The Westerly echo, & Pawcatuck advertiser. [volume] (Westerly, R.I.) 1854-1858, 1855-06-28
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WHOLE NUMBER 22l

the strangers became friends, Nellie was
nearly happy.
There was one thing that troubled
Mrs. Mortimer exceedingly, and was
the great bugbaar of her existence, and
that was to be fashionable, to be quoted,
to be copied. To be called the fash
ionablc Mrs. Mortimer" was indeed the
very charm which was working its way
to her uusophisticated heart, and she
heard it discussed daily by all the ladies'
in the house and as she heard tho
merits Of the people rated in proportion
with their dress and fashionable position
in society, was it wonderful that Mrs.
Frederick Mortimer should wish to be
considered as one among the chosen
Fred had often observed of late, that
Nellie, when walking with him, wits
constantly pointing out some " love of
bonnet" or magnificent silk" and
twisted her neck peeping in at the show
window that they passed, and she was
for ever quoting Mrs. CRANKY, who was
an extravagant woman, and managed to
spend in one year upon her snowy per-
son enough to support two small fami-
lies. She was always showing dea;
Mrs. Mortimer" some new purchase,
and as her room was only across the hall,
Nellie and she wero upon quite intimate
terms.
Notwithstanding all her friendly pre-
tensions, however, there was a spice of
malice in it all /; and she had faculty
of reading at a glance the very unsus-
picious little Nellie, and knowing also
that the new firm in Brook Street was
not doing such fourishing business as
CRANKY s. Co., and however much Mrs.
Mortimer deserved to equal, or even to
approach herself or Mrs. Graham and
Warren on the floor below, it would be
an utter impossiblity.
Nellie Mortimer would have been ex-
ceedingly shocked had any one told her
that such spirit was creeping into her
heart, yet she did often whisper to her.
self that it would be so grand to dress
beautifully, and to have just as much
money as she could spend, like Mrs.
l1ranby still she had great horror of
being considered extravagant, and when
she heard one after another of the ladies
call the other so, and wonder if their
husbands could afford such things,
Nellie thought with satisfaction to her.
self, they surely cannot say as much
of me-"
About this cloak business, Nellie had
had many miserable thoughts. Ever
since she went with Mrs. CRANKY, and
heard her order a cloak made from a
piece of ten dollar velvet, and knew also
that Mrs. Warren had concluded to have
one from the same piece, Nellie's plan
ming commenced. She knew she could
not afford one half so expensive, and
she knew also that she really needed
none, as her shawl was new and very
nice yet a cloak would be so very be-
coming. She did so hate to ask Fred,
For he had already bought more for her
han would have sufficed for two years
n her country home; but Nellie was
desperate, and when she Glanced to
&c the piece that. was offered at the
stonishly low price of three dollars a
ard, she made the effort and succeeded.
Never in all her life had Nellie felt
0 glad as when she spread the bank
ole out to be sure she really had it,
nd already in imagination she was
alking with Fred with the identical
olvet cloak dropping daintily from her
,oulders. A low tap at the door, and
Immediately opened, and Mrs. CRANKY
anted to show " dear Mrs. Mortimer
lch an exquisite set of aces, and so
heap it was perfectly wonderful and
len, if she told how cheap, she must
ever breathe it, or Mrs. Warren and
lrs. Peters would be sure to get some
lst like them. Mrs. Graham had a
IT already, not half so beautiful, and it
'st much more" Notwithstanding the
umerous invitations to guess the price,
eilly was wisely silent, for she had not
le most remote idea of it; and when
Irs. CRANKY whispered: "Only fifty
ollsrs," Nellie's exclamation Of I" i'm