Lexington advertiser. [volume] (Lexington, Miss.) 1838-187?, 1870-06-03
MISCELLANEOUS.
FIEL'S DELICATE CASE.

FIEL'S DELICATE CASE.
WHEN Mrs. Fiel was a bride, all th
spectators agreed that she was prett
and interesting girl, who would make
fine woman when she came to I'LL Ou
But she never did fill out; ON the cor
trary, Time, that stole her years away
robbed her of plumpness, too and afte
thirty anniversaries of that wedding day
she was considerably more slender thai
at starting. She wore curls, and blacl
band round her forehead, and mittens--
not knowing that these things had lon,
ceased to make her attractive, and, on
generally as being somewhat of guy
in all England, and that is infinitely NOR,
important than comeliness and tasteful at
tire, as you will own before you have beer
married for quarter of century.
Excellent at all times, Mrs. Fiel cul
minated at meals. Call no man happy til
you have seen him at breakfast; natura
irritability in Mr.. Fiel's disposition hat
been almost entirely cured by little sooth
ing comforts and tit-bits. He was a 50
licitor, with an Office in London, and {
semi detached villa in the suburbs, who
had to leave the latter at to reach tht
former by 10 every morning. This neces
STATED breakfast at 8, but even at thai
early hour Mrs. Fiel saw to every detail
herself
1t would have shaken very confirmed
bachelor to have seen her table one spring
morning few years ago-the linen was
so white, and the tea 80 black, the water
crosses and radishes so fresh, the marina
lade and apricot jam so daintily set out
the eggs SO new looking, the loafso brown
and crusty, the dry toast so crisp and
thin. And when she heard the tread oi
3 her husbands foot on the staircase, and
the flourish on his nose which invariably
heralded his approach, she rang the bell
for the appetizing little covered dish,
which matched and fitted the slop.basin
to be brought up. This contained frizzled
slices OF ham or bacon, delicate and curled
a sausage, kidney, or the savory thigh
of chicken. May such be your only do
mestic broilsl
A hale, neat man, with sharp gray eyes,
and very good opinion of himself, en-.
tered and looked at his letters, selecting
and opening one at once.
"Well, Martha" said he, "the Chip
chow has arrived at last"
"You don't say 80! Then Mr.. Lobyear
will be here presently. Will he come to
stay with us, do you think ?"
II don't know. You had better have a
bed ready; though expect he has not
come to England with the idea of shut
ting himself up with an old man and wo-
man four miles from the Marble Arch.
Still, as everything will be strange to him
at first. he may accept my invitation for a
night or two."
This Mr.. Thomas Lobyear is rich, is
he not?"
"Will be, suppose. At present he
probably depends upon his father, who
ly liberal srdersj about him. From living
SO long amongst savages, the old man
must have lost all idea of the value of
money. However, there is plenty Of it
accumulating, and it does not matter to
me-"
Don't you think" said Mrs Fiel," it
might be we'll to have Sarah homer"
Sarah, the only child of the Fiels, was
at finishing school at Clifton, but she
was seventeen, and woman.
"Ah, ah, ah /" laughed the lawyer "At
your match making, old lady? From
what am advised, he is proof against
your attempts Besides which, it would
be something like breach of trust; old
Lobyear has evidently got other views
for his son than marrying him at present
at any rate to an English woman"
"Why, he would never go and match
him with heather, with ring through
her nose, like pig"
II don't know that" replied Mr.. Fiel,
laughing; " if he could discover a new
weed or a fresh variety of black bee
tie by it, he certainly would"
1t was of good augury for Mrs. Fiel
when her husband laughed, and better
when he replied to her observations, in
stead of looking deaf and grunting, which
, he generally did if she alluded to his
clients or their business; for it showed
that he was willing to be pumped, and
Mrs. Fiel's thirst for information was
great, though it was rarely slaked. In the
present instance, however, the lawyer
4 thought he might require feminine aid in
I the task which he had undertaken, and
was therefore not unwilling to admit his
! wife into his confidence.
.f "Ah," said he, "that was curious idea
for rich man to Danish himself COM
pletely, and give up civilized life, for the
sake of studying botany and butterflies in
Japan. For poor man, indeed, 1t would
be explicable if he expected to make
something by it in the end"
"But from what you say, Mr.. Lobyear
has more money than LIE knows what to
4 do with as it is.'
"Yes; he was well off originally, and
got good property through his wife. be-
sides"
"Ah, poor man; dare say grief for hel
death gave him o craze"
"Fudge!" exclaimed Mr.. Fiel, somewhat
rudely. "He was glad enough to be free
toIgo hunting on his favorite hobby. Il
she had lived another year, it is my
opinion that he would have bolted and
left her"
"Ah, WELL" said Mrs. Fiel, cit is for
tunate thing for him, or at any rate fol
this son, that he fixed on so good man O.
business as yourself to look after his in
terests"
"Well," replied her husband, com
placently, considering that the bulk O.
bis property is in houses situated in
rapidly improving neighborhood, and thai
the tenants are up to all sorts of dodges tt
avoid having their rents raised, perhaps
an agent who was not sharp might mis-
an advantage here and there. For in
stance, there was an application for re
newal of lease the other day, and dis
covered that the tenant, who had beer
paying forty pounds year, had underle
for the last three years at hundred sHt
ten"
"Lor, how sharp you arel"
4 "Well, I was not born in Yorkshire fol
nothing. do not know of more than on'
person who ever regularly took me in
that young rascal, Tom Scott, who robbed
me five years ago."
"Ah, that was very shocking" said th'
X good wife, soothingly;" but then, yol
Il know, he was brought up in your Office
"Why, Martha Do you suppose
then, that he learned dishonesty there
never expected an epigran of that sor
from your mouth. I would have yol
Y. know that could put at least coupl
\ of thousand year in my pocket from tn
\ Lobyear property alone, without chanc'
Of detection, if chose to be dishonor
y able. 1,.-. .,sr
II am sure never meant to call yoy
IA an epigram or any other name," criet
Mrs. Fiel, astonished at this outbreak. :"
Y only said that breach Of trust was cas-,
Il for that Scott, because he had been unde
4 you for some time and probably he ha'
a opportunities"