Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1859-07-08
From the Family Journal
4 BACHELORS STORY.

My name is Smith-John Smith. /
am sixt years of age next birth-day,and
unmarried. / have been in love, howev-
er-hopelessly in love-and yet am a
bachelor. Why am so, have now to
tell.
During my young days, / had no time
to think of the other sex. | determined
| would make my fortune FIRST, and see
about wife afterwards. | worked and
strove-aecumulated and denied myself
the harmless pleasures that eost money,
yet ! did not get rich as fast as bad ex-
pected, and l had reached forty years of
age before thought l was justified in
looking about me for wife.
When that time came, / set about my
task earnestly. l am a business man, and
always so TO work systematically In
the first place, looked all through my
acquaintance and friends. They were
not numerous, and / soon found there
were no young ladies amongst them who
would suit me.
Then tried the boarding-house scheme,
by which, l mean, advertised for board
and answered all the replies in person.
Whenever saw any young girls in the
house, there | took board-but none of
them would suit me. AT last received
an answer to my advertisement from a
widow lady with one daughter. [ called
at the house and was ushered into an el-
egantly furnished parlor where young
lady was seated playing piano. In spite
of Shakspeare's denunciation of man who
has no music in his soul, never had any
music in mine. l don't know Yankee
Doodle from Old Hundred-and yet.
strange to say, the music sounded pretty
as it tickled from her fingers. She did
not hear me enter, so continued to play.
| listened for some minutes and then
coughed gently. She turned her seat. -
think l had never seen so beautiful a
girl before. She was not more than eigh-
teen years of age-tall and graceful-her
form beautifully rounded-dark auburn
hair hung in natural ringlets on swan.
like neck. In short, the moment l saw
her, performed the imaginary pantomi-
me of slapping my trowsers' pocket, and
exclaimed, mentally, Here's a girl for
my money"
Did you want to see my mother p
asked the lovely creature in musical
voice.
Have the pleasure of speaking tc
Miss Clarkson?" / asked.
eyes, sir"
/ have called, madam, in reference tc
a note | received-I believe from your
mother-stating that you wished to take
a single gentleman TO board with you"
Yes, sir; / will call my mother"
And the fairy bounded out of the room
In minute or two afterwards. the
mother entered the room. If the daueh.
ter was pretty, the widow was decidedly
ugly. She was past forty, thin, scraggy
wore false teeth and false hair. When
looked at her / almost felt tempted tc
leave the house, but then l gazed at the
daughter, and determined to remain
The preliminaries were soon arranged
and the next day | took up my abode un
der the roof of Widow CIarkson.
soon felt quite at home, and deter.
mined to make myself as agreeable a.
possible. was polite to the m Jther, ten
der to the daughter, and evidently pleased
the old woman, for ate but little. Oul
evenings were very pleasant youn.
friend of the family used to drop in coca
sionally, and we played whist. Th,
young man was a cousin Of the family
a rather pleasant young fellow, and Ia,
time passed very agreeably away.
In the meantime / prosecuted my sui
earnestly. have always held il as al
axiom that if you want to succeed witt
the young branches Of a family, you mus
J pay attention to the head there is moth
; ing Ike procuring friend at court. -
This plan followed. was very polit
to Mrs. Clarkson; I waited on her al "a
BILE; j escorted her to the theatre an
. opera, and read to her Cobb's last. 20
: on finely. soon saw that she was yer.
partial to me. Ia the mean time ! III
) not neglect the object Of my affections
; / gazed on her teuderly; pressed be
hand whenever had an opportunity, an
believed that | had made eonsiderabl
impression on her young heart.
Things went on ia this way for NOR
than two months, when ,houghi il big
. time that | should bring matters to
crisis.
One evening | entered the sitting rooa
. and found the eharniag gifI sias,e II,