Grand River times. [volume] (Grand Haven, Mich.) 1851-18??, 1857-08-26
The Man Over the Way.

When man has no business of his own to
attend TO- it is notorious that he is very fond
of meddling with his neighbor's. Old half
pay officers, naval or military, unmarried la
dies of uncertain age and small means, wild
ows without encumbrances-thesea and few
others, are the greatest meddlers and busy
bodies in creation. Young men of small for
tunes and no profession are less inclined to sin
in this respect; but they can scarcely be said
to have nothing to do, because they general
ly have a frightful amount on their hands to
perpetrate; and this keeps them SO we'll occu
pied (ll occupied we should say,) that they
have not so much time to attend to other
peoples affairs as might be imagined.
When | avow that belong to the class of
bachelors have mentioned, achartable read
er will naturally conclude that am mau-
vais sujet. Such is far from the case. Pos
itively, | am not aware of any particular
amount of iniquity that can be laid at my
door. neither game, drink, nor keep bad
hours, or commit other peccadilloes which go
to swell the list of sins usually booked to an
idle mans account. Perhaps ought not to
take too much credit to myself for my ex-
emption from these little bachelor in6rmities
because am dreadfully in love. Absorb
ed as / am in this passion, have no thought
to give to paton-the idol of my heart
possesses them altogether.
Lovers are probably selfish; they think of
no one but themselves. | form no exception
to the rule, saving in one instance--I have
long had terrible curiosity to know all about
''the man over the way" but must be little
more explicit. | live in lodgings, as nineteen
bachelors out of twenty do, unless they have
chambers in the temple. The house at which
my rooms are, stands in narrow street in
the neighborhood of Hyde Park. Exactly
opposite, occupying first floor like myself,
is the gentleman concerning whom my curl
osity is excited, and whom [ have named
''the man over the way"
He is a man apparently oe fifty or sixty
years of age, sunburnt in face, and with IRON
gray hair. He is dressed always in long
brown coat, grey trousers and waist-coat, and
black neck-cloth of the old stye---that is
to say, two or three yards of silk swathed
round his throat, as an Egyptian mummy is
wrapped in linen. There is nothing very re-
markable in the mans appearance, and yet
he possesses a strong fascination for me. l
cannot help thinking of him, and wondering
what he is, and who he is, and whether he
has anything to do with my fate; for, ridicu-
lous as the last may seem, cannot divest
myself Of the idea that this man is bound up
in some mysterious way with my history. 1t
is perfectly useless to reason with myself on
the proposition and point out its absurdity: |
believe, and l cannot shake my faith by any
process of logical induction.
In consequence of this idea, am become
as curious (as far as this individual is con-
cerned,) as any of the old halfpays, or maid
en- ladies, or unencumbered widows, | have
mentioned. I'll see butcher boy with meat
in his tray going near the house, watch to
see if he calls there, and wonder whether the
meat is for the dinner of "the man over the
way" If see the man himself reading, ]
wonder what book he has, and what he thinks
of it, But beyond everything, wonder
what he thinks of me; for am perfectly Ger.
tain that he watches me almost as much as
do him. .............
And yet the reader must not suppose that
| think of ''the man over the way" so exclu.
sively as to make me forget my adored julia
far from it; write to her every day, and
the bakers man delivers my letters to the
cook, and the cook gives it to the lady's maid
and the lady's maid presses it into the hand,
of Julia herself. The penny post would b
more expeditions, no doubt, but also there
would be no secrecy about it; and our course
of true love runs not smooth, as a curmudgeor
of father has forbidden me the house, anC
commanded her never to think of me again
How foolish these old gentlemen are Mr.
Singles Chats the papa in question by hi
labsurdly unreasonable conduct, gives pain .,