A secret whisper, intense in its sympathy with the
seceding half of the nation, contemptuously hostile to the
other part, among whom they were at that very moment receiving
Northern education and Northern kindness. The girls even
listened and gathered scraps of conversation that passed in
their hearing, to retail them in letters sent home; "they did
not know," they said, "what might be of use." Later, some of
these letters were intercepted by the General Government and
sent back from Washington to Mme. Ricard. All this told me
much of the depth and breadth of feeling among the community
of which these girls formed a part; and my knowledge of my own
father and mother, aunt Gary and Preston, and others, told me
more. I began to pray that God would not let war come in the
land.
Then there was a day, in January I think, when a bit of public
news was read out in presence of the whole family; a thing
that rarely happened. It was evening, and we were all in the
parlour with our work. I forget who was the reader, but I
remember the words.
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