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The Crisis: Brice

Mrs. Brice, Stephen's mother, bore her reduced fortune with dignity and with high hope in her son's future and a spirit of sacrifice in his interest. Eliphalet Hopper was a New-Englander in Colonel Carvel's employ. Industrious and saving, he was unscrupulous and mean, valuing only financial success and cherishing jealousy of others' good fortune.

Clarence Colfax, the son of a rich widow, was Virginia's cousin. He ran race-horses, he fought game-cocks. He had "a commanding indolence." He believed society based on slavery was divinely appointed. Masterful, courageous, adventurous, athletic, and handsome, he was a true cavalier, useless except for war.

The events of the story sport with the natural antagonism, in tradition and convictions, of the Puritan Stephen Brice and the lady of the Cavaliers, Virginia Carvel. They met first at a slave-market. A beautiful quadroon is put up for sale. With all his savings of nine hundred dollars Brice determines to buy the girl from a life of shame with an intending bidder and then free her. Virginia, through Colfax, also bids for the girl to use her as a maid. Brice, in sympathy for the pleading mother of the slave, persists in his purpose and, to Virginia's great disgust, outbids the other two and manumits the girl. Soon after, on her father's insistence, Virginia protestingly invites Brice to her first party. She snubs him, but finally dances with him. They meet again at a fancy-dress party in which she appears in the costume of her Colonial great-grandmother, and he in that of his grandfather, a Revolutionary colonel. She had only gone on the assurance he would not be there. His appearance prevents her giving way to the wooing of Clarence Colfax. They meet again at the country-place of the Carvels, where Judge Whipple is convalescent, and there measure each other in discussion. Through Judge Whipple and her girl friends news of Brice is constantly thrust on her. Silas Whipple knew and felt Lincoln's greatness and leadership. Whipple noted Brice's ability and high qualities, but regretted his Boston narrowness. He sought to broaden him by subjecting him to Lincoln's personality. Under pretense of a business errand, he asked Lincoln to let the young man hear his debate at Freeport with Douglas. Brice was with Lincoln the night before in a tavern, where, hatless, coatless, vestless, he discussed the wisdom of asking Douglas the great question, the answer to which made Douglas Senator and Lincoln President. Lincoln's limpid intellectual honesty, his pure logical, his lucidity of soul and purpose, impress themselves on young Brice and profoundly affect his point of view.