The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1880-04-23
Mr.. and Mrs. BOndurant.
BY BONNIE HUERE.

der your plate that may interest you"
said Mrs. Bondurant, addressing her
husband, as he took his seat at the break
fast table.
The words were uttered with look in
tended to express severe censure, with
some pity and contempt, and rather
more of the latter.
The husband slowly turned over his
plate, took up and read grocers bill
$50 "a. On the margin were the words,
"Check expected Immediately
II would rather not send this man
check just now," said Mr.. Bondurant.
''It is true I have a little more than a
that amount in the bank, but I shall
need all have and more also tomorrow
to pay the costs of the suit am con-
ducting."
''This is about the answer expected
to receive" said his wife, ''and I must
tell you that your paltry excuses will not
answer for the purpose. That bill must
he paid at once"
1T is scarcely worth while, Julia, to
speak so emphatically in regard to this
matter" said the husband. 81 am do
ing a little business for these grocers,
and, although they do not owe me any
thing now, 1 can, I suppose, get them to
wait few days in the mean time let us
have what goods we need"
'sThey will do nothing of that sort, 7"
said Mrs. Bondurant. "And if the bill
is not paid before o'clock to-day they
will send it to my brother, Alfred, who
will pay it and take an assignment of the
claim"
''Then let him do So" said Mr.. Bon
durant, quietly breaking piece of hard
cracker into his coffee, at the same time
deliberately watching the softening
process. ''This is what they call hard
tack, believe. 1t is better for sailors
than for us poor landsmen. They have
more time to spend soaking it, unless
when the rough weather comes on, and
then / suppose they dispense with the
expended its fury"
s'Your insinuations are intended to
exasperate me-" said Mrs. Bondurant,
''but warn you, sir, that you are tread
ing on treacherous ground"
eff the ground, madam, on which I
am treading is composed of your feel
ings would not expect to find it uncom
monty delicate" was the retort
''Are you willing, sir, to have my
brother pay that grocers bill?"
81 could easily have arranged it in
such a way that it would not have gone
into his hands, but as infer from what
you say that the matter has been talked
over between him and you and the
grocer, and that he has agreed to take an
assignment of the bill if do not pay it
before 3 o'clock to-day, shall allow the
matter to be disposed of in that way, and
give myself no other concern to it at
present"
'sThen it seems you are willing to have
my brother provide for your family?
That is Just what he told me it would
come to when we were married, and in
that you were visiting me. My father
ing. They told me more than fifty
dollar in the world, and they would have
to support us"
'.And you are sorry you did not take
their advice?"
Sometimes am, if 1 must tell you
the truth. You know could have mar
ried Rocky Billings, and I had other
good offers. AS for Rocky, he was al
most dying for me. His social standing
was not, it is true, quite equal to yours,
and he was not so good-looking, but he
had more business capacity than hun
dred young lawyers like you. With him
for a husband would never have suffer-
ed the modification of seeing grocer's
bill paid by my brother
'sMr. Billings is still unmarried, be-
heve," said the husband dryly.
"What base insinuation are those
words intended to convey? You are now
my husband, and have no wish to ex-
change you for Mr.. Billings or any one
else. If have made bad bargain it is
right that I should suffer the conse-
quences of it, and I intend to 90 SO as
patiently as can"
Whenever you wish to be released
from the consequences, madam, and the
bargain that has led to them, please let
me know" said Mr. Bondurant; and,
without word more or any token of af-
fection, he passed down the two flights
of stairs that led to their hired apart |
ments and was on his way to his office. |
But, before leaving the room in which |
he had breakfasted, he placed on the |
table ten-dollar bill.
There was an inside history which this |
table-talk may suggest but does not ex-
plain. Julia Henderson was the daugh-
.er of a proud, ambitious family, who
lsd little means that they were fond of
displaying to the greatest advantage.
their daughter Julia was a young lady
,f recognized beauty and more than or
linary attractions, and they had hoped
hat her marriage to such q man as they
would select and approve would be of
ONE benefit to them as well as to her,