St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1877-01-05
[FrOm Belgravia.l
An Aunt by Marriage.
BY JAMES PAYN.

BY JAMES PAYN.
suppose there are more people who
90 abroad for pleasure, and detest it,
than who affect to admire Paradise
Lost. When one considers the packing,
and the crossing the Channel, and the
iabber on the other side of it, which
not one in ten of us understands, and
the tenth only imperfectly the dis
comforts and delays of travel, the i'm
pertinence of the officials, the expense,
and, above all, the growing sense of ex-
ile-for many men drag lengthening
chain behind them with every inch of
distance they place between themselves
and home-l say, putting all these
things together, the Continent is purga-
tory, or worse, to hundreds of good
people who pretend that they find
heaven.
Of all the honest souls that ever
crossed 'the silver streak" and heard
| without catching) the accents of ''the
parles-vouS" (as he always called the
French folks my Uncle Nokes was the
most thoroughly British.
81 once took French leave at school,
sir, land was flogged for it,) and that,
he was wont to say, "was the only as
sociation l ever had with anything
French, or ever mean to have"
But man prOpOses-and it so happen
ed, thanks to the irony of fate, that my
uncle proposed to Frenchwoman.
The circumstances were very curious
and, l think, interesting; at all events
they interested me when they tool
place, exceedingly; for 1, his nephew
| 20 that haan hiS haIr
his marriage disinherited me; though
he always said that it was my marriage
and not his, that did the mischief. Tht
fact is, chose my wife myself, instead
of submitting to Uncle Nathaniel's views
on the matter, and he never forgave it
"If you marry Clara" said he, "as sur,
as your name is Charles, I'll marry, my
self, before the year is out" Now
whenever it was possible, knew Uncl,
Nathaniel always kept his word bu
yet did not believe that, at the age o
sixty, and having been a confirmed
bachelor all his life, he could, just t.
spite me, commit such an act of folly
l had also fond and foolish hope tina
nobody would have him.
So Clara and married.
We wrote my uncle a joint letter
' which | should have thought wOul
have touched any heart (and am boun
to say his was a very tender one }; bu
he sent it back to as, with the date ii
was the first of May) underlined, an
foot-nOte in his own handwriting
"When this comes round again, yo
will have an aunt-in-law."
We had been such fast friends, m
uncle and l, that l could not believ
but that he would forgive me; and m
Z. Clara was such sweet angel, that if b
l. would but give her the opportunity,
- felt she must win him over. But
would never so much as see her.
was always his fixed idea that / was
p "marry money" and bring it into tn
wine trade in which we were both ell
gagged and she was the orphan daugl
r ter of country clergyman without
shilling.
In vain 1 told him she was the dea
est girl in the world he replied that
should doubtless find her so, since 81
= would cost me all his fortune, whiC
would otherwise have one day bee
mine. / was to have been his partne
but since | had chosen to attach myse
y to another firm, must take the cons
guences however many there might
of them) on my own shoulders. T
was jocose in his manner; it was ma
o. ural to him to be so; but he was mol
the less determined. Discriminate
was also my forfeit was hereditary
the Nokes family, which unfortunate
y the money wasn't but in my case
called it by another word-infernal o1
=, stinacy. My union with Clara qui
separated us from him l saw nothir
of him, and heard nothing until loI
afterward, when the circumstances can
to my knowledge which l am about
,e. relate. In the meantime Clara and
Tie were living on our means-namely,
was possessed.
hearted except where his prejudices al
self-will were concerned l may go
step further, and say he was as tend
Vt as spring chicken-or green COOS
and he made more bad debts than al
other man in the wine trade in cons
quence. He had, also, rather a slavi
admiration for people of quality, viii
/ need not say, caused him to be swi
died worse than the other failing.
&c A new customer had recently be
added to his list when our disagreeme
took place, in the person of Count
bert de Montmorenci. If this you
gentleman was not good judge of viii
it was not because he had not the c
portunity of tasting the best-and
,st good deal of it. He drank like gOI
fish, but Nokes & Co. never saw
color of his gold. He lived with
sister in fashionable lodgings in 2
Mall, and had been introduced to us
Is. the secretary of the French Embas
(sunder La Rose," as my uncle used
,E ,gi say,) so that the connection promis
we'll enough indeed, the count &C
tinued to promise, but my uncle col
never get his money. At last, weary
/. importuning his debtor by such delici
en- en- reminders as at has doubtless escaI
your lordship's recollection that
April last we had the honor to forw;
to YOU for the third time our little
count" my uncle called in person
Y Pail Mall. He was rather fond OF hi
ing to take this course with emln
the personages, since he fiattered him'
EN- he made an impression. They did
ent expect to find in their wine merchar