Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1876-10-12
MY ALLOWANCE.
By SHIRLEY BROWN.

SITS outrageous - said indignant
~. :'Perfectly outrageous Why. you
pay your coachman more than that J!
NV husband looked at me with the
most aggravating Of supercilious
smiles.
''Don't get excited, Mona," he said:
''It's enough to excite anybody
said I, twirling a pearl paper knife to
and fro. Am I not your wife ?
Haven't l a right to my fair share of
all your worldly goods And you can
sit there and calmly declare that
twenty dollars a month is a fitting and
sufficient allowance for me =
1T ought to be-" said Mr.. Monta-
cute, deliberately trimming the tilbut.
shaped nails in which he took Il secret
pride.
swell, it isn't
''Then that's the fault Of your ex'
travagaece."
"Grifiith," said l, seriously, sitting
down beside him, and making an i'm
promptu desk out of his knee, while
with a pencil and the back of an old
letter, proceeded to jot down series
of memoranda, ':look here this is
what I bought yesterday: Gloves,
two dollars; cravat, a dollar aad a
half linen cuffs, fifty cents !; parasOl,
FIVE dollars; pocket handkerchiefs,
three dollars sewing silk, one dollar !;
one pair of rubbers, sixty cents ON
nibus fare, forty cents new music,
three dollars. That represents one
days expenses"
''Whew-a!' whistled Mr.. MOnta.
cute, serenely surveying the scarlet
tip of flame on the end of his cigar.
:'To be sure" added, II don't have
to buy boots and gloves every day, but
there's always something. One can't
dress decently on two pence week.
"Y0u must ecOnomiZe - said Grit.
fifth.
''Fiddlesticks - said I.
':It's got to be done,'' said Griffith
with that obstinate little nod of his
which shows when he's dead in earn
est. "Twenty dollars a month! Two
hundred and tifty-no, forty-dollars
year! Why, a woman who wants
more than that for pin money, must
eth + be very unprincipled or very
extravaganza.
jumped up in white, hot rage.
':You won't give me more than TWEEN.
ty dollars a month I" said I.
mo, l won't - cody replied my hus.
band.
Very we'll !" saidI
II hope it will be very WE'LL" retort-
ed Griffith, with sort of malicious
enjoyment, Of my indignation. ut
ought to be, I'm sure-on such an al
Owance as that ~
left Griffith with his cigar, and
went home to my mother, there stat.
ing my case.
''Mamma," said :'what would you
dog
sd leave him, the brute!' said
mamma.
"Adele," quote to my sister, "what
would you do -
I'D order what I wanted" said
adele, with asperity, "and send in the
bill to him.
But neither of these pieces of advice
seemed to suit my case, and I went
home still unsettled in my mind. At
eight o'clock my brother Charley drop.
ped in, on his way to the opera.
''1n brown study, eh, Mona - said
he.
s'Charley." said I, .what do you do
when your allowance runs short =
II borrow from some other fellow
Charley promptly made answer.
Eureka y quoth I, flinging up my
book and catching it again. 81 have
it,"
"Eh?" said Charley.
''Oh, No matter" said 1.
Invent out the next day and spent
the twenty dollars. needed piece
of cloth for my pillow.cases, and some
Balbriggan hose, and I was obliged tC
pay good price for having my far
mended, and new stone put in my
Turquoise brooch in the place of one
that was lost out. And l had a cup Of
chocolate and a strawberry short.cakt
at Montilladi's, and ordered home Z
rare new fern which took my fancy il
the window of the florist.
''Life should be an equal c0.partner
ship, particularly married life," said ]
to myself. "And as sat up until mid
night, darning Grifith's socks, and al
tering those last new shirts of his, it.!
but fair that should reap my compen
sation.''
So went home, and in obedience t.
the precepts of all the ''Guides t,
Young Wives" ever published, ''me
my husband with smile.''
The next day looked into my purse
1t was empty. "Very good said I-ant
dressed myself in my prettiest walk
ing custom of pink.check gray silk
with little straw Rubens hat trimmed
with blue silk as deep and vivid as P,
larkspur blossom, and sauntered leis
urelyM0Wn to the emist0cles Build
ings" in Cedar street, where my lor,
and husband had his Office!e didn'
often 20 down there-but then mad,
an exception to my ordinary rule.
There he was, sitting in front of hi
big polished black walnut desk, with
cigar in his mouth, his hands comfort
ably buried in his pockets, and hi
heels considerably higher than hi
head. Tilbury Jones was there, too
and Stanfield Trowbridge, his partne
and Mr.. Ellies, who had the oific,
diag0nally across the hall.
''Hall0o - cried out Griffith, in con
siderable surprise at seeing me.
smiled and nodded debonairely
around at the gentlemen, and seatet
myself in the least dusty chair that tn,
apartment afforded.
Charming day." said 1. z-,. s--~~...-
Very, said MIR. Tilbury Jones.
"Mr. Trowbridge,' remarked I, edg
ing my chair little closer to the sea-
occupied by my husbands partner
and dropping my voice to a confiden
tial pitch, 'could you lend me lit
tie money! Say twenty or thirty dol
lars p RI J. p
Mona y cried my husband, In sur
prise and anger. <
Because" added I, looking serene
~ around, 81 find myself running
short. The allowing made me 81