By Edward Everett Hale (1822-1909)

[ Atlantic Monthly_, September, 1859 Republished volume, The Man Without Country, and Other Tales (1868), by Edward Everett Hale (Little, Brown & Co ) ]

often that I trouble the readers Atlantic Monthly I trouble them now, but importunities wife, who "feels to insist" that duty to society is unfulfilled, till told why I had double, and how he undid me sure, she says, that intelligent persons cannot understand that pressure upon public servants which alone drives any man employment of double And while she thinks, bottom of her heart, that my fortunes will never be re-made, she has faint hope, that, as another Rasselas, teach lesson to future publics, profit, though we die Owing behavior double, or, please, public pressure which compelled me to employ him, plenty of leisure to write this communication

, or rather was, minister, Sandemanian connection settled active, wide-awake town of Naguadavick, on finest water-powers in Maine We used it Western town heart civilization of New England charming place spirited, brave young parish had I; and it seemed all "the joy of eventful living" to our hearts' content

Alas ! how little day ordination, and in those halcyon moments first housekeeping ! the confidential friend in hundred families town--cutting the social trifle, as my friend Haliburton says, " top whipped-syllabub bottom sponge-cake, the foundation"-- abreast thought age in one's study, and one's best on Sunday to interweave that thought active life of an active town, and to inspirit both and make both infinite by glimpses Eternal Glory, seemed such an exquisite forelook into one's life ! Enough , and all so real and so grand ! vision could only have lasted

The truth is, vision was not in itself delusion, nor, indeed, half bright enough If one could only left his own business, the vision accomplished itself and brought out new paraheliacal visions, each as bright original The misery was , as out, I and Polly, before long, that, besides the vision, and besides the usual human and finite failures in life (such as breaking the old pitcher that came over Mayflower, and putting fire the alpenstock her father climbed Mont Blanc)--besides, these, (imitating the style of Robinson Crusoe), there were pitchforked in on us great rowen-heap of humbugs, handed down from some unknown seed-time, we were expected, and I chiefly, to fulfil certain public functions community, character fulfilled third row of supernumeraries who stand behind the Sepoys spectacle Cataract Ganges They were the duties, in word, which one performs as member of one or another social class or subdivision, wholly distinct from what one does as . by himself . What invisible power put these functions on me, it very hard But such power And I at work year before living two lives, one real and one merely functional--for two sets of people, one my parish, whom I loved, other vague public, for whom care two straws All in vague notion, which everybody had and has, second life would eventually bring out some great results, unknown at present, to somebody somewhere

Crazed duality of life, I first read Dr Wigan Duality Brain_, hoping that train one side head these outside jobs, other my intimate and real duties For Richard Greenough once told me that, in studying statue of Franklin, left side great man's face was philosophic and reflective, right side funny and smiling go and look bronze statue, he has repeated this observation there for posterity The eastern profile portrait statesman Franklin, the western of Poor Richard But Dr Wigan go into these niceties subject, and I failed then that, on my wife's suggestion, I resolved to look out for Double

, at first, singularly successful We happened recreating at Stafford Springs that summer We rode out one day, for relaxations watering-place, great Monsonpon House We were passing through large halls, when my destiny was fulfilled ! my man !

not shaven He had on no spectacles dressed in green baize roundabout and faded blue overalls, worn sadly knee But at once that height, five feet four and half He had black hair, worn off by his hat So have and I He stooped in walking So do I His hands were large, and mine And--choicest gift of Fate in all--he had, not "a strawberry-mark left arm," but cut from juvenile brickbat over his right eye, slightly affecting the play eyebrow Reader, so have I ! --My fate was sealed !

word with Mr Holley, inspectors, settled the whole thing It proved Dennis Shea was harmless, amiable fellow, class known as shiftless, who had sealed his fate by marrying dumb wife, who was moment ironing laundry Before I left Stafford, I had hired both for five years We had applied to Judge Pynchon, then the probate judge at Springfield, the name of Dennis Shea to Frederic Ingham We had explained Judge, the precise truth, that an eccentric gentleman wished to adopt Dennis under this new name into his family It never occurred to him that Dennis more than fourteen years old And thus, to shorten this preface, when we returned at night to my parsonage at Naguadavick, there entered Mrs Ingham, her new dumb laundress, myself, who am Mr Frederic Ingham, and my double, who was Mr Frederic Ingham by as good right as I

Oh, the fun we had the next morning in shaving his beard to my pattern, cutting his hair to match mine, and teaching him how to wear and how off gold-bowed spectacles ! Really, they were electroplate, glass was plain ( poor fellow's eyes were excellent) Then in four successive afternoons I taught him four speeches I had found these quite enough supernumerary-Sepoy line of life, and well they were For though good-natured, very shiftless, and , as our national proverb says, "like pulling teeth" to teach him But end next week he , with quite my easy and frisky air:

1 " , And you ? " This for an answer to casual salutations

2 " you liked it "

3 " said, and, whole, said, that occupy the time "

4 "I agree, in general, with my friend other side room "

At first I had feeling that going at great cost for clothing him But it proved, , at once, that, whenever out, at home And I went, during the bright period success, to so few awful pageants which require black dress-coat and what the ungodly call, after Mr Dickens, white choker, that happy retreat own dressing-gowns and jackets my days went by as happily and cheaply of another Thalaba And Polly declares never year tailoring cost so little He lived (Dennis, not Thalaba) wife's room over the kitchen He had orders never to show himself window When he appeared front house, I retired to my sanctissimum and my dressing-gown In short, the Dutchman and, his wife, old weather-box, less with, each he and I the furnace-fire and split the wood before daylight; then he went to sleep again, and slept late; then came for orders, with red silk bandanna tied round his head, overalls on, dress-coat and spectacles off happened interrupted, no one guessed that Frederic Ingham as I; and, neighborhood, there grew up an impression minister's Irishman worked day-times factory village at New Coventry After I had given him his orders, I never saw him till the