The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1876-11-30
From the New York Mercury.I
An Unsuccessful Game.

'sEgad," said Mr.. Merlbone to him
self, "I think I'll marry henriette." !"
And, glanclng in the mirror as he
spoke, he saw the reflection OF q hand
some man OF five and thirty, with
black hair, black eyes and an sxtraor-
dinsry pair of black English whis-
kers-said man being attired in an
elegant suit of black, with black studs
and sleeve buttons, and u black en-
ameled diamond ring upon his little
finger.
Seeing all this, and knowing It to
be tOlerable faithful reflection Of
himself, he thought that, although he
might possibly do better than marry
Henriette, Henriette could not posi-
bly, do better than marry him.
Henriette, quite unconscious Of Mr..
MerlbOne's very fiattering decision,
sat at the piano, singing some old
ballad, with her head thrown back, SO
that her long rlnglets (Of that rare,
but beautiful pale gold-almost q
straw eolored tint-felI away down
over her shoulders while her eyes
large, lustrOus, and azure-were fixed
upon that somewhat uninterestiug z
field for contempIation-the ceiling.
She looked very pretty, singing in
this picturesque attitude and it was
that which assisted Mr.. MerlbOne to
noisseur in female beauty, as we'll as
In wines, pictures and horses.
Henriette's sister-the sad-eyed aud
quiet little LeOnore-sat on q sofa at
the other end Of the room, reading in
one of those singular and not too
graceful positions which young ladies
will sometimes get into in spite of
their natural dignity of carriage, and
all the teachings OF mammas and
aunts.
Mr.. MerIbone glanced from Henri
cite to Leonore, and from Leonere to
Henriette, and then back again into
the mirror at himself.
"LeonOre is very pretty" be almost
sighed, and has the sweetest eX-
preston of face imaginable. In fact
her eyes and mouth are quite the
thing; but, then, Henriette is q
blonde, and demme these blondes are
irresistible I"
Whereupon he tapped his white
front teeth with his long, pointed nail
Of his little finger-the one on which
he wore the dlamond-and repeated
his assertion
'Egsd, think I'll msrry Henri
cite 90
Perhaps il LeOnore had not been
pardon me young lady reader, but
you know all girls dO-if Leonore had
not been sitting on her foot she might
have become Mrs. MerlbOne.
II hQrdlu fhfnkr If hnmauar NJ
Merlbone was q man of the world
and although 1 believe that he secret
ly cherished q tender regard for
LeonO7e, he thought Henriette was
the favorite with old Mrs. EIwell, the
aunt of the two sisters.
And old Mrs. Elwell was worth
500, 900.
Poor old lady she was very i'll.
The doctor said that she couldn't live
8 month and MerlbOne knew he
must marry one Of the girls before
the old lady died, or wait year. Do
ring a yesr, forty other men might
come along, and some one among
them bear off the prize.
Mrs. Elwell knew q little some
thing of life, and no adventurer could
come near her niecss-and no hawk
enter her dove cote-whiIe she lived.
Therefore Mr.. MerlbOne was for the
time, not an adventurer.
He raised q thousand dollars, by
some means best known TO himself,
and after procuring q genteel, not ele-
CANT, widower's outfit (his wife had
died of grief and Ill usage twelve years
beiore), he bade farewell to the city
and his old roue friends, and went
down to Daisyville to renew his ac-
quaintance with Mrs. EIwell and her
charming nIeces.
Your true man OF the world never
fOrgets anybody nor their circum.
stances.
1t was not difficult to gain entrance
to the dove cote in the character of q
wealthy widOwer, looking for a coun-
try seat and somebody to ornament
it.
Henriette was 8 very dashy girl,
and the especial pride of her aunt.
She had beauty, refinement, and
vario1s other qualifications, but she
was ambitions. She wanted q hus-
band-nOt that thst is an un-
usual ambition, but she wanted q hus-
band who should be rich, handsome
Leonore was too lazy to want any
thing. / suppose she had q vague
hope Of getting married sometime
or ranother-she was humRn-but there
was too much trouble to hunt for q
husband IS her dsshing sister did.
All she cared for was to lie in q grass
hammock, swung between two apple
trees, Ia the garden, with 8 pile Of
novels and her guitar in reach. In
winter when the garden was rather
an unwilling loafing place, she liked
to wheel sofa before the crate, and
lie there with her novel from morn
ing till night.
As she was seventeen years old, and
well grown, she might have accom-
panied her sister Henriette on the rid
ing parties, yachting excursions and
picnics, which Dsisyville wss cele-
brated for, and might perhaps have
had three offers in one season, as Hem
riette had, but she was far too indo-
lent, and between you and me, Pm
glad Of i'll rather like those lazy
girls.
Well, when Mr.. MerlboDe exhibit
ed the "dark splendor" of his mourn.
Ing suit and black whiskers at the
dove-oote, Henriette made q "iead
set" at him. she played and sang to
him. rode with HIM, made ewes at
him. dressed for him and, had he
been young man, or human, or any
! thing else but imam of the world. -
be would have been head over haala in