Devota

by Augusta Jane Evans Wilson

"My dear madam, an attempt at intimacy with her would prove as satisfactory and responsive as a flirtation with the Sphinx. Dearly as I love, and warmly as I admire her, I should never presume to intrude on personal matters. Her beauty and gracious magnetism draw one very close, yet I am always conscious that some invisible bar is never let down, and that impalpable barrier hedges her from curious questioning. She is the only woman I know who absolutely declines personal confidences, abhors gossip, and never talks about herself. One afternoon at a 'reception,' where a scandalous record [pg 18] was severely criticised by an intimate associate of the indiscreet lady under fire, I heard Miss Lindsay say: 'That shrewd cynic's advice was wise, "Live with your friends remembering they may one day be your enemies."' She certainly accepts his rule of conduct."

"She has refused so many conspicuously eligible offers, that no one believes she will ever marry, and it surely is regrettable that her great fortune should not be consecrated to Christian philanthropy. Dr. Bevan, her rector, dined with us recently, and he and the Bishop deplored her complete indifference to church work. Dr. Bevan said he had made her president of the 'Charity Guild,' and when he called to urge upon her, acceptance of the responsible position [pg 19] that involved an individual investigation of needy sufferers, she waved him off, exclaiming: 'Slumming! Please be so kind as to excuse me from that variety of church picnic, of Guild outing. Assess me as you think proper, or as the charity needs demand, but "slumming" includes draggled skirts, and soiled, defaced ideals; and no laundries exist for the purification and repairing of besmirched ideals.' She seems utterly incapable of any spiritual exaltation, and her rector assured us she paid promptly her church and charity dues just as perfunctorily as her real estate taxes, and her insurance policies——"

132 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1907

About the author

Augusta Jane Wilson, or Augusta Evans Wilson, (May 8, 1835 – May 9, 1909) was an American Southern author and one of the pillars of Southern literature. She wrote nine novels: Inez (1850), Beulah (1859), Macaria (1863), St. Elmo (1866), Vashti (1869), Infelice (1875), At the Mercy of Tiberius (1887), A Speckled Bird (1902), and Devota (1907). Given her support for the Confederate States of America from the perspective of a Southern patriot, and her literary activities during the American Civil War, she can be deemed as having contributed decisively to the literary and cultural development of the Confederacy in particular, and of the South in general, as a civilization.

Reviews

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compared to the usual Augusta Evans books, this is a mere short story. There is not time for the detail she usually spent on her writing, and yet the story is still excellent, and short and sweet little love story, with a few characteristic political points thrown in for good measure (after all, it wouldn't be Augusta Evans if she didn't make a political point and refer to Hebrew or some other ancient language for some reason!). I enjoyed the quick read--and the pictures were gorgeous!

[Sheryl Stinchcum · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with all of Augusta Evans Wilson's books, "Devota" is beautifully written. The colorful illustrations are extraordinary. The most amazing thing about the book is that Augusta dictated it to her niece.

"Devota" is the last of Augusta's nine novels. She was in her 70s when she dictated it because she could not see well enough to write.

I had some difficulty getting into the story, but--as always--her writing style was smooth and flawless. What a career! What a writer! The very best.

[Robin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Based on what I have read about the author, my expectations for this book were high. I was greatly disappointed. Minimal character development and no plot line to keep the reader interested. My book is a first edition and the biggest enjoyment I had in reading this was holding the book, touching such a high level of paper stock, and thinking of the history of those who first owned it. The illustrations were nice but overall this is not a book I would recommend.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Augusta Evans Wilson’s Devota is a novella of “Beaux, Belles and Brains.” situated in “the era of sensational fads and whimsies, and of spectacular philanthropic feats…For the war had not yet blown away the clouds that hid it and set it as a fixed blaze in the constellation of Immortality.”

“An American clergyman went with them to the front of the Church of Ste. Devota, and married them there–while the January festival procession in honor of the saint thronged the church. That explains the singular misnomer of your friend’s baptismal label–Devota. The soul of the girl martyr, whose burial was dove conducted, was supposed to hover in benediction over the nuptial ceremony, hence the only child of this marriage was christened Devota.”

“Her character…seems to most of us an enigma…an attempt at intimacy with her would prove as satisfactory and responsive as a flirtation with the Sphinx…Dear old, pre-sanctified cat!..Some pretty, vixenish kitten of a girl has clawed and frazzled his heart strings.”

The heart strings belong to Governor Armitage, a self-proclaimed eternal bachelor spurned by Devota years ago in a former misunderstanding. No man and no woman “has failed to find dyspeptics, even hectics, in all its intercourse of the sexes.” And when the two involuntarily reunite thirteen years later, their tête-à-tête “contributes curry, horse-radish and Tabasco to the conversational menu.”

When Armitage is proven innocent, “The lofty distinction you have attained is the dividing wall [Devota] could never scale.” However, Armitage asserts, “It is my right to readjust the balance; in one scale I lay all civic honors, the other holds my life-long Sweetheart outweighing every other earthly treasure…the only real crown that can glorify a man’s life–the tender love of a faithful, pure wife!”