The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1868-02-05
MRS. BADGERY.

me from Mrs. BadgeryT
[ am a bachelor, and Mrs. Badgery
is widow Let nobody rashly mag
inc that am about to relate a COM
mon-place grievance, because | have
suffered that first sentence to escape
my pen. My objection to Mrs
Badgery is, not that she is too fond of
nae, but. that she is too fond of the
memory of her late husband She
has not.attempted to marry me; she
would not think of marrying me, even
if | asked her Understand, there
fore, if you please, at the outset, that
my grievances In relation to this widow
lady is a grievance of an entirely new
Let me begin again. | am bache-
lor of a certain age. | have. a large
circle of acquaintance but | sol
EMMY declare that the late Mr..
Badgery was never numbered in the
list of my friends. | never heard of
him in-my life; I never knew that he
had left a relict; | never set eyes
upon Mrs. Badgery until one fatal
morning when | went to see if the fix
lures were all right in my new house.
My new house is in the suburbs. |
looked.at it, liked it, took it. Three
times visited it before I sent my fur
niture In. Once with friend, once
with a. surveyor, once by myself, to
throw a sharp eye, as have already
intimated, over the fixtures The
third visit marked the fatal occasion
on which | first saw Mrs. Badgery.
A deep interest attaches to this event,
and l shall go into details in describ-
ing it.
I rang at the bell Of the garden
door. The old woman appointed to
keep the house answered it. | direct
ly saw something strange and con-
fused in her face and manner. Some
men would have pondered little and
questioned her. / mzby nature i'm
petuous and rusher at conclusions.
Drunk" [ said to myself, and walk
ed on. into the house perfectly salts
fed. Hp
[ looked into the front parlor.
Crate all right, curtain-pole all right,
gas chandelier all right. l looked
into the pack parlor-ditto, ditto, dit
to. as@we men of business say. I
mounted the stairs. Blind on back
window right? Yes; blind aon back
window right. Esopened the door of
the front drawing-room-ana there,
sitting in the middle ofthe bare floor,
was alsrge woman on-a little camp
stool s She was dressed in thesdeepest
mourning, her face was hidden by the
thickest Grape veil / ever saw, and
she was groaning softlyto herself in
the desolate solitude of mysnew I'M
furnished house. = .
What did l do? Do! Ibounced
back into the landing as if l had been
shot. uttering the nationalSexclama-
ton Of terror and astonis
HulloI" (And hereI particularly
beg in parenthesis, that the printer
will follow my spelling eof the word,
and not put Hillo, or Halloa, instead.
both Of which are accompanies,
whichsrepresent no sound that ever
yet issued from any EngFs hman's
lips). Il said "HulloP.' ands then [
turned around fercely upon the old
woman who kept the house.sand said
Hulfo!" again. =
ShesuDdere TODD the irresistible APP
peal that [ had made to her feelings,
and courtesied, and looked towards
the drawing and humb1y hoped
that Twas not startled or put out. |
asked who the Grape covered woman
on the. camp stool was. andEhat she
wanted there. Before the old woman
couldsanswer, the soft groanipg in the
drawing room ceased, and a. muffled
voice, r speaking from behind the
Grape well, addressed me reproach-
fully, and said:
| am the widow of the late Mr..
Badgery"
What did l say in answer? Exact
ly'the words which, | 5f1attef myself,
any other sensible man in my situa-
ton would have said. And what
words were they? These tw0s
Oh, indeed"
Mr. Badgery and myself were the
last tenants who inhabited this
house, continued the mufffed voice.
Mr.. 'Badgery died here" The
voice. ceased. and the soft groans be-
gan again.
1t was perhaps not necessary to an
Twer this; but I did answer i How?
Ha!
Our house has been long empty"
resumed the voice, chek ed by sobs.
Our establishment has heen broken
up. Being left in reduced circum-
stances, [ now live in cottage near;
but tits not home to- me. sThis is
home .GHowever long I live, wherever
| go, whatever changes may happen
to this beloved house, nothing can
ever prevent me from looking on it as
mig home | came here, sir,with Mr..
B dgery, a ter our honeymoon. All
the bret happiness of. my life was
once CONTAINED within these Jour.
walls.7, Every dear remembrance that
fondly cherish is shut up in these