The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1874-09-24
Romance or the StaTers House, POrts-
mouth.

A record of the senes. tragic ana
humorous. that have been enaeted
within this old yellow house ON the
corner would iii n volume. a vivif
picture OF the social and public life OI
the Old time might be painted by !
shiiltnl hand, using The two Earl OF
halifax inns for n background. The
painter would find gay and sOmbre
eotors ready mixed for his palette,
and a hundred romantic incidents,
waiting for his canvas. One of these
romantic episodes has been turned tO
very pretty account by LpngfeIloWr in
the last series of The Tales Of q IVdB-
Slde E'H-the marriage OF Governor
Benning Wentworth with Martha
Hilton, 3 sort of second edition Of
King COphetua and the Begyar Msid.
Martha Hilton was a poor girl.
whose bare feet and ankles sRd seant
drapery when she was a child. and
even after she was well in the bloom
OF ner teens, used to seandaliZs good
Dame Stavers, the innkeeper's wife.
Standing one afternoon in the door
way Of the Earl Of Halifax, Dame
Stavers took occasion tO remOnstrate
with the sleek-limbed and lightly
draped Martha, VINO ehaneed to be
passing the tavern, carrying a pail OF
water, IN which, as the poet neatly
says, 1.-THE shifting sunbeam danced -
You Pat you Pat ~ cried Mrs.
Stavers, severely; "why do you go
looking so? You should be ashamed
to be seen in the street"
'Never mind how / look" says
Miss Martha, with a merry laugh.
letting slip sauey brown shoulder
out of her dress ''l shall ride in nv
chariot yet, ma'am."
Fortunate prophecy : Martha went
to live as servant with Governor
Wentworth at his mansion at Little
looking out tO sea. Seven
years passed, and the "thin slip of a
girl" who promised To be no great
beauty, had fiOwered into the 1--we
liest Of women, with n lip like
cherry and cheek like q rosa lady
BY Instinct, one of Natures own
ladies. The governor, lonely Wild
over, and not too young, fell in love |
with his fair handmade. Without |
stating his purpose to any Que, Gov
ernOr Wentworth invited q number OF |
".
Brown to dine with him at |
Little Harbor on his birthday. After /
the dinner, which was very elabO- |
rate one, was at an end, aud the |
guests were discussing their tobacco
pipes, MartEa Hilton glided into the /
room, and stood b!ushing in front os |
the ehimney-place. She was exquis- |
tely dressed, as VOC may conceive, |
and wore her hair three stories high. |
The guests stared at each other, and /
at her, and wondered. |
Fhen the governor, rising from his
eat
Played slightly with his rufiss, then look !
ed down.
And said unto the ReverendlArthur Brown:
This is my birthday; it shall likewise be |
My weddiDg-day; and you shall marry !
me
The rector was dumfOunded, know |
ng the humble footing Martha had /
held in the house, and could think of
lothing eleverer to say than, "Fo |
whom, your exceIleney ~
"rO this lady," replied the gnver-
IOr, taking Martha Hilton by the |
land. The Rev. Arthur Brown hesi- |
ated. "As the Chief Magistrate of
New Hampshire I command you to |
marry me ~ cried the firn old gov
.rnOr.
Aud so 1t was djn-; ami 50 the
pretty kitchen-msid became Lady
ami dill rile in her own
chariot, after all. Sh-, wasn't a wO-
nan II she didn't drive by Stavers's
Hotel IT. b. Alderich, in HdTper's
for October.