The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1874-08-06
and many morning when those shrunk-
en- lips had prayed "God spare and bless

and many morning when those shrunk-
en- lips had prayed "God spare and bless
our son!"
"a man must be less than man to
fail them now," he cried, and seizing
paper and pen he wrote:
MY DEAR FATHER AND MorHER-I am sorry to
hear you are SO poorly. Il think you must leave
the farm and come and live with me. will be
up soon to see about disposing of stock hay,
etc.; meanwhile. if father has an opportunity to
sell anything at reasonable rate he had better
take advantage oft
Very truly yours, ELIHu.
He had pressed the blotting paper
upon his sheet when, seizing the pen, he
added this postscript:
shall do everything in my power to make
your situation at my house agreeable to you,
and hope your declining years may be the
happiest Of your lives.
What people say is very inconsequen-
tial compared with what they do; there
fore we pass by what Mrs. Har-
denberg said, what Eloise said,
and bring up against time
after grandma and grandpa had arrived
with all their trunks and bandboxes, and
Mrs. Hardenberg had begun to recover
from the severe attack Of neuralgia that
came on about the time of the arrival
Miss Eloise Hardenberg had assumed
an unexpected attitude in regard to the
affair-unexpected, yet, really, one has
no stable ground on which to rear hy-
potheses touching the conduct Of proud
young ladies of nineteen. Eloise's code
of etiquette was taken from the French
at firsthand; violations of it were CAPT
tai offenses and the plea Of ignorance no
extenuation. Eloise, however, prided
herself upon having spirit and resources,
and strength of mind to meet the inevi-
table without tiinching. To appear with
her grandparents publicly and often; to
seem dcferential and overflowing with
affectionate regard, she thought, would
approach the moral sublime; and Eloise,
when at boarding school, had once said
she "doted on the moral sublime" She,
however, had the longing, not rare among
spirited damsels, to test the strength of
her social position. If she carried mat
ters with that coolness and bravery
which had thus far marked her career,
she believed she would come of with
banners flying.
When, therefore, her grandparents
wished to ride out, she accompanied
them in an open carriage, bowing to
such acquaintances as she met with as
much empressemeat as if she was taking
the venerable George and Lady Wash
ington out on an airing. When grandpa
asked to visit the store she promptly Of
fered to be his escort. 1t was fine af-
ternooh and the salesroom was full of
customers. Upon the threshold grandpa
gave sneeze, followed by snort pc
culiar to New Hampshire noses Using
his handkerchiefvigor he advanced
to the nearest counter and took up pair
of hose.
"Slazy, slazy," quoth he; Z" but made
for women's wear, expect"
Ladies smiled. Jack Mcfarland at the
hosiery counter slyly winked at
Charles Foster at the trimming counter.
Miss Eloise fixed her black eyes upon
Jack Mcfarland. They didn't flash as
do the black eyes of romance, but she
threw into them that please-to-remem-
Der -your-position expression which in
real life is more effective than much
flashing
"My grandfather may wish your at
Mr. Mcfarland" she said, in
tones that would have cut smoothly
ice.
90 no, no" said the old man, throw
ing down the hose. :" was only look
ing. Your father don't keep mems wear,
does he, Lois?'
"No, sir; and l hardly know what will
most interest you. Perhaps you would
like to look at those elegant shawls, and
then Mr.. Murphy shall show you silks.
Papa has some lovely silks this season"
Elose went sailing down the room
with the old man, as if she was convey
ing whole frigate of moral worth, and
clerks and customers were but the insig-
nificant tautogs of the bay. Mr.. McFar-
land and his ilk looked grave and re-
spectful. The lady customers followed
the pair with interested gaze. If a
young lady with that figure and that
width of face on her suit openly indorsed
such an old man, why, really, he must
be somebody distinguished.
Arriving at the office, Eloise found her
father engaged with Mr.. Runnymede, fa-
miliarly known as "old Runnymede," a
stately gentleman near grandpa's age.
Elihu, with a manner of extreme defer
encc, unconsciously caught from his
daughter, presented his father, and
after was called out, leav-
ing grandpa tete-a-tete with old Runny-
mede.
"Wa'al, take the hull from top to bot
tom, it is quite a consarn now," said Mr..
Hardenberg, senior, wiping the moisture
from his brow
Runnymede smiled, and inquired if this
was grandpa's first visit to the city.
Il amt been here for nineteen year,
not since Elihu was doing retail business
in little shop down on Canal street. It's
wonderful how that boy has riz in the
world"
"Indeed?"
"That ere boy has had to hoe his own
row. Inever helped him. Always lived
up in New Hampshire, where the lands
poorer than Jobs turkeys. But Elihu was
always master-hand for business; knew
how to get on the right side Of women
folks"
"From the retail shop supposed he
worked his way up here" observed Run
nymede.
"Jes so; never moved his business
place but once, sir. Taint Elihu's way
to be histin' round from place to place,
trying first one thing apd then another.
He Just stuck to one business and he's
been 'mazingly prospered-'mazingly.'
"And you'll suppose you still grub
away on the New Hampshire farm?p said
Runnymede, somewhat sharply.
30 no, no; that ain't Elihu's way
Mother writ to him and he came and set
tied up our affairs, put the money where
can get it at any time, and brought us
down here. Here we've nothing to do
but live in clover and enjoy ourselves"
Now it happened that Mr.. Elihu Har-
denberg was at this time ambitious to
enlarge his business. Whether or no he
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