The Republican journal., 1871-03-09
John Randail's Troubles.
"Will you let me have it, John ?'

JOnn RandaIfS troubles.
"Will you let me have it, John ?"
mo, Georgy, l can't"
John Randall uttered his refusal of his
wife's request very decidedly, as if he felt
the request was unreasonable, and yet
there was an undercurrent Of grieved i'm
patience in his voice, q look of perplexity
and self-satisfaction in his eyes. He pro-
| ceeded very slowly to unbutton his over
coat. He wanted to see his wife rise
| from the breakfast-tab and thereby sig
nifty her acquiescence in his decision, be-
| fore he went off for his mornings work
at the MILL
| Georgy, however, did not rise. Her
| looks did not express acquiescence. She
was q pretty woman-very pretty; tall,
slight, very fair, with large. clear, steady
eyes, and profuse brown hair. Besides
| her beauty, she had an air of delicate,
graceful composure rather peculiar, and
q voice that suggested alto flute notes.
For all this, she was simply the wife of a
master machinist in the great Halliburton
| Print Works Of Millville, and mistress OF
one of the small, white factory tenements,
whose long. orderly rows constituted
Millville proper.
| But Georgy did not belong to the facto-
ry element, although she had married in
to it. She had been brought up by a rel
ative, upon whom she had been left de-
pendent, and whom she called Aunt APP
pleton. Aunt Appleton lived at the other
end of Appleton-the west end-among
the Haliburtons and Dlloways and
Veres.
Perhaps. under the circumstances,
Georgy might have looked little higher
than John Randall. But then John was
good as gold; strong, steady, manly,
true, Aunt Appleton's pretty, dependent
protegc had the sense to rejoice at her
perception, and Aunt Appleton had the
her furniture, complete wardrobe,
nice wedding.
1t had been very agreeable to Georgy
to the core. She enjoyed advantages of
position-her good clothes, her prestige
among the wives of the other officials in
perhaps little too fastidious for her
place.
John Randall had reached his last but
ton, a somewhat shiny button on some
what shabby coat He had neither time
/ llul EItlCAL loI llupClllS. At llllS ldSl
| moment his wife raised her eyes, clearly,
unflinchingly, to his face
| "Why not ?" she asked, in her cold,
sweet voice.
1t is never pleasant to a man to be
called to an account about money-and
of course it was money Georgy wanted
by a woman, and that woman his wife.
Johns face flushed little, hot retort
II, 7.
did not utter it. He was a patient man
naturally; and then he had that deep,
sure love FOR his pretty wife which over
reaches all slight shocks.
Il have exceeded my salary every
month since we were married, Georgy,"
he said. 'The first of January will be
here in a few weeks, and | shall not be
able to meet all the bills that are due.
don't feel that we ought to trtle away a
penny of money. | don't believe you do
either, DEAR.
81 shall not say any more about it,"
she returned. II ought to wear Il new
pair of gloves to call on Paul's bride.
But if you can't give them to me. must
do without them"
John Randall's grain was fine enough
to understand that this was not the ac-
quiescence he wanted. He would have
liked to indulge her, but there was the
fact, that if he began it. he should be al
ways behind hand, always poor.
This was his fact Georgy had hers
also-that she was always to be denied
and disappointed. She didn't mind so
much about wearing the old gloves on
this particular occasion; that which
troubled her, which was wedging itself
painfully into her conviction, was, that
she would have to give up all the little
luxuries and elegancies that she so much
craved; that her future was to be plain,
matter-of-fact routine, deprived of those
qualifications in whose absence she felt
sort of moral starvation.
''It don't seem as if you ought to be
disappointed, Georgy," said the husband,
finally. ''You know what my salary is,
and just how far it will go. We used to
talk about saving something every year
SO that l might better myself one of these
days. l don't like TO deny you,"
"No matter" she answered, rising
She was one of those women who say
too little rather than too MUCH any time
| John went off to his work. Bridget
| (the girl of all work. came in to clear the
table. Georgy busted the parlor, and
made the pudding, fed the canary, and
| then placed her sewing machine in the
window, facing the dull leaden light of
the November day, and sat down to stitch
wristbands. She had been married more
than year now, and was making the
| first shirts for John She was very
thoughtful, dogged pain in her face all
| the while.
Perhaps I shall stay at Aunt Apple
,S.,{ 10 %n, Nel,, \ l.
the dinner-table. "You will come for
me if do-won't you ?'
He reflected moment.
81 told you last night. Georgy, that 1
should have to be from home an hour or
two this evening. There is a meeting of
the officials of the mill, at half-past seven.
should be too tired to dress and 90 up
to your aunt's afterwards"
II had forgotten she said, quietly-so
quietly that he thought she did not care
When he was gone, she went to her
room to arrange her toilet for her call
She put on the best she had, of course
She had a genius for dress and despite
as she did pretty.
Just as she approached her aunt's gate.
old Mrs. Halliburton, in her velvets and
ossOASo, esiAN ooCCllCoU vi SthS,
was being handed from her carriage by
her son. The Haliburtons were the own
ers of the mill in which John Randall was
employed. Stephen. the only son, had
just returned from five years. residence
abroad. These two facts caused Georgy
to scrutinize the mother and son some
what closely; and, doing so, Stephen
Halliburton raised his hat to her.
"a pretty face" he remarked, careless
ly, to his mother. II suppose it is some
one have known, or should know"
Old Mrs. Halliburton, with her keen
eyes and beak nose, glanced sharply back
towards Georgy. whom she had not per-
ceived, and nodded slightly.
"It is that young person whom Jane
Appleton brought up. She is married
now to one of our men, l believe"
Georgy found Paul Appleton and his
bride holding sort of informal reception
The rooms where her own wedding had
been year before were quite filed with
| guests. A yery dainty and graceful bride