New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1852-08-31
THE HAPPY JACKS.

From Chambet's Jonrnll.
THE HAPPY JACKS
;sOn Saturday, then, at two-humble hours,
humble fare, but plenty and good of its kind,
with talk over old fellows and old times !'
Such was the pth of an invitation to dinner,
to which l started on pleasant summer satur
day on the top of Kentsh town omnibus. My
host was Happy Jack. Every body called him
| &c Happy Jack = he called himself Happy
| Jack" Yet his friends shook their heads, and
the grandest shook theirs the longest, as they
added the ominous addendum of g Poor Devil
to f" Happy Jack
'sseen that unhappy wretch, Happy Jack,
lately:"
Seen him! of course, yesterday; he came to
borrow half sovereign, as two Of his children
hal the measles. He was in the highest spirits,
for the pawnbroker lent him more on his watch
than lie had expected, and so Jack considered
the extra shilling or two pure gain don't
know how the wretch lives, but he seems hap
pier than ever
On another occasion, the dialogue would he
quite different.
"Who do you think saw last night, in the
first tier at the Opera who but happy Jack,
Happy Jack girls. Jack himself, resplendent
in diamond studs, and tremendously laced shirt
front, and as for the women-actually queens
Of Sheba. really respectable carriage, too,
at the door for followed them out in amaze
ment; and off they went, like so many lords
and ladies. Oh, the sun has been shining some-
how on the Happy Jacks y
In due time, stood before the terrace, hon
ored by the residence of the Happy Jacks-one
of those white, succeed rows Of houses, with
bright green doors, and bright brass plates
thereon, which suburban builders omuch affect.
As entered the square patch of front garden,
perceived straw lying about, as though there
had been recent packing; and looking at the
drawing room window, missed the muslin cur
tain and the canary's brass cage swathed all
over in gauze. The door opened before l
knocked, and Happy Jack was the opener. He
was clad in an old shooting coat and slippers,
had long clay pipe in his mouth, and was in a
state of intense general deshabiile. Looking
beyond him, l saw that the house was in desho-
billie as we'll as the master. There were stairs,
certainly, but where was the stair carpet
. Happy Jack, however, was clearly as happy as
! usual. He had a round, red face; and, | will
add, red nose. But the usual sprightly smile
stirred the red, round face, the usual big gutfaw
came leaping from the largely opening mouth,
the usual gleam of mingled sharpness and bon
homie shone from the large blue eyes. Happy
Jack closed the door, and taking my arm,
, walked me backwards and forwards on the
gravel.
"My boy, he said, "we've had a little do
> mestic affair inside; but you being like myself,
man of the world, we were not Of course going
. to give up our dinner for that. The fact is
said Jack, attempting to assume heroic and
sentimental tone and attitude, sc that for the
present, at least, my household gods are shat
tered! y
!; s' You mean that"
''As said, my household gods are shattered
even in the shrine ~
! 1t was obvious that the twang of this fine
i phrase gave Jack uncommon pleasure. He re.
IT peated it again and again under his breath
fourishing his pipe, SO as, allegorcally and
metaphorically to set forth the extent of his
8 desolation.
sin other words,'' l went on, 'there has
T. been NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
n n s' And the brokers have not left stick. Bu
J. what of that' These are accidents which will
occur in the best"
'sAnd Mrs."
"Oh she, you know. is apt to be little
down-hearted at times; and empty rooms ac
on her idiosyncrasy. A good woman, but weak
/. So she's gone for the present to her sisters ant
s' as for the girls, why Emily is with her mother
IN and Jane is at the Joneses. Very decent peo
= pie, the Joneses. put Jones up to thins
!. which would have made his fortune the weel
OF before last; but he wouldn't have it, Jones il
slow, well-Clara is with the Hopkinses
| believe so, at least and Maria is--confount
E. me if know where Maria is but | suppos
q she's somewhere; her mother managed it all
didn't interfere. And so now, as you know th
best and the worst, let's come to dinner.
An empty house is q dismal thing--almost a
dismal ASA dead body. The echo, as you walk
is dismal; the blank stripped walls, shown.
the places where the pictures and mirrors hav
Iii. odds and ends of cords are dsmal the GOODNESS
ms, the stiffness, the Darkness dismal 1t is n
lc- longer habitation, but shell,
w, w, In the dining room stood small deal table
pu H covered with scanty cloth, like an enlarge
,a5 towel; and a baked joint, with the potatoe
under it, smoked before us, The foaming pew
n. ter can stood beside it, with couple of plate
and knives and steel forks. Two Windse
chairs, of evident public-house mould, compl,
ted the festive preparations and the furnitul
of the room. The whole thing looked ve1
dreary, and as gazed felt my appetite fat
under the sense Of desolation Not SO Hapl
Jack "Come, sit down, sit down. l dor
:, admire baked meat as u rule, but you know,
= somebody says:
aT when spits and Jacks gone and spent,
Y Then ovens are most excellent,
DR. And also most con-ye- -ni-ent
\, The people at Chequers managed it all; exce
NJ. lent people they are. | owe them some none
on; M; which l shall have great pleasure in paying
s.' soon as possible. No man can pay it sooner. >
y The dinner, however, went of with the gret
"a est success. Happy Jack was happier tn
49, ever, anu consequently lrfeSlSIlDlc. livery u
or three minutes he lugged out something abo
'in' his household gods and The desolation of
hearth, evidently enjoying the sentiment high
ciu Then he talked Of his plan of taking new Il
more expensive house, in more fashionable
,ary cality, and furnishing it on far handson
scale than the old one In fact, he seemed I
ther obliged to the brokers than otherwise, /
ocl taking the quondam furniture off his hands.
(. was quite behind the present taste-much of
:. positively ugly. He had been ashamed to
ills his wife sitting in that atrocious old easy cha
but he hoped he had taken step which wo,
change all for the better. Warming with
sup dinner and the liquor, Happy Jack got more a
y more eloquent and sentimental. He declain
OF upon the virtues of Mrs. j., and the beauties
Sas the girls He proposed all their healths ser
- I'm IIa rnnrntfnd the littla incident which L