Mineral Point weekly tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1859-1868, 1864-01-27

who. being in reduced circumstances, had
commenced the e Furnished Apartment"
business two or three years ago, and after
several misadventures, pertaining, | suppose,
to all commandments, was succeeding init TO
a marvel. Success was not so much ar OBJ
ject as security; we wanted ledger, not as
a means of livelihood but simply as garrl-
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 md
ing from their relatives, and their relatives,
sometimes refuse TO settle their Dllls upon
their restoration TO the domestic circle; and
don't take very old gentlemen, for they some
times decease in the house, and there Is
difficulty in getting the parish to hury them
This advice seemed rather hard IN Lucy
(whom remember all heart, or nearly so
but 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 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
preston but Mr. Conrov was really pattern
lodger He was little ''high" in his manner
to me but then how could he know that |
was not dependent upon his custom, like
other landlades Doubtless, thought |, he
regards me a harpy who will burn his Goals
and drink his tea, and lay the decrease of his
butchers meat to the account of the cat-so
| was patient with his superclious ways
He was really very nice-looking: he had
must say, an aristocratic air about him very
different from Mivins-who, however, Is
worth all the aristocrats in the world; his
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
| couple of pipes, and then retire for the night.
| He never made Il complaint Of any sort, nor
| any observation upon the weekly bills, save
| one-that they were ride1aOtsag ctcap.
| Really, Mrs. Mivins," observed he, at the
| end of the second week, :" cannot think
| how you manage; | couldn't keep myself up
| on twice the money. You must really give
| me your receipt for such economy" But he
j 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
| lOdger; he never offered to pay one sixpence
| 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 are
/ dear-I thought I'd go and see my profess
sionaI adviser, Mrs. Brown.
"What :" says she, when | had confded 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 l ~ 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
| state of great excitement 40, the wretch
! O, the base deceiver! Does he speak with a
| lisp, this Mr. Conroy? Does he call little sums
little thumbs Pray, tell me, for Pm all in
twitter."
well" said /, "Tm sure can't tell how
YOU guessed it, Lucy; but certainly he has
that peculiarly. Many persons of good con
dition have it, you know"
"Tll condition him :" cried Lucy " I'll let
him know that he shan't rob my helpless
babes with impunty. That very man-Tm-
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 l 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 isthe same
as your Mr.. Somers."
(Which if he is, I'll baste him." observed
Lucy, taking up hearth-brush, and looking
more formidable than ! should ever have
given her credit for.
| had never believed any of those stories
about Mrs. Browns complete subjugation of
| her husband until then. He was once ser
geant-maOr in the army, and stands six feet
three in his stocking-teet; still the power of
a woman's eve is, | believe, almost inconceiv-
able-althOugh it was never necessary for me
TO use it with Mivns.
Well, they came-these two-tO Van e-
leur Terrace; and before we sat down to ca.
what do YOU think Il 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 determined TO right
| herself with the strong hand, in case my
ledger was the man anticipated. The ser
geant-mdjor was to stand in the passage, ard
see that he made no resistance. thought
this a 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 l, 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 Be. tha would have
/ sad had she heard him make such a proposal
/ How earnestly hoped that NV iodger would
! not come in that eyening-wculd never come
| back at all; or, better still that he would
/ turn out TO be tie Mr.. Adolphus Conroy
/ which his manners and appearance had al
/ ways led me to expedite personal descrip-
! ton which Mrs. Brown had given of Mr.
! Somers, tallying so accurately with his own,
/ however, that this last hope was very faint
/ indeed.
| At 6:I5, Is usuai, the uususpecting man
/ came home, and We could scarcely prevent
| the avenging female on the first floor from
| descending upon him forthwith when She