Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1879-03-11

and clad TO absorb the vigorous young
blood of the provinces. Zacb had situa-
tions offered to him in Cincinnati and st.
Louis. and accepted one in the house of
the Choutcaus in the latter city. While
there he studied medicine in his spare
hours. and saved money to pay for two
winter courses of lectures in Philadelphia.
After that he practiccd in the hospitals,
and settled at last in a growing town OF
Western Pennsylvania. He was strongly
minded to 20 back to his old home. Ey-
cry man in il was his friend. He would
rather have trampcd over its muddy sooty
streets than have trod on fields of thyme
and roses elsewhere. The very smell OF
its greasy smoke was sweet to his nostrll'.
But Colonel Petit advised him not to
come.
"A doctor must have a certain pres
tigc. he said. "IIe must be the social
equal of his patients Now We're all
mighty proud Of YOU, Zack; but
Il understand. That's all right" in
,erruptcd Ncaly, biting the end of his
mustachc, ncryously.
"That thar dray. You see: It's ondym',
that sort of remembrance, with Nirgini-
ans
So Nealv, not without a certain angry
ache at his heart. settled among stran-
gers. One OF two lucky hits soon discov-
cred to the public of Finnburgh that he
was far in advance Of its TWO old PhySi-
clans as regarded modern science. He
showed old-tashioned distant courtesy to-
ward women, too, very winning in a
Young man. With men, on the contrary.
lack was an inyeteratc talker; the Irish
rift of telling anecdotes was an unknown
art in Finnburgh, and lack, having
knocked about a good deal IN the world,
had a capital story to mt every occasion.
Before a month had passed, every man in
the borough felt himself in some sort a
partisan of this jolly, stout, JcwiSh-taced
young doctor. lie was asked everywhere
10 dinner. 10 tea. Most of the eligible
Young women Of the county were dis
cus,cI as suitable wives for him. You
heard his gay, infectious laugh every
where. The truth is, the fellow was
thoroughly happy in his new quarters.
This friendly recognition was the success
which he craycd. At heart he was still
the homeles, boy, hungry for companion
shin and affection. As for money, he
took no account of it--not even enough,
his enemies said, to pay his debts: which.
bv-thc-way, | am afraid was true. Nealy
was lrish.
When he had been settled in Finnburgh
a wear, the Shiras family came into the
ncishborhood. They were Of English cx-
traction. and belonged to race Of schol-
ars. There did not seem to be much
money in the family, vet the men belong
ne 10 it took no means to add to It's IN
come. but went on with their lciSurcly re-
searches into the life of ancient Greece
and the habitat OF spiders calmly as II
they had been millionaircS. ltwas new
idea to Ncaly-as 1t would be to most
Amcrican~-that men of ,traighteued cir
cum>tanccs could find other and higher
cmplovment for life than the making OF
money. IL pleased him immensely. He
went often to the plain little cottage back
of the pines. The repo>e, the untath-
omcd culture and Wit hintcd under their
careless. trivial talk of every day, the
mere fact that the stock of this family
had been honorable sentlciolk for ccntu-
rics-it was all glimpse into q new
world to Ncaly. This was the Brahmin
class which he had lonscd 10 enter. lie
watched the daughter OF the house, PriS-
ella. at trs, with a kind Of reverent awe
and wonder. she being, as he thought.
the highest type of this high class. She
WAS not naturally as clever, probably, as
the Young girls of the town; but she had
not an idea in common with them. Phcil
talk was of house work, of vulgar fnery
and vulgar Irritation. Priscilla knew nc
more of these things than of the SQUAD
/ blcs of the fsh-wOmen on the river r-bank
/ She had spent most of her life in travel
ing through the beautiful places in the
world; her companions were men who
dealt with great facts and ideas. They
had hcdged the girl in from all rough un.
secmline>s with a fine courtesy. In Zack'
view she dwelt apart upon a height; i
did not. indeed, at first occur to him thai
he could climb to a level with this youn.
gentlcwoman. Her father and uncle mad,
a companion of DR.. Nealy. They fognc
geuuineness and delicacy of feeling il
the Young fellow which were different
from the other Finnburghers.
He is undoubtedly a man of gooC
breeding and birth, said Mr. Peter Shira
one day.
"On the contrary, he has limited to m,
that he has struggled up from extrem,
poverty" replied Priscillas father.
That may be, retorted uncle Peter
taking off his eyeglasses There wer
many scions of good families who LANDED
penniless in Virginia never am mis-
taken in the species of man, any NOR,
than of spider.
For three or four months young DR.
Nealy's mind was full of his new friends
whether he was in market, or in church
or at the bedside of patient. He thought
probably, that he was studying them as
species, Miss Shiras being the best speci
men. He had that sense of ownership il
them which we have in a fine landscap
which we alone have discovered. IL
could not tolerate the mention of then