Southport telegraph. [volume] (Southport, W.T. [i.e. Kenosha, Wis.]) 1840-1850, 1844-09-03


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Those people who at the club and else
where are acquainted with Mr.. Wagstaf,
declare he is the most generous and agree
able creature that ever turned out of the
city. He arrives, his jolly face beaming
with good humor. He has good word for
every body, and every man good word for
him. Some bachelor says, Wag, my boy,
there is whitehall party at Greenwich; will
you be one? He hesitates. | promised
Mrs. Wagstaif to be at home at dinner says
he; and when he says that, you may be sure
he will 60. If you propose 10 him game
OF billiards in the afternoon he will play till
dinner, and make the most ludicrous Jokes
about his poor wife waiting till his RETURN
If you ask him TO smoke cigars he will do so
till morning, and goes home with a story to
Mrs. W., which the poor soul receives with
desperate credulity. Once she used to sit
up for him but TO continue the practice
would have killed her. She goes to bed
now, and Wagstaff reels in when he likes.
He is not i'll humored. Far from it, He
never says an unkind word 10 the children,
or to the cook, or to the boy who blacks his
He comes down stairs exactly three minutes
before Office time. He has his tea and his
newspaper in bed. His eldest daughter
brings the paper in, and his dear wife APP
pears with the tea. He has kind word for
both, and scrubs the little girls fresh cheek
with his brlstly beard, and laughs at the Joke,
and processes prodigious interest III her
lessons, and in knowing whether Miss Wig
giles the governess is satisfied with her; and
before she finishes her answer, he is deep
in the follos of the Times, and does not care
one farhing piece what the little girl says
He has promised to take the child 10 As
tley's any time these four years. She could
hardly speak when he promised it. She is
a fine tall lass, and can read and write now /;
and though it was SO long ago, has never
forgotten the promise about As;ley's
When lie Is away from home, Wagstaf'
talks about his family with great affection
In the long days when he is away, their
mother, God bless her! is telling them what
fine .man their papa is-how kind and ge-
.ncrots~-- md how busy he is--what PITY!
he is obliged 10 work SO hard and stay away
from home! Poor<creature, poor creature.
Sure Heaven will pardon her these lies, if
any lies are, pardonable. Whenever he says
The will walA u;Rl Der Arabella dresses her
self in the gown he likes, and puts on punk
bonnet, and is ready to the very minute, you
may be sure. How often is it that he is
srcady to the minute? How many scores
and scores of times has he left the heart
sick girf?--not forgetting her in the least
but engaged elsewhere with game of bill
lizards or jolly friend and cigar-and per-
haps wishing rather to be al home all the
time but he is so good natured, such a ca
pital fellow! Whenever he keeps his APP
pontmcut--Heaven help us! she brightens
up as if il were Paradise coming to her.-
She looks With a triumphan, air at the SER
want who opens the door, and round about
at the ncighboIs' windows as if she would
have all tie world know that she is walking
with her husband. Every now and then as
sire ,walks--(t is but twice or thrice year,
for Wagstafi has his business on week days,
and never gets up till one of a Sunday
every now and then as she walks with him,
the delighted creature gives skip, and
sgueezes his arm, and looks up in his face,
she is SO happy. And so is he too, for he
rs as good a fellow as ever breathed-and
he resolves TO take her out the very next
SuEday-only he doesn't Every one of
these walk DAYS are noted down in the poor
souls little Calendar OF Home as saints
DAYS. She talks of them quite iondly and
there is not one of her female acquainances
whom she won't visit for weeks after, and
to whom she will no: be sure To- find some
pretext for recountng the wonderful walk.
Mon dieu, ladies-all the time was dcs
cribing that affair at Durognon's, those obi
Gus French women, and their chatter, and
their ogling, and their champagne, | was
thinking of Arabela far away in the dis
lance and alone. declare upon my honor,
she was never out of my thoughts for sim
gle minute. She was the moral of the Par
tie Fine-the simple, whte-robed, spotless,
meek eyed, angel of wifc-thinking about
her husband-and he among the tawdry
good nothings, yondcr! Fizz! there goes
the first champagne cork, Mr. Wagstatl is
making tender speech TO Madame Virgil
ME.
At that moment Arabella is up stairs in
the nursery, where the same moon is shining
in, and putting her youngest boy 10 bed.
Bang! there goes the second cork. Vir-
gnie screams-F'itZsmons roars with laugh
tcr-Wagstalf hob'nobs with the old lady,
who gives wink and nod. They are IA
king away the fish and putting down the
entrees.
At that moment Arabclla has her second
child between her knees, (ho little one is
asleep with its thumb in lis mouth, and the
elder is beginning TO rub her eyes over her
favorite fairy tale, though she has read it
many scores of timcs.) Arabella has the
child between her knees, aud just a. Nag-
stan is clmking bis glass with the old lady
IN London, his wife at Bognor says some
'i'hg TO the child, who says after her,
D0d bless any dear papa and pre-
sen'ly nc Is ia bed too, and sleeps as sound
ly as his little sister.
And so 1t is that these pure blessings are
scnt--yearning after that fellow over his
cups Suppose they reach him. WHY
the spotless things must blush and 90 ON,
again from the company in which they find
him. The drinking goes on, the Jokes and
fun get faster and faster. Aabells by This
time has seen thn oldest child aslaen in ber