Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1864-01-30

leur Terrace, that circumstances over which
we had no control " land never wrote truer
sentence) chad compelled us to let our spare
Room" Then l took counsel with my old
friend Mrs Brown, of the Edgeware Road
Tucv Gin as was whei ] was Martha Trivet-
who, being in reduced circumstances, had
commenced the Furnished Apartment
business two or three years ago, and after
several misadventures, pertaining, suppose,
4, all commencements, was succeeding IN IL 10
a marvel. Success was not so much oar OBJ
;ect as security; we wanted ledger, not as
a means of livelihood, but simply as garri-
son. There was therefore very little doubt
that we should be easily suited.
"But don't take very young gentlemen,
said Mrs. Brown, for such are often In ma
ing from their relatives, and their reiatiVes'
sometimes refuse to settle their bliis upon
their restoration to the domestic clrcle; anu
don't take very old gentlemen, for they some
times decease in the house, and there Is
difficulty in getting the parish to bury them.
This advice seemed rather hard in Lucy
(whom remember all heart, or nearly sol;
lint il was sound, so far as it went, and found
ed upon practical experience.
So we took the first middle-aged gentleman
Mr. Adolphus Conroy-who rang the front
door bell with an eye to our Spare Room. The
apartment pleased him, the terms pleased
him, my offer to cater for him pleased HIM !;
and, in short, he expressed himself-and IN
very appropriate terms-as satisfied with
everything. After Uncle Trotter, almost any
| inmate would have made a reasonable i'm
nression: but Mr.. Conroy was really pattern
| iodger. He was little Singh" in his manner
| TO me: but then how could he know that
was not dependent upon his custom, like
| other landladies? Doubtless, thought |, he
regards me as happy who will burn his Goals
/ and drink his tea, and lay the decrease OF his
| butchers meat to the account of the cat-so
i I was patient with his superciliOus ways.
He was really very nice-looking he had, !
must say, an aristocratic air about him very
different from Mivins-who,- howeeyer. nis
| luggage was of great bulk, and very heavy
altogether, he was a sort of ledger one
couldn't help looking up to. His mode OF
life was all that could be desired. At about
eleven A. NJ. he left the house, attired in the
first style of fashion, and returned at seven
to his dinner; after which he would smoke a
couple of pipes, and then retire for the night.
He never made a complaint OF any sort, nor
any observation upon the weekly bills, save
one-that they were ridcalOuSly cheap.
=" Really, Mrs. Mivins," observed he, at the
end of the second week, 81 cannot think
4 uON 1Ou COulul Keep HlySelI up
on twice the money. You must really give
me your receipt for such economy" But he
never asked me for my receipt for his account
because he never paid it. That was the one
drawback with respect to my otherwise model
ledger; he never offered to pay one sxpence
either for board or lodging. Being of sensi
tive disposition, and unaccustomed to my
new calling, did not like to press for set.
Element but after the third week had passed
without my receiving any remuneration for
a good deal of trouble and some considerable
expenses-for gin-punch with lemon was
what he took of an evening, and lemons arc
dear-I thought I'd go and see my profes.
sional adviser, Mrs. Brown.
| "What !" says she, when | had confided to
her my little difficulty, "you haven't seen
the color of this fellows money for three
weeks?"
Fancy her speaking of Mr.. Adolphus Con
roy as ga fellow ~ but hard life makes one
use hard words, l suppose, poor Lucy!
NO" returned 81 have not. But then
he says that little sums are so embarrassing,
and that he would rather settle at the months
/ end"
"Did he say that ?" cried Mrs Brown, in a
state of great excitement. go, the wretch
| o, the base deceiverl Does he speak with a
lisp, this Mr.. Conroy? Does he call little sums
little thumbs? Pray, tell me, for Pm all in a
twitter."
"Well," said /, "Pm sure | can't tell how
you guessed it, Lucy; but certainly he has
that popularity. Many persons of good con-
dition have it, you know"
| "rll condition him !" cried Lucy "Pll let
him know that he shan't rob nv helpless
babes with impurity That very man I'm
sure it's he-lodged with me just when set
| up business in the letting line. Hisname was
Somers then; but he had that same excuse
about settling at the months end. Jemima
| Anne, go and fetch policeman"
The child thus addressed was about to start
off delighted on this errand, but set my back
| against the door.
"Lucy Brown" exclaimed /, "this shall not
be. You may be all wrong from first to last.
Now, the way to find out for certain will be
this do you and Mr. Brown come and take
| tea with us this very evening, and then you
shall look through the keyhole of our Spare
Room, and see whether our ledger the same
as your Mr.. Somers."
(Which if he is, I'll haste him." observed
Lucy, taking up a hearth-brush, and looking
more formidable than i should ever have
given her credit for.
had never believed any of those stories
about Mrs. Browns complete subjugation of
her nuSDanu until then. lie was once a SER
geant-major in the army, and stands six feet
three in his stocking-feet; still the power of
a woman's eye is, l believe, almost inconceiv
able-althoughi it was never necessary for me
to use it with Mivins.
Well, they came-these two-to Vande-
leur Terrace; and before we sat down to tea,
what do you think ?-I observed that there
was something odd about Mrs. Browns dress,
although crinoline does hide most things
she actually had that hearth-brush stuck
through her pocket! The law wouldn't right
her, she said so she was determined to right
herself with the strong hand, in case my
ledger was the man anticipated. The SER
geantmajor was to stand in the passage, and
see that he made no resistance. Thought
this most dreadful proposition, and insisted
upon no snch thing taking place in my house;
but Mivins, am sorry to say, opposed me
point-blank. He even suggested that /, who
had been wronged also by this gentleman,
should assist Mrs. Brown, while he himself
assisted the sergeant-major in overawing the
foe. | wonder what Aunt Bertha would have
said had she heard him make such proposal
How earnestly hoped that my ledger would
not come in that evening-would never come
back at all or, better still that he would
turn out to be the Mr.. Adolphus Conroy
which his manners and appearance had al
ways led me to expect-the personal descrip-
ton which Mrs. Brown had given of Mr..
SOmerS tallvinO 81 aceurately with his own