The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1871-06-16


around for while and on coming back
heard of and their fine attire took me
by surprise, and on comparing their
finer clothes to my own, the comparison
was anything but pleasing and | went
to fashionable tailor and ordered a
complete outfit in the latest styles.
The following day began my duties
and in a few hours several OF the fine
gentry came in to the store to make
trifling purchases and casual acquain-
lance sprung up which became daily
more intimate. My money was deposited
in the bank and my wages were reason
able. After some time | became better
acquainted and my friends. became
more intimate and invited me to the
opera with them, they paying all bills
and inviting me to their rooms and
when | told them where my quarters
were they told me that | must change
them for a more fashionable hotel and
of course | consented Now begins a
career that promised gloriously. | en-
gagged with delight in all that was pro-
posed, balls, routs, parties, operas and
all the fashionable dissipation of a
winter in the city. | soon began to
neglect my business and was reproved,
and demanded my papers OF dismisslon
and received them and went further
up town. Next | joined club which
met weekly to discuss women and wine
fashions and play at cards.
All this time | had spent but little
and had learned the genteel arts of
smoking, drinking and swearing polite
| w. | hirted with the ladies and my
companion instructed me how to act
and | became in my opinion, quite ire
sistible. | learned to play games OF
| hazard and ventured small sums and
won, ventured again and won, ventured
and lost fluctuating between gains and
hopes still on the whole lost steadily.
Ali this was accompanied by drinking
and one night for the first time, two
comrades more steady than myself as
sisted me to my lodgings. On awaken
ing in the morning violent headache
sense of wrong made me deeply penl'
tent and a resolution was formed to alb
stain from such acts In the future but
seeing the beaming cOuntenances OF my
friends and listening to their rally put
my newly 1edged resolutions to flight.
Again a change Of place but still my
wages were too small for my manner OF
living and | was compelled to draw on
my banker. The harder | gambled the
heavier were my hopes, and, besides, my
friends frequently borrowed small sums
of money which they singularly forgot
to return. During this time letters from
home came often but | never replied
and my father came to see me but |
determined not to see him and so. he
came and went without any sight of me.
soon heard of the death of my mo-
ther and the only griefl felt was ex-
pressed by dressing in n full suit OF
black. | had been in the city three
years and my means were nearly eX-
hausted, but | had learned the art of
living well, and slowly eked out my bal
ance. Day by day it slowly disappear
ed my position was lost, and | tried to
WOO the daughter of a millionaire, and
at last succeeded in marrying lady Of
| beauty and wealth, who was unac-
quainted with my former mode of life,
and believed my astounding falsehoods,
and fondly loved me, and her wealth
secured me further lease Of idleness
and dissipation. We were married in
the latter part of summer, and started
! to make a tour of the Western and
! Southern States. All! these were hap
by days Free from my old com
panions, became q new man, and en-
! ioyed the society Of my wife, who loved
me fondly. Before spring my mother.
in-law died, and we returned home and
began housekeeping in my father-in-
| l. Ii h,
the death of his wife induced melan-
| choly, and in few months he suddenly
died. Ny wife deeply lamented the
loss Of her parents, whom she loved
with all the affection Of a warm heart,
and | tried with all the philosophy at my
command to console her, and, failing in
this, sought my companions again, and
resumed my pace on the tread-mill of
dissipation Ny wife's property came
into my hands, and enabled me to pay
my debts, and dive deeper in the hell
of fashionable vice. A year had passed,
and beautiful babe came to bring sun.
shine to our home, and recall my wife
to new duties, and she became livelier
and more companionable, and | spent
more Of my time at home.
The news came informing me Of the
decease of my father. 1t was seven
teen years since had left home, and of
course | felt less concerned than
would otherwise have done. The rea-
son of mourning was only recess from
dissipation. Year after year | plunged
deeper and more recklessly in the
whirlpool of dissipation. Then our
child sickened and died, and its mo-
Their, who had lived but Tor it, and
whose life was centered in it, pinned
away; she was lonely and | had forgot
ten her, with shame | say it now, and
once, in q moment Of intoxication,
struck her. She reeed and fell, and a
stream of blood issued from between
her thin lips it sobered me | stopped
to raise her and place her on sofa,
called her the pet names she used to
love, and restored her to consciousness,
then ran for a doctor, and we nursed
her carefully for days, and the doctor
said it was some unusual strain on her
gx,stop, A Lost she bacoma conval oS.