Connecticut western news., 1873-08-08
IN A MAD HOUSE.
The Story of an Eldest Son,

am the eldest son of gentleman
 who had good property in one of the
 northern counties of England. I had
 one brother, year younger than
 myself-a wild, dissipated gambler.
 Often have paid his debts out of my
 own allowance, rather than let my
 father know of his misdeeds. Each
 time I did so William-my brother was
 so called promised never to touch a
 card or back a horse again and each
 time, after a few weeks quiet life, he
 returned to his evil courses with re-
 doubled energy, and soon got as much
 in debt as ever. When I was about
 twenty-eight years old my father died,
 leaving me heir to all his property,
 which was entailed. Hitherto I had
 lived a quiet country life but now,
 forced by business to frequent the busy
 haunts of men, I began to like the ex-
 elements of the world and the gay
 pleasures of society. Rich, good-look-
 ing, and easy-tempered, was soon fa-
 vorite with those whom I came in contact with. Simple in the ways of the world,
 and unsuspicious by nature, I was silly
 enough to suppose that it was the man
 and not the money they courted and it fattered my pride and conceit to be so much thought of and sought after. To crown my happiness, grew fondly attached to @ beautiful girl, who seemed to return my love and before I had known her many months we were en- gagged. Ineed not tell you her name, nor need l give you a description of her, more than in saying that she was tall, dark, with long raven locks and black, flashing eyes of rathera Spanish beauty commanding and imperious- looking. I was intoxicated with her type of beauty, and worshiped her madiy. I obeyed every look or gesture, and, blinded by my foolish, insane love, 1 became her abject slave, only living for the pleasure of serving her and being near her.
 Oh fool, idiot that I was, to SUD- pose that such as she could love @ poor, weak, silly creature like me But soon l was to be undeceived. My brother came to stay with me at the same time that she and her mother were visiting me. He, too, seemed struck with her beauty and told me, in joking, laugh ing sort of way, what a lucky fellow I was.
 "You elder brothers, he said-half I thought" are always in luck, in love or war. With nice snug income, and dear old country place, you are going to marry the handsomest woman in England, with whom you are deeply in love, and no wonder; and who, as matter of course," he added, with half-sneering smile, :" is equally devoted to you or your acres. Oh, happy accident of birth Now look at he unhappy younger son, as illustrated oy myself. Unlucky at my birth, the same evil genius pursues me through fife. Born with the same, or rather ;en times greater, desire to enjoy the
 good things of this life,' brought LID together in comfort and luxury, and not educated in a manner to fit me for fight ng in the battlefield of life, come o mans estate, and discover myself de- pendent on the generous bounty of brother, whose only claim to superior is the fact of coming into the world year before me-"
 So saying, he turned and hurriedly eft me. felt grieved that he should in lis heart blame me for his want of luck. had always given him what consider d to be just proportion of my yearly | ACOLuO, UuI II n0 naQ reC01V6u ten | ines that amount, it would all have ,one in betting and gambling, and in CIV months he would have been as poor s ever.
 Things went on quietly and without hange for week or two. Then I be- an to be sensible of change in her 'ehavior to me. I could not say in 7hat. Only now she seemed to avoid 'eing alone with me, and at times spoke hortly and impatiently to me. For a ong time I tried to make myself believe 7as only fancy; but by degrees the it cart breaking truth forced itself on ne. She was ceasisg to love me. Per- aps learning to love another. If so, Tho was 1t who was robbing me of my 1ol? Who could it be but my own rother. Alas, alas how could it be therwise :? Living in the same house, leeting every hour of the day, was it ossible for my brother to resist such erfection Still, I might be mistaken, nd determined to watch them close 7. For days I saw nothing to indicate nat my surmises were correct, and I egan to think that it was but lover's ears, and my heart grew light and appy again and I went to find her, ] ,tending to tell her of my idle, ground sss suspicious.