The Potter journal. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1857-1872, 1866-05-15
UNCLE INGOT.

IL ever 1Vu Ut lOuls SSt u'S pOuoNS OO
of me, madam before die, promise you
you shall have five thousand ; and | am
man Of my word So spoke Mr.. 1Ogo
. Beardnore, drysatcr and common coun
: Gilman of the city Of London, TO Dorothe;
Elizabeth, his widowed sister,in- law, wht
; had applied to him for pscuuiary succo
about three months after the death of hi
youRger brother Isaac. her hus baud. Their
were harshness and stubborn determination
enough in his reply, but there was no mig
gard cruelty. Mrs. Isaac wanted money
it is true, but only in the sense in whicL
We all want it. She was only poor in com
parison with the great wealth of this rel
atiVe by marriage Her income was large
enough for auy ordlnary-Mr. IDgOt sale
Legitimate purpose, but not suficien
for sending her boy to Eton, ,and finishing
him off at the universities, as it was the
maternal wish to do. Mr.. Ingot hateC
such geuteel intentions Christ's Uospita
had been a fashionable enough school fol
him, and he had finished off, as a CLERK
at forty pounds a year IN that very re-
spectacle house of which be was now the
senior partner. With the result of that
education, as exemplifed in himself, be
was perfectly satisfied, ,and if his nepheWs
only turned out half as well, their mother
he thought, might thiuk herself uncom-
monty lucky. Her family had given
themselves airs upon the occasion of her
marrying Isaac, ,-''allying herself with
commerce" some of them called it,-and
Lngot had never fogiven them, He glo-
ried in bis profession, although govern
meut had never seen fit to enOblc any
member Of it, and perhaps all the more
on that account; for he was of those rad
icals who are not 'snobs" at heart, but
rather aristocrats He honestly believed
that noblemen and gentleman were the
lower orders, and those who toiled and
siroye, the upper crust Of the human pie.
When he was tod that the former classes
often tolled and stroVe in their own way
as much as the others, be made 4 gesture
yi contempt, and % eS' like al exaspe-
rated whale. 1t was a vulgar sort of re-
tort, Of course but SO emineutIy expressive
that his opponent rarely pursued the sub
ject.
He rather liked his sister-in-law. In
spite of her good birth, aud would have
doubtless, largely assisted her had she
consented to bring up her children aecor-
ding to bis views but since she preferred
to take her own way, he withdrew him.
self more and more from her society unit
they saw nothing at all of one another He
ha3 no intention of leaving his money
away from his brothers children he had
much too strong a sense Of duty for that
and as for marriage, that was an idea that
never entered into his hard old head He
had not made fool of himself by falling
in love in middle age, as Isaac had done
P in youth, he had not time for such fol
lies and il was not likely that at sixty.
five he should commit any such impru-
dence. So his Dephews ane nieceS felt
confident Of being provided for IN the
future. In the present, however. as time
went on, and the education of both girls
and boys grew more expensive, Mrs Isaac
income became greatly straitcned. Her
own family very much applauded the ex-
pensive way in which she was bringing uI
her children, and especially her indepan.
deDce of spiri. with relation to her trades.
man brother in law, but they never assisted
her with a penny. The young gentleman
at Cambridge was therefore kept upon
very short allowance ; and the young Ia
dies. whose beauty was something re.
markabIe, affected white muslin and wore
10 meretricious jeweiry. Their pin money
was very limited, poor things, aud they
made their own clothes at home by the
help of a sewing machine If Uncle In-
got could have seen them thus diligently
employed, his heart would perhaps have
softened towards them, but,a have said
they now never got that chance. Julia
the elder, had been but six years old
when he had last called at their highly.
rented but dimutive habitation in MayfaiI
and now she was eighteen, and had never
seen him since Although she had OF
course grown out of the cd mans recol.
lection, she remembered his fgure-bead
as she wickedly called his nged features
uDcommonIy WELL and, indeed, nobody
who has ever seen it was likely to forget
it. His countenance was not SO much
human as ligneous''; and bis profile Neph,
ew Jack had actually seen upon certain
noble tree in the Hme-walk of Clare Hall
at Cambridge,-much more like than any
Silhouette ever cut out Of black paper.
They had laughed at the old gentleman in
early days, and snapped their fingers at
bis churlishness, but it had become no
laughing matter now.
That remark of Uncle IDgot's, 'Ifeyer
you or yours get FIVE pounds out of me,
madam, before | die. l promise you, you
shall have FIVE thousand and am a man