To Charles Augustus Strong
Paris. July 28, 1927
Dear Strong,
Since my former letter I have seen Margaret and her fiancé several times, and had several long talks with him. In some respects my impressions are less favourable, in that he has a (for us) disturbing variety of acquaintances, experiences, and sentiments, and he seems too anxious to defend and to ingratiate himself. But I am confirmed in the feeling that he is as likely as anybody to make a good husband for Margaret, and that whatever people may say against him—even if true—ought not to interfere with her action, if she desires it and feels that it is the best solution, at least for the present, under the circumstances. I understand that her uncle has arranged the financial side of the affair so as to prevent any claims on his part to her property: and if later she was not happy with him, and there was a separation, she would at least have had this experience and might be better able to arrange her life sensibly and according to her real tastes.
As to your project of coming here, I suppose you know that the wedding is expected to take place next week, and that they are thinking of a wedding trip, not of settling down at once at Saint Germain. But I think you would find it pleasant here and, if you were in the mood, not at all too crowded for motoring about.
Yours ever,
G Santayana
From The Letters of George Santayana: Book Three, 1921-1927. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2002.
Location of manuscript: Rockefeller Archive Center, Sleepy Hollow NY