OCR Text |
Show 85 She upbraided me for not in my conversation with President Young defending Flora better by telling more of Theodor's faults-said that Flora feels the same. I am sorry that they feel so, but I did what I thought was my duty. Maggie's feelings were no consideration but she doesn't seem to realize its I spoke of Flora-extolled her virtues as a wife and as a faithful saint-but as for Theodor I said nothing-and that is why they censure me. President Young is a man of strong prejudices. When he once forms an opinion it is hard to change him, almost an impossibility, and I have seen so many suffer from the effects of reports made to him that it makes me consider before I say anythng derogatory of any person's character. Many have been made to feel for years the bitterness of his unfriendliness caused by the reports of inimical persons. I know I feel if a person errs-if we can do nothing to reclaim him, we should at least not push him down.'9 This instance is unique for another reason: Ellis seldom in her writing descends to the chatty female pattern of she said and he said and she did this and he did that. Perhaps the cutting edge of her assessment of her benefactor is sharpened by her protracted illness and its attendant down-dragging effect. |