Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1867-12-27
Ey "A LONDON OMNIBUS.
From Chambers journal.

From Chambers journal
Few of the habitual jewellers In London
have occasion to visit the city less FIRE.
ouently than have. 1have never set foot
inside the mansion Of the Old Lady OF
Threadneedle street in my life. To me the
Stock Exchange is complete terra ia,cog-
nit0. OF the thousand-and-one different
methods of coming money, as practised by
merchants, bankers, brokers, and that
countless army which fiocks cityward
every weekday morning from nine till
eleven, know absolutely nothing. Mel
Their, to the best Of my belief, has the
money article of the Times ever been read
by me from beginning to end. Yet, not
withstandipg all this, it so happened that,
on certain rare occasions, | have been COM
PEELED, by "urgent private affairs" to Join
the throng Of city bees for few hours,
and wing my way eastward with the
swarm. AT such times I have generally
chosen to survey mankind from the box
seat of an omnibus, as from "coigne of
vantage" not to be surpassed and hardly
equaled, for any one who loves to watch
the wonderful, ver-shifting panorama of
London life.
On one such occasion--now several
years ago-the morning was so intolerabIy
rainy that l was obliged to give UP all
thought of my favorite perch with the
driver, and content myself with the hum
bier position of an inside. At that time |
was only Extraordinarily years old, and
had been in London about couple of
years, having been sent up from my far-off
home, in one Of the northern counties to
attend the classes of, and to study under, a
certain then famous analytical chemist. On
the morning to which have Just referred,
alter waiting twenty minutes In the rain,
was glad to find a vacant place inside one
OF the numerous city buses that passed
the ED OF the street in which my rooms
were situated. After having squeezed into
my place, and been well scowled at for
my pains, proceeded to take stock Of nv
companions in misery. We were eleven
men and one woman. All of us men were
more or less moist, and each of us bad o
very damp umbrella. We had all put on
our severe business air, end we were all
more or less suspicious Of the company
in which we found ourselves; and-in con.
sequence, perhaps, of the badness Of the
weather-we were all mere than usually
inclined to bully the conductor, and to poke
him viciously in the ribs with the ferrules
of our umbrellas.
But the twelfth insideP Well, she was
lady, young and nice looking into the
bargain and enveloped with the prettiest
air OF unconsclousuess that she was In the
company of eleven blocks of wood, rather
than IN that of as many beings of flesh and
blooc. not quite unsusceptible, let us hope
to the charms Of female loneliness.
have no doubt, in my own mind, that Il
she had travelled any length of time In our
company, the mere fact Of her presence
would have softened our manners, anc
have weaned US in some measure from
that touch me-not booriShness with which
as rule, all passengers by omnibus love
to cloak themselves But fortunately, @,
unfortunately, as the case may be, Journey.
by omnibus are of short duration and ou]
young lady asked to be set down at Tho
corner of Cheapside. Previously to this
however, we had stopped some half dozer
times to let down and take up other pas
sengers, all of them of the masculine gen
der, so that | was beginning to look upor
myself quite in the light of an old acoualnt
ance, when our young lady got UP &c
leave u.s. l was sitting next the door q,
she alighted, and could not help noticing
how pale she seemed all at once to have
become. Without needing the rain tha
still Kept falling, she began to feel for hel
purse In trembling, nervous sort of
way, first in one pocket, and then In tn,
other.
have either lost my purse, or els.
my pocket has been picked" she said a
last, with sort of gasp.
The conductor expressed no surprise
but merely put fresh straw in his mouth
and then asked us "gents" to move Will,
he looked for the purse, which, If youn!
ladies were bus conductors" hemurmure(
to himself "they would learn to take bet
care of their money"
But the purse was not to be found. at
it really amt anywhere about you
miss" said the conductor, as he emerged
from among the straw, then your poke
has been picked. How much was there il
it?''
Half sovereign and five and sixpenc,
In silver" answered the young lady will
tears trembling on her eyelids. ,"But tina
was not all. 1t also contained valuabl,
diamond ring, the property of the lady will
whomI am living, and which was takin.
to Jewelers. not far from here to be re
paired"
The conductor turned an eye of compass
sion on her. "Well, I'm blowed =" h
muttered; "to think of anybody in thei
senses being so green" Then turnin,
quickly on the remaining insides, b
scanned us over one by one, ending with
solemn shake of the head. "Can do moth
ing for you, miss" he said. :" You ha,
better 60 to the police and give them a de
scription of your property. l knows mos
OF my morning passengers for respectable
city gents; but there was one fshy-look
ing cove-him as gotin at Edgeware road
and satnext you, miss, all the way to Pal
Kingdom street-what didn't like the look
of; and if your purse was taken by any
body after you got into the bus, I'll la
odds that was the cove as took it. An
wasn't he downy looking card o, no
not q bit of it," And the conducto
winked at me portentously, to signify ths
his last remark was meant for "sal
kasum."
"But haven't even money left to pa
my fare with" urged the young lady.
Half adozen purses were out at ono