The Splendid Lie by Edgar Saltus
Mr. Farquhar, an old New York clubman, is introduced by his nephew Harry to Mr. Tatum, the wealthy father of Harry's shipboard fiancée. Tatum, a large, stout man with a scarred forehead, is treated by Farquhar with icy contempt despite the courteous introduction. Harry, puzzled by his uncle's coldness, takes Farquhar to lunch at the Athenaeum Club, where Farquhar recounts, over a leisurely meal, the history of a gambler named Hank Jones. Jones ran policy dens with a circle of disreputable associates — Arabella, whom he married after she became his cook; Johnny Slope, a thief posing as a plumber; Banjo Pete, a former minstrel turned burglar; and George Percival, a scrupleless poet. At a gathering, Jones returned home to find Percival assaulting Arabella; in the fight Percival struck him with a bottle, leaving a permanent scar. Weeks later Percival was murdered, and Jones was tried and acquitted, afterward adopting the name Tatum for private use while remaining Hank Jones professionally. Harry, appalled, resolves to break his engagement, dismissing his uncle's suggestion that the ten-million-dollar fortune and the ailing Tatum's likely death make the match still worthwhile. Harry insists he will end it and cravenly asks Farquhar to deliver the news to the girl rather than write to her himself. Farquhar agrees to go in person. At the girl's home, Farquhar finds her cultivated and strikingly beautiful, nothing like the vulgar figure he had pictured. Unable to bring himself to reveal the sordid truth about her father and Harry's rejection of her on that account, he instead blurts out a lie: that Harry has eloped with a hideous, hunchbacked, harelipped old woman. The girl is startled but recovers with composure, and Farquhar assures her she is well rid of him. Farquhar begins calling on her regularly for tea, and over repeated visits the two grow close. He confesses he is no longer young and is among the "newly poor," and admits he loved her at first sight. She reveals she has long known the truth about her father's character and that doctors say he cannot live. After her father's death, Farquhar confesses the truth of his lie about Harry's elopement. She is briefly startled, recognizing the contrast between the nephew's cowardice and the uncle's courage, then asks, with mock demureness, to whom gentlemen tell such truths. Farquhar answers: to those they love. He asks her forgiveness, which her look already grants, and she replies that lies, like his own, are permissible when they happen to be splendid.
By Edgar Saltus · First published 1921 · Genre: Romance, Literary Fiction, Social Satire · 3,892 words
First lines
"This is Mr. Tatum."
In the hall of the Athenaeum Club an introduction was being effected. A young man was actively engaged in making his uncle acquainted with his future father-in-law. The latter was Mr. Tatum. The uncle was Mr. Farquhar, and the young man Harry.
There, barring the lady, you have what I think I have seen described as the dramatis personae. The lady will appear in a moment. Though not, of course, in the hall where these three men were standing.
What this Textopian page supports
The Splendid Lie is listed on Textopian as a short story by Edgar Saltus, dated 1921 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Edgar Saltus
- Date: 1921 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Romance, Literary Fiction, Social Satire, Comedy of Manners, Psychological Realism
- Length: 3,892 words
- Structure: 1 section, 99 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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- Work identity for The Splendid Lie by Edgar Saltus
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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Genres
- Romance — The narrative centers on romantic relationships—Harry's engagement, his uncle's discovery of and manipulation of the situation, and ultimately the uncle's romantic connection with Miss Tatum that forms the story's emotional core and resolution.
- Literary Fiction — Saltus employs sophisticated narrative technique, thematic complexity about truth versus deception, psychological characterization, and urbane prose marked by irony and wit characteristic of high literary tradition rather than popular fiction.
- Social Satire — The work extensively mocks New York society's preoccupation with wealth, social position, and reputation. Characters like Mr. Farquhar embody this critique; the obsession with 'the best people' and ten million dollars as social currency is relentlessly satirized.
- Comedy of Manners — Witty dialogue, detailed observations of social rituals and etiquette (tea visits, club introductions, letter protocols), and the comedy emerging from characters navigating rigid social codes define the narrative structure.
Tags
decadent · psychological · romantic · ironic · morally ambiguous · character-driven · literary fiction · social commentary · introspective · philosophical · satirical · fin-de-siècle