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Pastoral romance masks the awkward anxiety of student life

In May 1764 Williamsburg, Thomas Jefferson barricades his room against college proctors, chanting satirical Latin verses while resting in a faded dressing gown. His friend Jacquelin arrives to exchange banter over nickname puns and unrequited romance. Jacquelin seeks out Rebecca Burwell at Shadynook, finding her reading Lovelace in velvet and pearls. He attempts grand Arcadian declarations, blending classical posturing with youthful insecurity.

CHAPTER I. → CHAPTER V.

High-stakes gambling tests fortune while friendship offers stern counsel

Fleeing his college tutor, Thomas Jefferson joins Governor Francis Fauquier in an executive chariot ride to the Raleigh Tavern. At the royal palace, drinking sherry over cards, the Governor wins Jefferson's coat, garters, and money piece by piece before losing thousands back. After winning a hefty bond, Fauquier burns the note in his pipe flame to lecture his young guest on the ruinous danger of gambling. Meanwhile, Jacquelin offers comical advice to a schoolgirl carrying her satchel.

CHAPTER VI. → CHAPTER XI.

Playful teasing quickly escalates into terrifying real-world consequences

Ernest Mowbray strikes up a sudden friendship with Charles Hoffland, a quick-witted youth who shuns formal studies for clever conversation. When Hoffland mockingly claims he can win the heart of any maiden by teasing her expectations, he provokes Jack Denis, the hot-tempered suitor of Lucy Mowbray. Offended by Hoffland's casual disrespect toward Lucy, Denis issues a formal challenge to a duel. The frightened boy turns pale and retreats to Mowbray for protection.

CHAPTER XII. → CHAPTER XVI.

Imperfect timing consistently thwarts the most elaborate romantic ambitions

Jacquelin attempts to steer Doctor Small away from Jefferson by spreading absurd rumors of political treason and armed yachts. Seeking Rebecca Burwell in the Shadynook orchard, Jacquelin reads Scottish ballads beside a stream to set a romantic scene. Every time he builds up the courage to propose under pastoral aliases, an intrusive relative or intruding friend interrupts the moment. Sir Asinus bursts in just as Jacquelin drops to his knees, frustrating his grand design once again.

CHAPTER XVII. → CHAPTER XXI.

Strict moral judgments can blind lovers to hidden truths

Walking through the Indian Camp, Mowbray lectures Hoffland on college diligence and criticizes cross-dressing heroines like Shakespeare's Rosalind as unladylike. His harsh words bring Hoffland to tears, prompting Mowbray to soften his tone and share his own heartbreak over Philippa. Hoffland rejects borrowed money, choosing instead Mowbray's small fringed gloves as a keepsake. Later, despite meticulous planning at the Raleigh Tavern ball, Jacquelin loses his private carriage ride home when chaperone worries intervene.

CHAPTER XXII. → CHAPTER XXV.

Social masks obscure genuine affection until pride gives way

At the governor's ball in the Raleigh's Apollo room, Philippa arrives unadorned in simple white satin, captivating the room. She single-mindedly chooses Mowbray as her companion, teasing him about his coldness while praising her cousin Charles Hoffland. Her playful references to marrying Charles leave Mowbray quietly despairing over lost love. Meanwhile, Jefferson suffers romantic rejection from young Martha and dramatically announces plans to sail for Europe with an Italian fiddle.

CHAPTER XXVI. → CHAPTER XXIX.

Love and comedy triumph when secrets unfold in the open

At the Shadynook May festival, Philippa leads Mowbray near a giant oak and confesses her secret through a parable. She reveals that she was Charles Hoffland, having assumed a male disguise to test his sincerity, producing his fringed gloves as proof. Concurrently, Jacquelin pulls up the ladder on an oak platform to trap Rebecca into accepting his proposal. Jefferson recants his republican heresies atop a cake barrel, capping off the chronicle of youthful Virginian antics.

CHAPTER XXX.

Book

The Youth of Jefferson

A lighthearted chronicle of college pranks, romantic misadventures, and secret disguises in colonial Williamsburg.

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