Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1862-07-17


| away like q snow image, end my Louisa and
myself grew to be very sick of each other.
Of course this is looking at the thing in its
worst possible light. There were times when
we were rather less bent upon being SO mutu-
ally dsagreeable. There must now and then
be sort of pleasure in being in the company
of young and pretty creature such as nay
Louisa, even though she had mental deficiencies
and an inclination to be peevish. did, l
confess, often enjoy the fact of walking about
Highbury with my Louisa on my arm, the
white chip bonnet, with its lining of amber
ringletS, close to my shoulder, and the button
hole mouth coong pleasant nothings, merely
Noes" and Yeses" as ule,-trying to
believe that | adored passionately, and was
so fortunate as to my choice. Still this was
quite in what | may call the honeymoon of my
engagement. There were afternoons very
much less lucious in quality.
In tins too | began to understand better
Flukew ood's observation, to the effect that |
should save him some trouble. He did not
pay near so many visits at his aunt's house
after as be had paid before my engagement to
Louisa. "T The fact is" he said, laughing, "mv
aunt wants rather too much attention" /
knew in the end too well what this meant
I" You're quite one of the family now. you
know, my blessed boy" Mrs Lippesley said to
me once )" we shall not treat you es a stran-
ger, we shall not indeed" At first l felt
rather tlattered by such cordial abandonment
of all formaty but | soon found it was not
quite so agreeable thing to be regarded
wholly as male member tf Mrs Lippesley's
family as had been anticipating l do not
know how the late Mr. Lippesiey might have
been viewed, but found myself considered in
the light OF superior servant to the family,
out OF livery, and unrecompenSed by wages
| was perpetnalIy required to be in attendance
on Mrs. Llppesley. Wherever she desired to
go, my presence was invariably insisted upon,
by way of escort; was always loaded with
shawls, wrappers, muffs, parcels and umbrellas
L was shiveriug outside theatre doors strug-
CLING to get cabs for Mrs and Misses Lippes-
ley | was compelled at all hours in the morn
ing TO see the Lppesleys home to Highbury
from evening parties in all quarters of the
town before l could be permitted to journey
home to sleep at my lodgings at Pimlico |
was once, remember, running all night about
lslngton in the vain hope of obtaining change
for sovereign in order to pay the eabnan
who had driven Mrs. Lippesey home from an
entertainment at the house of dear fri nd Of
hers residing in Peckham For one serious
drawback on the pleasure of accompanying the
Lippeseys in their pursnit OF pleasure was
that | had invariably to pay the cab fares ::
and it was this | found that made my friend
Flukewood SO much less solicitous for the soci.
ETY. OF bis aunt than had formerly been the
case. " She's let me in awful, she has, taking
her to evening parties it's your turn now, old
boy y so he addressed me- "Take her to
TuFnham Green next week all right 90 in
and win ~ But the fact was, it was going in
and losing aud that was what | complained
OF. For my allowance, in the way of pocket
money was not very liberal; and of course !
was bound to make my Louise trifng offer
ing now aud then--a silver thimble, q work
box, Moores Melodies bound in whole calf.
Scotch pebble brooch, bog wood and Irish -da
mond bracelets, DC. and really l could not
afford to maiutaiu this runous expenditure in
respect of cabhre without leaving myself DOS
itirely pennIless. vas all very we'll for my
friends IN the country to say that they could
not understand my expenses being so enormous,
and to decline sending any farther remittances
until the next quarterday, Michaemas day
What was to do in the meanwhile? How
was Mrs. Lppesley's cab.hire to be paid and
here she was proposing that We should all go
10 RamSgate for d mouth, and would doubt
less leave ME to pay the steamboat fare for
the whole party there aud back, to say nothing
of disbursements for donkeys on the sands,
hackney-cOacbes, bathing machines &c.
How was all this to END | am afraid
must confess that my visit to Mrs Lippesley's
house became at last less frequent perhaps
| was haunted by the fear of liabilities for cab
hire should be unable to meet perhaps also
it must be said by a strengthening conviction
that my love affair had been a mistake A
sham sentiment had been passing current for
real !; it was time to detect and nail it to the
counter. Like one of those puppies which
look so pretty and thoroughbred in their ex.
treme infancy, and eventually grow up into
very decidedly ugly mongrel ours, the loves of
my Louisa and myself, deemed 10 be so GEM,
inc i'll the beginning, were found in the end to
be simply most unreal aud mistaken. The
charm OF our passion was in its youthfIlness
that gone only absurdity remained.
My Louisa went out Of town she was TO
spend Il month with some relations at Ports
mouth. We made some show OF keeping up
a correspondence. Poor creatures We
deemed that we were bound to interchange
hollow, fackcid, feeble letters but these dain-
died and dwadled. A month passed-two
months, three months, and for long time l
bad heard nothing of Louisa and | had not
even been to call upon Mrs. Lippesley cer-
tainly my passion had very much evaporatcd
Suddenly l met Mrs. LippeSley, with Amelia
they had been at a morning concert at the
Hanover Square Rooms.
It's not been my doing-indeed it has
not" Mrs. Lppesley declaimed violently
"What is the matter 2" / asked.
You've not beard, then! Ah, l must
break it to you. My poor Louisa-she'S en-.
gagged TO be married Major, of the Bonn
bay Artilery-a dreadful man promise me
you will not seek to injure him."