Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1862-05-09
How Five Bachelors Kept House
BY MARY CLARK.

- ""S NJ" S'C"'i5 III Cdily ounSl
and in the parlor of pleasant house
in -- street, in the hansome city ol
Philadelphia, merry party Of young
folks were holding warm laughing
discussion.
Susy Arnold, the young hostess, who
kept house for her two brothers, Harry
and George, took one side of the question,
while three other gentlemen, beside her
tall brothers, opposed her. Charley
Grey, blue eyed, curly headed man,
whose fair round face and boyish air
formed an apparent contradition TO the
assertion he made of having five years
before attained his majority; Joe Morris,
who from a Spanish mother inherited
jetty hair and eyes, and pale complex
ion, and from his father tall, fine figure
and frank, ingenious expression; and
Milton Dacres, whose small figure and
bashful ways accounted fully for his
nickname Minnie; these three, with the
masters Of the house, waged playful war
upon the little brown-eyed maiden who
sa! so dem urely upon the sofa.
Say what you please, said Susy, you
will never convince me of the superiority
Of men IN the capacity Of housekeeper'
But ! maintain, cried Joe, that men
can keep house without women, but that.
women cannot do so, unless we will as
sist them
For instance said Harry, when
your Biddy was sick last winter, Sue,
how would such mite as you are have
brought up coal, kept up the furnace
fire. and lifted about wood unless your
two brothers had galIantly relieved you
OF the care?
Not to mention that :he furnace fire
went out three
a truce said George, lauehinc.-
That was my fault; but accidents viii
sometimes happen in the best regulated
families as-somebody, name forgotten,
once wisely remarked
/ only wish you could keep house:
for l would accept Aunt James invita-
ton to travel with her this summer,
were it not for leaving you
Il have an idea here cried Charley
Grey an idea which, iiyou will agree
to act upon il, shall cure the women Of
the insane notion of their indispensable
ity--ahem! that word nearly chokcd
me-
The ungalant sentence should have
quite strangled you said Susy.
Present company always expected,
was the reply. il
The idea let's have the idea
Suppose we keep house here, while
Miss Susy travels
Here! cried Susy, aghast.
Yes, why rot?
But said Susy, I'm sure Jenny
would not stay t
We don't want her; we want no
women !
Visions of muddy boots on her parlor ,
sofas, cigars in the flower vases, pipes on
the centre-tables, spittoons in the best
bedroom, and frying pans in the library,
fitted through the young lady's mind
but before she could demonstrate, Harry
said c
So be it Hurrah for bachelors hall
Pack up your trunk, Susy?
But Harry L
GLORIOUS ? cried Charley, not a O
petticoat within the doors for a month
But'-agaiu said poor Susy.
No fuses about tobacco smoke il
he curtains chimed in George.
but, DrOtnef -
Wont it be gay ?" said Minnie. G
Gay groaned the little housekeeper.
Lay in a supply of cigars, George Il
Joe. When do you 60, Miss
Susy"
Monday Aunt James letter said y
said Harry.
Monday, then We will come, bag a
md baggage, on Monday morning Il
'On an express stipulation that not a
woman performs a stroke of work for a
is for a month y Il
With many flourish, amidst the f
yayest iests, George wrote out solemn
contract, by which they bound them a
selves TO ask no service of any kind at o.
voman's hand for one month from the
late of the following Monday, June, !
1860, and put all their signatures to the
important document. :
Susy, seeing that her brothers really
we're in earnest, tried to think she was
,lad to go, and added her laughing di- =
'ection to the schemes proposed. At
ate hour, the conclave broke up, and