The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1871-07-06
MRS. -NH0PE'S LAST
L0DGER.

Mrs. Arnold Stanhope, o. as som!
persons cerxisted in calling aher-Mrs
Stanup-eked out her narrow incohu
by t~king dodgers. Six years b*for
her husband had died and left her
fine old house at tho West End, an
just five thousand dollars besides. , A
tho best percentage this was very: it'll
with which to take care Of herself an.
her three children-children who's,
ages ranged from thirteen to seventeen
and whose education. was then ;unfiuiph
ed. At the first crisis Mrs. Stanhop'
took counsel with herself and her rela
tives.
"Sell tho house and take q sma]le,
one out of town, on horse-car route
Kate" they one and all advised.
What was their amazemeDt when
after listening to them in apparen,
hecdiufness aud respect, she coolly in
formed them that she had concluded tt
keep the house and rent her rooms tc
lodgers. "Kate, you are crazy" ex
claimed her brotber-in.law. "This
house and lot, in :t!"is locality, would
bring you fifteen thousa;!'1 any day
And with that sum we'll invest>:. and
with what you have, you can live ,>>~r>
nicely out Of town."
"But I don't want to live out of
town, Tom," she answered.
"We don't want to do gvod many
things that we are obliged to do in this
world" Tom Alroyd retorted, little
impatieotly.
"Well, I'm not obliged to do this"
Mrs. Stanhore returned, rather proud.
ly. cts matter of opinion, and I pre-
fer to keep the house. As you say, it
is in very desirable locality. 1t will
be no less desirable for lodgers."
"A matter of opinion, as you declare,
Kate but l should hardly have thought
that you would have prefer, ed to fill
your house with lodgers"
Then Mrs. stanhope flashed out all
there was IN her mind.
"Com, YOU may think me wild, or
Quixotic, or what you like. But until
am actually Obliged to, 1 will never
give up the old Stanhope estate. My
Harry is the last malo descendant Of
the name. | know it Was his fathers
desire that he should succeed to it. a.
ho had done before him. Aud, be-
sides that, ] have sentiment about is
myself. lam proud of the old 1lace,
and l want to keep it in the family.
Much too proud to let it go, Tom,
though you may think l demcan N.Y.
self by taking lodgcrs."
This settled tho matter. Tom Alroyd
had nothing more to say, OF course, but
he nevertheless felt a good deal both of
aisapproval and annoyance. To his
vile Mr.. Alroyd prophesied all manner
Of ill-succesa to Mrs. Stanhope's plan.
Kate was not a business woman. She
would lose money. She would be taken
10 in all sorts Of ways, and lead vexed
and disturbed life, when shc: might lead:
such an easy one comparatively, by fol-
lowing his advice. And the rest of the
relatives hearing this, thought Kate
uas $50 foolish to run against Toms
advice-Tom, who was such safe coua:
selor in all business ratters."
Long before the end Of the six years
VIXEN my story orens Tom Alroyd was
forced to confess that Kate had done
better than he thoul ht she would. She
had certainly msde both ends meet,
aud she had saved little.- It she was
ever taken in, if she was ever: vexed
ard disturbed by the way Of life she
bad chosen, her relatives were nope the
wiser for it. She never complained to
them. AT the end of the six years
Harry was nineteen, in bis senior term
at college, and with good chanoe be-
fore him in great commercial house,
whose firm had known his father, and
therefore felt an interest in the son.
Harry was nineteen. Then came Ellen,
who was two years older; and then
Frances, or, as she was always called,
Frank, with another two years of SEMI
ority. II
When Ellen was twenty she consider
ably surprised her relatives by develop
ing talent for sohool-teachiog. So, at
least, abe spoke OF it, when she walked
in one day with the information that
she had been offered situation in one
Of the gramnar-schools at salary OF
5000. II always suspected had a
talent for this thing, mother, and you
see. .otber people have suspected it to"
She never It'd how she had been wait
Ing for "tbis thing" for a year, and how
this patient waiting aud really splen-
did scholarship, and last but not least,
tie influence cf an Influential man, who
had been Aruold Stauhope's intimate
friend, had at the end Of the year given
her tie situation she had sought. She
wa like her mother in this, that she