The American Pageant Chapter 1 Elizabeth

Difference in the Air Walking swiftly towards the Atlantic on a rainy day, Elizabeth paused only a second to listen to the seagulls and to take in the scent of the air. The salty air struck her as unfamiliar, unlike the usual feeling of serenity when she was near the sea. Putting this thought into the back of her mind, she resumed her walk to the wharfs to buy flour. After Elizabeth purchased the flour, she embarked home, but suddenly she heard people shouting. Hoping to be what her timorous, stringent father had warned her from, Elizabeth quickened her pace and turned left on Hutchinson’s Street. She tried not to fall on the wet cobbled streets, but her shoes slid. What her parents whispered in hushed voices when they thought Elizabeth

Because the colonies were cut off from British imported textiles, the Americans had to make their own clothing. Elizabeth’s mother completely supported the rebellious women, because she was the one left with the duty of sewing the clothes for their family. Elizabeth’s father, however, was strongly opposed to rising up against the merchants, and Elizabeth did not believe his reasons were valid enough for her mother not to participate. Elizabeth’s mother had not attended the food riot, following her husband’s wishes, but Elizabeth had been very keen to see what her father was so

The loud chiming reminded her of the magnificent grandfather clock in Elizabeth's home built by her father. The loud bells distracted her from the riot because it seemed as if the grandfather clock in her home was in the square; however, Elizabeth didn't want to tear her eyes away from the riot. Aware that it wasn't the grandfather clock in her home, Elizabeth looked around the square expecting to see it anyway. The loud jeers from the riot pulled her attention back to the women, who were almost done taking the coffee from the shop. Anna Smith, a friend of Elizabeth’s mother, walked out of the coffee shop. Elizabeth hoped Anna would not notice her observing the riot, but Anna did. Their eyes met for only a second, before Anna returned into the shop. The final church bells tolled, and Elizabeth knew she would have to go home. Elizabeth did not want to leave the riot, but she knows she must because of the possible consequences from her father if she is out too late. Elizabeth continued up Hutchinson’s Street; the cobblestones still wet. The street veered left, and Elizabeth continued drawing closer to her home. As the street changed to dirt, the air was not as filled with salt, returning her to the familiarity of where she came from, but not necessarily where she