in your face. But there’s one whopping big difference between us right there, for we see nothing wrong with trade, and since I’ve come here I’ve noticed that you don’t think any gentleperson should engage in it. But at home, we think everyone should, and if they make a great deal of money, well, more to their credit. Here, you don’t even like to talk about how you make your fortunes at all.
“Though I have noticed,” Faith continued on a smile, as she paced in front of Lady Mary like a lecturer, “that everyone whispers about how much money they think the other fellow’s got.”
Lady Mary smiled at that too, remembering the hushed conferences one so often overheard among the mamas and dowagers at every social occasion as they rated prospective suitors by their birth, appearance, and funds, although not necessarily in that order.
“I’ve a head for business. My grandfather is in shipping and trade, and I find it fascinating. He has a colliery, part ownership in several vessels, both river - and ocean-going, and deals in tobacco and cotton going to Europe, and china and linen coming from it. And he has no son, only my mama, who doesn’t care for money in the least, she only likes to spend it.”
Here both girls grinned, and then laughed together, thinking of similar females they both knew. As they laughed, Lady Mary thought with wonder at how nice Faith actually was, not at all alien or prickly as she’d thought she was until now, and Faith thought all at once about how sweet young Mary was, not a bit stiff or excessively mannered as she’d believed her to be all this time.
“My father’s in business, too, but he lives down in Virginia,” Faith said quickly, “and hasn’t the slightest interest in anything but his plantation and his crops. So who’s to carry on the family trade? Will’s a partner, and Grandfather has others. But who will carry on in the family tradition? Well, I think I will.
“Because,” she said at last, coming to the hardest part, “I don’t care to marry. My parents, you see, dislike each other enormously. They haven’t lived together for years. And for all he talks of marriage, I note Grandfather has been content to live a widower since before I was born . So why,” Faith asked militantly, “should I wish to be told what to do, to be ordered about, and to spend my entire life at someone else’s beck and call?
“After all,” Faith insisted, wheeling about, hands on her hips, facing Lady Mary as though the girl were accusing her instead of sitting wide-eyed listening to what appeared to be her idea of blasphemy, “you were right. It may not be easy to remain unwed in either of our
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