The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1880-03-19
Claude, and become a serseant-at-law.

or 4 queens counsel, or something, for
| shall want a carriage, you know. Poor
old Claude, you are looking worn with
all the horrid, tiresome work. Never
mind, it will he all right in the end"
So the Lomaxes departed for Baden
Baden; and having n good deal of
work on hand which could be done Just
as well out of London as in it, engaged
lodgings at SIndtieat, small village on
the south coast, highly adapted to
literary men, the advertisement said, as
being retired, and yet within M easy
journey of London.
Alas for human expectations! For the
second time within week mine were
knocked over and otherwise anuihilated.
Sandilcat, announced i'll the paper as II
place fast rising into importance, pos
sessing comfortable private hotels, read
ing-rooms, first rate beach, &C., turned
ont To be II miserable collection of cot
tag"s built on the brow of O cliff,
down the perpendicular frontispiece of
which the venturesome and long.winded
tourist was forced to descend by no less
;han two hundred and odd steps, in or
der 10 reach the sands, where half doz-
en- superannuated bathing machines
stood, drawn up above high water mark;
decend 2l0 steps to draw them into the
water?
What underwent and lived through
in this little village would wiring the
hardest heart to hear described. My
lnndlady, Mrs. Brown, possessed the ugli.
est children, and provided the coolest,
greasiest mutton chops ever saw. There
were six of them (the children mean),
who all contrivcd to get under ones feet
at once: and then, ii one happened TO
tread on some one of them (as il was n
physical impoasibility to avoid doing),
they set up yell that would not have
dis Gruced an Indian brave. To add to
my other troubles l actually received
ano:i 81 communication from the young
person ut Horney. Really her impu-
Il, nee exceeded the belief of man. She
actually told me that, spite of my refusal
10 have anything to do with her, she had
made up her mini to see me, and-if she
liked mc-to marry me; concluding her
L,lyhhr epistlc with the assurance that
my seeking To avoid her was useless us
SD" II. ycr failcdin anything on which she
was specially bent.
cool, wasn't il? OF course took no
!.u;i'e OF the letter, which was forwarded
70 me from my chambers in town; but
could not help chuckling whenI thought
how she would come up from Northum-
berland, only to find me flown.
More than fortnight of the month for
which | proposed remaining at Sand
feat had elapsed, when, AZ / sat one
evening covering over wretched fire
that would not burn, l heard the I'M
wontcd sound cf wheels rattling over the
village street, and minute later cab
dir" Up ut Mrs. Browns door. can
other ledger, ! suppose" / said to my
self children, perhaps; in that case
20. Mrs. Browns are unbearable enough
~ it is" and l Indignantly waited for
the sIuall which felt sure must arise
IN tLr passage. There" exclaimed,
as the scream efiectuully burst on my
ears expectant. This Is really in
tnlcr,Ihl";" and rang my bell more furi-
ously than | had ever done before OF
since. Mrs. Brown" said, with q
touching mixture of pathos and dignity,
when that female entered "all of a
furry" as she called it, and wiping her
nose with her apron, as was her wont i'll
moments of Intense mental agitation,
"since have been here have borne q
good deal from your children without
complaint, and [ had intended keeping
the rooms for another month; but since
you have a lodger with as many children
as yourself, I"
'As many children as /. LawK q
MASSEY, sir! she is not even married." and
Mrs. Brown, evidently amused at the
idea, began laughing violently.
81 certainly heard a child scream,
Mrs. Brown" said with much majesty,
land do not see why it should not be
your new dodgers. However, am glad
TO hear il is not So"
All the rest OF the evening, as / sat
over my books, / found my thoughts
wandering to the new arrival. What III
the world could have induced a young
girl Cfor Mrs. Brown had said her inmate
was unmarried, to come to such q place
rs Sandheat. Well, at any rate it would
be pleasant relief from Mrs. Brown
her chops and her children, and resolved
To commence the acquaintance the very
next morning by sending up the Mo,n'
ing Post aud the last weeks IuIsch
The first thing to ascertain was, o
cours2, her name, and remembering that
| had not heard her boxes carried up tn,
narrow stairs of the cottage, an opera
ton | could scarce have omitted tC
notice, aS IL must have been attended by
a bump on every step, stepped cautious
~ TOR it would not have looked we'll t.
have been caught peeping,) into the Lit
tie passage. There they stood! Tire,
of thcm-two trunks anu bonnet box
all neatly inclosed i'll canvas covers, an(
all neatly labeled, as am a man, will
the name of "Miss Tabitha Kezis
Smith"
lad just sufficient presence of mint
TO avoid betraying myself by groan o
horror, and that was all. staggered in
to my room again, threw myself into al
armchair, and instead of smelling bot
tie drew Georgie's photo toward me.
WHAT l thought, "while a CIR
like this is piniug for me i'll foreign
land, am / base enough to suffer my
thoughts to wander from her for a single
instant, and to creature bearing tn,
name of Tabitha Kerzia Smith? An ole
maid" / thought" creature either
held together with springs and cosmet
les, or, still worse, u mummy, who, Will
a sunshade, scanty garments, and ankles
hideous to behold, stalks about i'll its owl
parchment skin, and audaciously fiaunt
its ugliness about tue cliffs and beach,"
you'll find the new lady down on the
beach, sir" said Mrs. Brown, as sh,
curtsied me out the door the next morn
ing.
"Thcn L shan't look" muttered t,
myself, for / was rather out of sorts.
/ had been expecting letter from
George for the last week, but none hat
come; and making all proper ALLOWANCE,
for the claims which might be made Oh
her time, she might, / thought, surel.
have spared half an hour to write to me
was not jealous, but it piqued my vaui
ty, and suspected Mrs. Lomax of be
ing up to something.
The ghost of Miss Bamford's will ros
before me, and made me very angry ant
: indignant as stamped down those tw,
hundred and ten steps ON to the beach
Carefully / scanned the shore for TIL
. hated form of Miss Tabitha Kezia Smith
and, with sigh of relief, observed tina
ii was clear.
; As usual, not q soul was visible, an
making up my mind that the old girl ha'
found the sea breeze too much for her,
resolved to take my usual swim, an
/ made for the bathing machines befor
mentioned. Imagine my surprise when
on turning round them, / perceive
that, though my fellow-lodger was all
sent, l was not alone.
, 4 young lady in blue and whit
l.