The Plymouth Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1869-1941, 1869-10-28

rich wife. Dssolute men are very font
of falling back upon this latter plan fo
retrieving their broken fortunes, bu
women are not quite so foolish rs satirist
make out, and do not always fall in Will
these prudent little arrangements. Nh
Johnstone, however, was more fortunate
the royal resemblance which had been hi
bane, now proved his remedy, and, coupled
with an inSinuation that perhaps ther
mig be a natural reason for it, proved to,
much for the loyal heart of a drysalter'
widow, who was not, as scandal report
ed, quite double her second husband
age, and whose temper was therefore nat
urally soured by the persistency witt
which people whom they met on thei
wedding tour would mistake them fo
mother and son. After his marriage Mr.
JOhnstone happily refrained from assimila
ting his domestic arrangements to thOs,
of his royal prototype, but the ruling pas
sion broke out when he came to build
home iOr himself on small estate belong
ing to his wife near the mouth of til,
Thames, and resulted in the model of tn,
Pavilion alluded to; a style of architec
tUre which suited Mrs. Johnstune alst
well enough, as, in addition to the associa
tons, more than half the rooms in til,
building could be used for nothing but the
storing up of jams and pickles, the con
cOction of which articles was the delight
of her life.
She managed to preserve herself -
whether with sugar or vinegar, l decline
to state-for fifteen years after marriage
and then she turned to mould, leaving hel
had he been SO minded. lie was not
neither did he relapse into the sowing ol
wild oats, perhaps because his morals had
but also because it was doubtful
whether the soil would stand second
crop. He visited London only occasional
ly, and then his flag was pulled down.
Hoisting and lowering that flag was his
and evening amusement. On
royal birthdays and coronation days he
fired twenty-one small cannon, going from
one to another with red-hot poker, which
was quite sight. Otherwise he vegetat-
ed, and differed from turnip principally
in being occasionally bored, and enter
tanning vague wishes that some eligible
woman would look him up and marry
him. But the years passed away; George
the Fourth became the prey of worms
and satirists; a generation sprang up
which knew little of that model gentle
man, and had the bad taste to dislike that
little. Mr.. JOhnstonc could not now have
gone about with ten yards of tablc-cloth
round his neck. and coat buttons between
his shoulder-bladeS, without causing the
very sheep to baa at him He modified his
apparel, therefore; but his heart chung to
the old times, and hugged the old resem-
so he still had his wig made up in
the exact imitation of the ex-dandy's hair,
still adopted his favorite attitudes, still
took scented snuff With his elder
and only brother he had not, OF
late years, been on good terms.
He owed him no grudge for having
been born first; he f0rgave him for selling
the small landed estate which had been in
the family for respectable number of
years; but when he disgraced the nan
by a succession Of petty tricks and con-
trivances for raising Il few pounds, and
when he tried to make a milch
cow of him, he quarrelcd with him. His
enmity dissolved, however, i'm the news of
his death by drowning while crossing over
to Jersey, and he hurried to London at
once, and brought Annie to his Chinese
home. with dispatch and sccresy. al am
glad to adopt you, my dear" he said, "but
do not want to adopt all yOur creditors" !"
II had been a struggle to Mr. JOhnstOnc
to break up the ordinary routine of his
existence by establishing his niece as mis-
tress of what had now for years been n
bachelor home; but it almost always pays
to do the right thing, and he was reward
ed for his conquest of habit and Incidence
rale 1.
a tyrannical, stupid, pilfer-
ing, tipling dame, To whom he had not
dared to mention his intentions with re-
spect to Annie, which, indeed, had from
the circumstances of the case been ncces-
sarily conceived and executed very sud
denly, and upon whom this niece of her
masters Germ of courtesy burst therefore
like thunderbOlt from clear sky. AS
Annie was very young and quiet in man
ner, Mrs. Gobblc hoped at first, indeed, to
Overawe her, but soon finding that she
had met her match, her emotions became
too much for her, and, combined perhaps
with an injudicious amount of nOurish-
ment, brought her gout to such climax
that she could not even play at doing her
work, and had to retire.
Annie's society had one curious effect
upon her uncle; it resuscitated all his
after a second marriage. For
if he was to have lady at the head of his
house, why, he reasoned with himself,
should it not be a wife? So Irritation
which had been budding between Mr..
Johnstone and Miss Plumptree, of South
end, for the last three years, began to
throw out decided shoots 1t was not so
very absurd. Mr.. JOhnstOne was little
over sixty, and Miss Plumptree was little
over forty. Both were comfortably off,
and had calm and sober leanings toward
Miss Plumptrce was not only
forty. but fair and fat-just such figure
as the monarch Of Mr.. JOhnstOnc's soul
would have admired and this fact tended
greatly To- feed the mature flame Then
there was increased intimacy, for whereas
he had only met her occasionally before
his niece came to live with him, he now
saw her almost daily, a fervent friendship
having sprung up between her and
Annie
They were sitting together now in a
willow pattern summer house, on the
brink of small pond the lair of dragon
who was supposed to spout, but who fol-
lowed the example of many gentlemen
similar purpose, and didn't. 1t was in the
strawberry season, and fine dish of the
fruit stood on the table between them,
with which, needle-work, and confidential
chat, they were beguiling the morning not
"And so you have never heard of him
since?" said Miss Plumptree.
Never" replied Annie"
Just like all the men, dear; 'Out of
sight, out of mind"
NAY, | do not blame him, poor fellow.
| do not see how he could have found me
out, if he tried ever so hard, l left so sud-
denly, so mysteriously."
40, WELL" sighed Miss Plumptrec, "if
he had been his great-grandiather, he
would have discovered you somehow but
young men are not what they were; they
are so selfish, so listless, everything is too
much trouble to them. And you never
hinted anything about it to- your uncle "
go, no." said Annie; besides he does
not take hints; you must speak out
Mainly If you want him In uuferat and