Stephen Vincent
What does Daniel Webster make the devil do to repay them?
From the book called “The Devil and Daniel Webster”, by Stephen Vincent Benet
young man, i’ve helped you with two other questions like this and the answers you seek are so easily found, If You Read the short story. you’re not illiterate. you can type, you can read.
Stop being lazy.
The stranger twisted and wriggled, but he
couldn’t get out of that grip. “Come, come, Mr.
Webster,” he said, smiling palely. “This sort of
thing is ridic-ouch!-is ridiculous. If you’re
worried about the costs of the case, naturally, I’d
be glad to pay-”
“And so you shall!” said Dan’l Webster, shak-
ing him till his teeth rattled. “For you’ll sit right
down at that table and draw up a document,
promising never to bother Jabez Stone nor his
heirs or assigns nor any other New Hampshire
man till doomsday! For any hades we want to
raise in this state, we can raise ourselves, with
out assistance from strangers.”
“Ouch!” said the stranger. “Ouch! Well, they
never did run very big to the barrel, but-ouch!
-I agree!”
So he sat down and drew up the document.
But Dan’l Webster kept his hand on his coat
collar all the time.
[57]
“And, now, may I go?” said the stranger, quite
humble, when Dan’l'd seen the document was
in proper and legal form.
“Go?” said Dan’l, giving him another shake.
“I’m still trying to figure out what I’ll do with
you. For you’ve settled the costs of the case, but
you haven’t settled with me. I think I’ll take you
back to Marshfield,” he said, kind of reflective.
“I’ve got a ram there named Goliath that can
butt through an iron door. I’d kind of like to
turn you loose in his field and see what he’d do.”
Well, with that the stranger began to beg and
to plead. And he begged and he pled so hum-
ble that finally Dan’l, who was naturally kind-
hearted, agreed to let him go. The stranger
seemed terrible grateful for that and said, just
to show they were friends, he’d tell Dan’l's for-
tune before leaving. So Dan’l agreed to that,
though he didn’t take much stock in fortune-
tellers ordinarily.
[58]
But, naturally, the stranger was a little dif-
ferent. Well, he pried and he peered at the line
in Dan’l's hands. And he told him one thing and
another that was quite remarkable. But they
were all in the past.
“Yes, all that’s true, and it happened,” said
Dan’l Webster. “But what’s to come in the fu-
ture?”
The stranger grinned, kind of happily, and
shook his head. “The future’s not as you think
it,” he said. “It’s dark. You have a great ambi-
tion, Mr. Webster.”
“I have,” said Dan’l firmly, for everybody
knew he wanted to be President.
“It seems almost within your grasp,” said the
stranger, “but you will not attain it. Lesser men
will be made President and you will be passed
over.”
“And, if I am, I’ll still be Daniel Webster,”
said Dan’l. “Say on.”
[59]
“You have two strong sons,” said the stranger,
shaking his head. “You look to found a line.
But each will die in war and neither reach great-
ness.?p>
“Live or die, they are still my sons,” said Dan’l
Webster. “Say on.”
“You have made great speeches,” said the
stranger. “You will make more.”
“Ah,” said Dan’l Webster.
“But the last great speech you make will turn
many of your own against you,” said the stranger.
“They will call you Ichabod; they will call you
by other names. Even in New England some
will say you have turned your coat and sold your
country, and their voices will be loud against
you till you die.”
“So it is an honest speech, it does not matter
what men say,” said Dan’l Webster. Then he
looked at the stranger and their glances locked.
“One question,” he said. “I have fought for
[60]
the Union all my life. Will I see that fight won
against those who would tear it apart?”
“Not while you live,” said the stranger, grimly,
“but it will be won. And after you are dead,
there are thousands who will fight for your cause,
because of words that you spoke.”
Stephen Vincent Benét “Litany for Dictatorships” Poem animation
|
|
Children of Eden (Papermill Playhouse Cast) $12.55 disc 1: 20 tracs: Let There Be, The Tree of Knowledge, The Naming, Grateful Children, Father’s Day, Perfect, The Spark of Creation, In Pursuit of Excellence, The End of a Perfect Day, Childhood’s End, A World Without You, The Expulsion, The Wasteland, The Spark of Creation(reprise 1), Lost In the Wildersness, Close to Home, A Ring of Stones, The Death of Abel, The Mark of Cain, Children of Eden Di… |
|
|
Wishbone – Paw Prints of Thieves $1.25 The adventures of Wishbone, a Jack Russell dog with an unlimited imagination.Genre: Children’s VideoRating: NRRelease Date: 27-JUL-2004Media Type: DVD… |
|
|
Wishbone – Impawssible Dream $3.46 WISHBONE:IMPAWSSIBLE DREAM – DVD Movie… |
|
|
Balance of Terror $1.99 … |
|
|
Wishbone: Tail in Twain [VHS] $12.95 … |
|
|
My One Temptation Part 1 $1.99 … |
|
|
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian $1.99 … |
|
|
Gettysburg (Widescreen Edition) $3.09 Three days in the summer of 1863, at a place called Gettysburg. Although it received a theatrical release, this four-hour depiction of the bloody Civil War battle was shot as a made-for-television film. But no taint of cheapness or shortcuts should stick to this magnificent picture (well, except maybe for those phony-looking mustaches). Based on Michael Shaara’s book The Killer Angels, this film t… |
|
|
Chappelle’s Show – Season 1 Uncensored $7.99 All 12 first-season episodes are presented, uncut and uncensored, in a two-disc collection. 5 hrs. total. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital stereo; audio commentary on selected episodes; deleted scenes; gag reel; featurette. **12 episodes on 2 discs. 5 hrs.**… |
|
|
Stephen Vincent Pinot Noir 2010 750ML This wine is from United States, California region, Monterey County sub-region. PINOT NOIR Wine… |
Tags: benet, book, poetry, stephen, stephen vincent, stephen vincent benet, stephen vincent benet poems, stephen vincent chardonnay, stephen vincent merlot, vincent
This entry was posted on Friday, December 19th, 2008 at 4:13 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.