He was also fond of the theater, not to sit with a box party, but to loiter with Richmond--to enjoy the natural, to growl at the tame, and to leave the place whenever a tiresome dialogue came on.

Ellen sometimes drew him into society, and on Sundays he usually went with Mrs.Witherspoon to a Congregational church where a preacher who had taught his countenance the artifice of a severe solemnity denounced the money-chasing spirit of the age at about double the price that he had received in the East.
The Witherspoons had much company and they entertained generously, though not with a showy lavishness, for the old man had a quick eye for the appearance of waste.

It was noticeable, too, that since Henry came young women who were counted as Ellen's friends were more frequent with their visits.

Witherspoon rarely laughed at anything, but he laughed at this.

His wife, however, discovered in it no cause for mirth.