The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1874-08-06
UNDERSTANDABLE RELATIVES.

HALF-PAsT NINE Of December even
ing, and Mr. Elihu Hardenberg, mer-
chant, sat alone in the counting room of
his wholesale and retail dry goods
store lights all out save the one burner
over his desk. Mr.. Hardenberg draws
from his pocket memorandum book.
The book opens where two photographs
have been placed between the leaves.
One is the picture of an old woman, with
hollow checks, lips fallen in, black eyes
sunken, and not as bright as they may
have once been, hair dead black (save
for a little space along the parting, where
the dye has either worn off or was never
laid on artistically), hands stitfly folded
poor, worn old hands! The second
photograph is Of an old man, very thin
old man, with a peaked chin, and nose
coming far down to meet his chin, his
thin light hair falling loosely around his
ears, and lying in straggly ends upon his
coat collar, his eyes faded and watery,
and oh, the lines upon his face!
Here is letter directed in fine,
tremulous hand The ink has been
frozen. All ink must freeze up in New
Hampshire, whence tbs letter comes.
Thus it reads:
My DEAR Son ELIsHA--We have been looking
for letter from you this long time, but suppose
you are too busy to write. So far, il has been
cold winter and hard for old folks Your fathers
rheumatism is much worse. Ii sicy between the
house and the barn, and he slipped down one day
last week and hurt himself badly. We have tried
to get boy to do the chores, but can't find one
The mnrrain's got among the sheep, and your
father is dreadfully worried about the cattle and
thinks the hay won't last until spring. l don't
think it is right nor proper for US old and broken
as we are. to stay here. | want you to write and
tell me what to do. Father and | went down to
the village last Thanksgiving and had our pic
lures taken ! send them to you.
Your atlectionate mother,
ALMIRA HARDENBERG.
As he reads the two little perpendicu-
lar lines between Mr.. Hardenbergs eyes
deepen Unquestionably the place for
them is in my family" says he, and
scowls.
The conclusion drew hard. What
would his wife, Cornelia, Mrs. Harden
berg, say to his bringing home his faith
er and mother? Mrs. Hardenberg was
lady who had subjected her soul to the
refining process until she had reduced it
to very fine point indeed. Mrs. Har-
denberg wasn't an inhuman human; had
she been on the road to Jericho the after
noon that man fell among thieves moth
ing would have induced her to pass by
on the other side, unless, indeed, the
wounds had been offensive and the
groans distressing She simply wanted
place for everything, and everything in
its place. She wanted the places in her
own vicinity vanished, polished, gilded
and ornamented, and she wanted the OBJ
jects that fitted into those places harmo-
nious, highly y-wrought and recherche. As
matter of duty she had been up to that
cold, dolorous place in New Hampshire
half dozen times in the course of her
married life, and, though the air was
pure, the waters clear and the milk
sweet, it was relief to get home again;
for what are rivers of honey and milk in
a land where the inhabitants eat with
steel forks and fiatten their ou's?
But Mr. Hardenberg didn't much care
what Mrs. Hardenberg might say. Not
that Elihu was an inconsiderate hus-
band, but Mrs. II. had so pertinaciously
insisted upon her preferences in affairs
where her dic.ates could not be followed
as to have lost influence where her word
ought to have been weighty. For the
opinions and feelings Of Miss Eloise Har-
denbsrg, Ia gra,sde damsel, the light Of
his eyes and the pride of his heart, Mr..
Hardenberg had greater regard. Eloise
was proud and punctilious. Elihu some-
times made mistakes, trifing mistakes
they seemed to him, but they caused
Eloise infinite annoyance. How would
she bear his mothers shrill voice and
strong idiomatic expressions, his fathers
fluttered, old fashioned wayss
He saw his mother, with the immortal
black cape over her shoulders, marching
into the parlor when the Gershoms and
the McIntoshes were calling. He saw
his father arching his hand around his
ear and saying "a leetle louder, sir, !"
to Augustus Appollonious, only son OF
Hon. Croesus Appoloneous and Eloise's
special admirer. Mr.. Hardenberg was
weak at q point where many otherwise
strong men are weak-he couldn't en-
dure ridicule. It was perplexing. He
took up the photograph again. Then he
remembered night Of sickness when
those shriveled hands had tenderly min