The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1869-11-05
sa~coLUMBIA TENNESSEE, FRIDAY NOVEMBER s. 1856.
by man bearing. tray, which contained

by man bearing atray, which contained
oysters, stout, and slices of cold beef
"Since it hurts your feelings to feed me
with your wares, have brought my own
luncheon" said Ned, when he and Annie
were alone again. "There is double what
l can eat, see; will you not help me out
with it - - s.sysT .4yft'l3es * 7
had always q better opinion of Ned
Winston for divining that Annie's larder
might be understocked, and providing her
with meal in this diplomatic manner
and Annie, whow8s faint as well as anxi.
Gus, appreciated it too. 1t sounds shock
ingly unromantic to suppose that eating
and drinking can have any connection
with the affections, yet there seems an in
completeness about either the friendship
or the love upon which the digestive
organs have not set their seal
l do not deny that the more ethereal
kiss may be the correct sigRlvns ameris, but
every corner of the shop was visible from
the street, and q for asking her lover into
the back parlor while her father was alb
sent, Annie was far too correct q young
lady to think of such thing, and, indeed,
Master Ned had not theimpudence to hint
at an invitation of the kind being welcome.
So they ratified their engagement with
oysters and porter seated opposite to each
other at little round marble topped table;
and when the meal was concluded, they
felt as if they had been acquainted for
months. ~ 1s
On returning 80 late to the office the day
before, Ned Winston had been subjected
to troublesome questioning as to what he
had been doing with himself all the time
SO he took care TO leave early to day. an
nouncing his Intention of returning at the
same hour on the morrow.
But on the following morning he was
sent of to Chester with certain important
deeds. That was on the Thursday, and he
uid not get back till Saturday night; and
as he lived at home, some fifteen miles out
of town, with observant relatives, he
could not get away on the Sunday without
exciting awkward curiosity SO that it
was not till luncheon time on Monday that
he entered Dreary street with throbbing
heart The shutters were up at No. 10.
Poor Ned felt for moment as if his heart
and lungs had struck work. Was she
dead? No, no, impossible. Her father,
perhaps; he had disappeared suddenly,
and might have committed suicide. The
idea of disturbing recent sorrow made
him drop the bell-handle without ringing,
and look round for likely place for in
formation. There was brush shop imme-
diately opposite, and the portly dame who
kept it was standing in the doorway, eye
ing him with certain curiosity. She had
a good-natured look about her, so he
crossed the road, and asked her if she
knew what was the matter.
"Lorp n exclaimed the woman 'and
who thought you would perhaps tell me ;
sure you were friend orrelative, or some
thing, 1 thought. going there most days
the last month or morew And she seemed
quite injured -t
only went as IA customer" said
Ned; "but have got to take sort of
interest, and so seeingthe shop shut up"
81 see, see; you look quite pale; come
in and sit down. Lori I've been q young
girl myself and remember hearing how
Jim was took when he first heard I had
the measles. No, it's nothing of that sort !;
she went away quite well, as far as could
see, only crying"
"She has gone away, them" f45
"Bless you, yes; didn't 1 say soe A
gentleman, not her father, came ina cab
at twenty-five minutes past ten yesterday
morning, or perhaps it might be little
nearer the half hour; saw him, because
my room looks out on the street, and was
before the glass putting on my bonnet for
church. My husband used to go to chapel,
and, believe, prefers it now, only won't
put up with nothing so vulgar. What
gentlefolks do you see at chapel? say to
him. Why, look at the carriage company
as goes to church, compared to"
What aged gentleman!" interrupted
Ned.
"Well, middleaged, or, as be was got up
youthful, perhaps we might say elderly.
A fine man, though tall and stoutish, with
. hght-brewn wig, and whiskers dyed to
match Wig and dye know are not nat
ural, because of the crows feet; no man
ever had such crows feet as them without
a bit of gray. Well he got out, and went
into the house, leaving the cab waiting
and as felt sort of intrest in that Miss
Jhonstone, poor thing, her father being
such regular bad un, / waited too, and
gave up my church for once; not but what
l hold that it brings luck to-
Exactly; agree with you. And how
long did the gentleman stops"a
"Till 10 o'clock, keeping the cab wait
ing; which would have been much cheap
er to have paid the first of, and taken an
other. And then he came out followed by
Miss JohnstOne, who had box, which
the cabman took and put on the roof; and
bandbox and umbrella, which she took
inside with her. But first she locked the
'house-door, and took the key out, and as
she turned to get into the cab, saw that
she was crying"
That was ali the information Ned Whis-
ton could get at the time; but when he
revisited the spot later in the day, he found
a weazened man with very sour express
sion on his face coming out of No. TO-
and asked him if he knew what had hap
pened.
"Yes" replied the man, "the fathers
drowned, and the daughters hooked it,
and I am done out Of my rent-that's
what has happened"
II. JOSS HOUSE VILLA.
You are probably under the impression
that no one has ever yet adopted the
Pavilion at Brighton as an architectural
model, and if that is the case, must re-
quest you to dispel the false idea, for joss
House Villa, near Southend, was repro
duction in miniature of that remarkable
edifice. When Mr.. William Johnstone
was a young man and nominal barrister,
it was considered that he bore some resem-
blance in fact, and figure TO the Prince
Regent; and, since nature had nodded
him after the fashion of the first gentle
man in Europe, he considered it his duty
to act conformably SO he dressed himself
hideously, attended prize-fghts and cock
pits, intrigued, played high, got frequently
intoxicated, stuffed his head with pro-
digious quantity of scented snuff, and inn
itated his royal prototype in every other
way that his constitution and purse would
allow. BY the time he was 30, however,
both began to give out, so he wisely de-
termined to retire into the country with q
rich wife. Dtssolute men are very fond
of falling back upon this latter plan for
retrieving their broken fortunes, but
women are not quite so foolish as satirists
make out, and do not always fall in with
these prudent little arrangements. Mr..
Johnstone, however, was more fortunate !;
the royal resemblance which had been his
bane, now proved his remedy, and, coupled
with an insinuation that perhaps there
mig bea natural reason for it. proved too
much for the loyal heart of drysslter's
widow, who was not, as scandal report
ed, quite double her second husbands 8
age, and whose temper was therefore nat
urally soured by the persistency with
which people whom they met on their
wedding tour would mistake them for
mother and son. After his marriage Mr..
Johnstone happily refrained from assimila-
ting his domestic arrangements to those
of his royal prototype, but the ruling pas
sion broke out when he came to build q