The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1876-10-27
Wanted, a Young Lady. 4"
BY P. F. H.

VIII not forget me amidst the amuse-
ments and gayeties of London ?n
"You may rest satisfied, my darling
Nell, shall never forget you and let
us hope the time is not far distant when
l may be able to return and claim my
little treasure for my dear wife"
The last speaker was a young barris-
ter, Charles Maiden, who, while on
visit to a country aunt, had endeavOred
to allay the ennui arising from the dull
ness of rustic village, by falling in
love, or making believe to, with pretty
Nellie May.
Nellie was one of the numerous olive
branches of a hard-Worked curate, and
her fair, graceful form and unsophisti-
Gated country manners had proved ire
sistible attractions to the rusticating
Londoner.
They were now on the platform, wait
ing for the train that was to carry Nal
den away from love and beauty.
He wrote pretty regularly for the first
three weeks after he reached town and
then, as time wore on, his letters be-
came notes and then even these grew
few and far between; until at length,
after the anxious Nell had received no
reply to three successive espistles, the
correspondence ceased altogether.
Upon his return to town, Maiden had
proceeded to his usual chamber, in the
Middle Temple, and for a few weeks
had kept to the many good resolutions
made while away from temptation.
But by degrees he had drifted back
into the usual Irregularities always
open to a student if he chooses to adopt
them.
Shortly after his return he had been
introduced to Arthur Harcourt, whose
friends had desired him to get called to
the bar, and who had taken chambers
in Essex Court for that purpose.
Now, Maiden was very poor, and his
new acquaintance being exactly the re-
verse, he considered the friendship
might be made conducive to his benefit.
So he exerted himself to please, and
with so much success that for some
weeks they had been nearly constant
companions.
One morning Harcourt was seated in
his chambers, endeavoring to allay the
pangs of an aching head, by cOpious
libations of soda water.
Maiden had just come, and had been
seated on the sofa for couple of min
utes, when Harcourt spoke.
"UpOn my word, Charlie, I'm tired to
death! l wish you could think of
something that would relieve the mo-
nOtOny of existence"
'Tm sure l hardly know what TO sug-
gest," he replied, refectively. Lets
see fishing is in season; what do you
say to having day at West Drayton ?n
"a fool at one end of the rod, and a
worm at the other. Too slow" replied
Harcourt, with Johnsonian brevity.
"What do you say to hiring a skiff,
L. 4, -fy- oy,I s,,s,,
at Richmond ?n
Don't care about making a toll of a
pleasure rowing, this weather, is only
fit for galley-slaves.n
For few minutes there was silence,
and the students pulled contemplative-
ly at their Havanas.
At length Maiden cried out, Eureka!
have it, Arthur! Suppose we put an
advertisement in the paper for young
lady to take charge of a single gentle
mans establishment? Let applicants
come here; if we offer the indncement
of high salary we shall have couple
of hundred, and the necessary exami-
nation will be great funr
"It's not bad idea but won't it be
rather cruelty disappointing to them ?'i
remarked Harcourt, who was naturally
of kindly disposition, which Maiden
was doing his best to spoil.
"Not a bit of it," replied the other
"If you feel any scruples of conscience
you can pay them their expenses, and
then it will be good mornings work
for some of them"
81 don't altogethr like the idea, Char.
lie; it doesn't seem manly to me, you
know, to-
Nonsense p' interrupted Maiden
''F'or goodness sake, Harcourt, don't be.
gin preaching Let's decide that il
shall be done. T'll draw up the adver
tisement, and if we put it in tomorrow
why we can let the people call the fol
lowing day, which will be Friday. viii
that suit you ?'
eff you really think it's all right
Friday will suit me as well as any otheI
day; but"
"All right-there that's settled. Nov
pll go and have the advertisement in
serted. By-the-bye, you may as wei
let me have five pounds if you havt
them handy, for 1 want to pay the news
paper people, and I'm rather short.n
Maiden generally was short; never
theless, Harcourt handed over the re
quired sum, and with a careless "Au
revoir ~ be took himself off.
The next day the following appeared
among the "Wants" in the leading
daily papers:
WANTED-A young lady, amiable and &C
w complished, and of progressing appear
ance, to take the entire charge of a gentleman
household References exchanged. Salar
so. Apply Friday, bc-ween II and 2, grount
floor, No -, Essex Court Middle Temple.
On the Friday morning the friend
had breakfasted together, and the laun
dress had just cleared the table, wheI
Maiden said, ''There's eleven striking
We shall have a rush of them directly,
At that moment faint tap Was hearC
at the door of the room.
"Hallo, there's one of them TIL,
laundress must have4eft the 'oak' open
Come in %
The door opened, and in walked
young lady, dressed in a neat black stuf
costume, with a small felt hat, from
under which fell quantity of COLDER
hair.
AS she entered the room, her gaz,
was timidly directed towards the carpet
but she had scarcely arrived at thu
table in the centre of the room, wheI
Maiden suddenly exclaimed, "ConfounC
1t Nellie May, by all that's unfortu
nate v'