The Centre reporter. [volume] (Centre Hall, Pa.) 1871-1940, 1878-03-21
His Landlady's Daughter,

Yes, Mr.. NJ Govern, she is coming
home tomorrow.
"No? Really-ah! l mean-e1-
actly-yes -
"Ah, Mr.. M'Govern, if you could
know how I've toilel and shaved and
pinched that that girl could have an edi-
cation never had no learning my
self.
Precisely-ius. SO.
And I made no my mind that Annie
should be 4 lady, and she is, sir, she
is"
Certainly-no doubt Really the
fact is-Would you mind?-I am very
busy.
Now the fact WAS that Mr.. M'Govern
was determined not TO take the slightest
interest in the world II his landlady's
daughter. And at this moment he was,
also, engaged upon 3 piece of work that
not only absorbed all his energies, but
apparently presented difficulties that he
was not likely u overcome.
The case lay just here. Mr.. M'Goy-
ern, salesman and commercial traveller
for large dry goods house, had recent
" made the acquaintance in an adjacent
town, not as large, but fancying itself
quite as important, as New York, OF n
young lady who had suddenly inspired
him with the exaggerated sentiment we
commonly call love. At least he thought
so. And now the problem lay, how to
awaken a corresponding emotion IN the
heart of the fair being to whom he felt
anxious and desirous to offer the devo-
ton OF lifetime. III he had been rich,
he might have overwhelmed her with
boquets such as can only be produced
by metropolitan florist. But he was
not rich. On the other hand, If. as he
expressed il 10 himself, he "bad been
one Of those newspaper chaps, who are
always saying things and writing things,
you know, and walk into a girls heart
when they haven't even a respectable
pair Of boots, or a shilling to get their
hair cut" even then he might have
done something. But, as il was, what
could he do?
Finally an idea occurred TO him. Bril-
liant in epigram he was not, and GER
tainly could never hope to be but some
body had surely once said that "genius
is only indomitable perseverance, and
there was the hare and the tortoise, and
the little busy bee, and there was no
knowing but that If he gave a month 10
it he might yet manage to get up some
thing she would like TO read-he could
certainly write as good a business letter
as any fellow in the Office. But then it
ought 10 be in rhyme. And here an
other difficulty presented itself Her
name was Arabella? Yet Petrarch had
certainly been in the same scrape there
isn't q word in the language that ends
like Laura.
So he set valiantly 10 work, and on the
morning when Mrs. Gibson invaded his
sanctum to announce her daughters e1-
pected return, he had got just this far
"Midst roses fair. oh lovely ArAbellA-"
Stop there was cellar. But how TO
work it in? And here Mr. M'Govern
was met by difficulty that has oppressed
many great poet.
His landlady had broken the chain Of
inspiration besides, it was nine o'clock;
he couldn't do better than 90 TO the
Office, for there was fresh consignment
of goods that he was expected to dis
pose Of. In the evening he would go
out and call upon Arabella which he
did, and at midnight he returned TO his
grimy apartment ON Mrs. Gibson's third
floor, more in love than ever.
But on the following evening, when
he came home from the Office. he remem-
bered Mrs. Gibson's announcement, and
at the tea table he looked for the Young
lady in question. Not that he cared
what she looked like, but then
Hum not a pretty girl, by any
means % but somehow he looked again.
There she sat, soft little body in
grew merino dress, with q pair OF very
pretty hands placidly folded in her lap.
What was the impression she gave him
Ha he didn't know. Now he had it :
she seemed so very, very-funny word,
wasn't it? well, there was no harm in
thinking it-clean, that was it. Perhaps
il was the awful CRIME OF Mrs. Gibson's
front basement did it. Contrast is every
thing, you know. But ah she wasn't
like the divine, the beautiful
"Mr. M'Govern, will you have
another cup of teal"
Nv what a sweet voice
Now what was it made the old board
ing-house day by day so much less in
tolerable than it used to be? Perhaps
it was the dust; Somehow the universal
dust had ceased to assert itself as for
merly, and became conspicuous by its
absence. Every thing in Mr.. M'Govern'e q
room by some magic got into it's right
place. Inanimate things may be totally
depraved, but somehow his showed an
evidence of reform that argued the OK.
istence of saving grace somewhere.
Where on earth were the holes in his
stockings? He missed them. Certainly
hole in ones stocking is more honored
in the breach than IL the observance
but what a peculiar experience for 6
clerk, in boarding-house