Daily American telegraph. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1851-1852, 1852-02-04
AMERICAN TELEGRAPH.
From the National Era.l
MIR. RENwICK's STORY.
BY MARTHA RUSSELL.

.A "us KEN w ACh'S STOahs
BY MARTHA RUSSELL.
Dear old man, with his rough, weather-worn
exterior, and his child-lik loving heart! Death
has long since lifted the burden from that
heart, and unravelled oil that was dark and in
tricate in his experience, else pen of mine would
never have written his name as above He
was our boarder, reader--all the one we ever
had; and why he should have chosen to make
his home among family Of orphans, when his
wealth and standing would have commanded
far other accommodations and society was
what never rightly understood: Perhaps he
thought the wisdom gained by sixty-odd years
of bufeting with the world would not come
amiss in a household where the united ages Of
all the members scarcely exceeded his own
he had been our landlord ever since we had
lived in the city; and we knew him chiefly as
an eccentric sort of a person, very strict in all
business details, and very independent in his
opinions. We were therefore not more sur
prised than amused when he called on us one
day, and expressed his desire to be admitted
into our family. ~
He was "alone in the world he said, awith
neither kith nor kin to care whether he lived
or died. That was not Of much consequence
but the house where he had boarded, while in
the city, for great many years had changed
hands. That might be borne, perhaps; but
the new proprietors had changed the dinner
hour; and he would be hung if he eat his din
ner moment after two o'clock, for all the
landlords this side of Paradise
II might 60 to hotel,' he went on, "and
scold the servants for the rest Of my lifetime
but was always q careful, saving sort of q
body, and have no desire to spend my breath
e.. II r
here to some purpose. Besides, have watched
you children, and there is sort of home
feeling about you that one does not find every
wheren
AS no family circle is complete, unless age
be there to mellow down, by it's calm wisdom,
the hot impulses and wayward schemes Of
us. We soon found that, under that dogmatic
imperious somewhat cynical manner, lay a
good large fund Of human sympathies, and
nothing occurred to disturb our relations, save
when Mr.. Renwick, in his zeal for our welfare
took it into his head to play the part Of Provi-
dence towards US. Then, certain fixed princ
pies, with regard to incurring debts and obi
cations, which my brother Fred, as the head
of the House, had laid down as our rule of life
stood in his way, like rocks and when he
found that he could never get round them nor
over Them there sometimes followed a storm,
in which expletives and adjectives were show
cred upon our heads like hail-stones
AS the time went on, however, we began to
grow weatherwise, and learned, by careful
management and a sharp lookout, to avoid
these tornadoes but sometimes they would
come, in spite of our care and there was nc
help but to sit still until the fury was past and
then sue for peace. Our younger sister, Re
becca, whose chaotic tendencies made her Q
great favorite with the old man. usually acted
as commissioner on our part and, with the
chess board in her hands as a corps de reSerue
in case of need, for she well knew his weakness
towards his fayorite game, would besiege him
in his own ROOM to which he always retreated
on such occasions and, though the prelimina-
ries were often rather stormy, she seldom failed
of success cannot but smile, even now, when
| recall some of these scenes.
"Don't come here to bother me-" would be
her first greeting. "Pve done with you all
Satan himself couldn't match you for pride
and obstinacy. Zounds! to think that have
lived till this time, to be told shan't do what
please with my own moneyW
+" But you shall, dear Mr.. Renwick," would
be the reply; "only don't be angry with FREQ
and Mildred, and you shall lay every cent o
it out on me, if you choose. You shall buy
me - let me sea crimson velvet dress; Q
real Cashmere shawl saw one up the street
the other day, at Stetson's, that they called
cheap at three hundred and fifty dollars; q
thousand dollar piano--ah, there will be nc
trouble at all about spending your money. You
can make me life member of the various be.
nevolent societies, the Colonization Society, and
the -
"Life member Of Purgatory! Crimson vel.
vet devil Do you think am going to rig you
out like turkey cock. The dress shall be
black, say-black as your hair It is the
thunder. "There, give me the chess-board
and see if you can play game like rational
Christian
The old gentleman had seen great deal o.
the world, for much of his life had been spent
abroad and during the long winter evenings
we could sometimes coax him to give us some
of his "reminiscences of life amidst the tropics
where both man and nature wear strange
fantastic aspect He seldom spoke of his birth
place amid the New Hampshire hills, though
sometimes our praises of our native village,
towards which our thoughts ever turned with
pleasant longings, would seem to pique him
into speaking of his own, and we were sur
prised to see how clearly, after years and years
spent in the busy speculations Of commercial
life, his heart retained its image--how wildly
he would picture forth its lakes and hills, its
clouds and streams and dwell upon them with
the fondness of home-sick maiden.
There was, to close observer, always a GER
tain tinge Of sadness in the old mans tone
when he referred to his childhood's home, that
led me to suspect that the key to that bitter,
sarcastic, cynical humor, under which it pleased
him to conceal his natural kindness of heart,
must be looked for amid those hills.
This was more than usually apparent one
evening, when after an enthusiastic description
Of certain mountain lake in c. he added,
after pause