The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1881-10-09
THE ORPHANS FRIEND.

ing the small. brown. old-fashionet
house in which we lived, and which
looked strangely out of place among
tho stntely-looking modern dwelling
that crowded up against it on either
side. quite putting it out of c~ountenance
by their superior height and appear
ance.
Grandfather built it when the place
was new and he q young man, and
whom all that brick and mortar were
verdant fields and well-kept gardens,
dotted here and there by houses rs few
and modest as his own.
He owned alarge farm. and was con
sidered q wealthy man for those days;
but acre after acre bad been sold until
nothing was left except the house in
which my father had been born, and
which was the only inheritance Of his
children. But we made the most of it,
Margis and l. a. you will see.
1 hardly think we should have dared
to do such = thing while father lived,
who would have considered it q sort OF
sacrilegei but soon after his death VIC
turned the front part Of the house into
. shop, with show-windows. which
opened out upon the street, in which
to display the articles we kept for sale.
This wal . matter of necessity rather
than choice. 1t being all that l could do
at home; and l could not leave Margie.
Poor Margio was a cripple; she had re-
ceived . fall when only Tour years old,
and had never walked since.
She had been q great care to me for
many q year, but never a burden. She
was SO thoughtful, patient. and cheer
full that, in the event Of our separation,
I think l should have missed her justsas
much a. she would me.
She was very Useful. too; lying all
day on the lounge in our little sitting
room, her hands were never idle,
crocheting tides. mats, mittens, and
edging. and doing various kinds Of
fancy-work, for which I found sale in
the shop. and though the price asked
was only moderately in excess of the
cost Of material, it helped us not alittle.
Margie kept all the accounts, and
having a clearer head than /, and q
knowledge. or rather intuition, of char
actor that was wonderful, considering
how secluded her life had been, Inever
thought of taking any step without
consulting Margie.
We lived very quietly, having few
e14o6AnhauS01p 6A0 III ut1I IIL6QQ Ok
rslative-sxcspt John.
John was my lover. and no girl ever
had ono more kind and true. He was
poor in worldly goods. but oh! SO rich
In goodness and manly worth.
He might have seemed plain to those
who knew him not-I cannot tell how
he looked TO other eyes-but there was
more than beauty to me in hat frank
honest face. and in the big brown
hands that were so strong and helpful.
We had been engaged ever since ]
was eighteen-I was twenty-three now
and no nearer to being married. as ]
could see, than we were five years be-
fore. But still we loved and hoped on.
John had = widowed and infirm moth.
or. and 1 Margie; and though she was
anything but burdensome to me. ],
could not think Of adding any further
weight to the hands that were full
enough already.
Trade not being very brisk during
the summer, Margie and / decided tcI
exc out our slender income by letting
the room over the shop. 1t vas low,
and the slant of the roof on one side
and big chimney made it full of queer
hooks and n The furniture was
old. being some that grandfather had,
when he was married; but with the
help of John, who could spare me an,
hour or two in the evenings. 1 furnished.
1t up 80 that it looked very well.
BY dint Of piecing and contriving. j.
covered the floor with a neat carpet,
the bed and windows were draped with
white. and some pretty prints hung up
on tho wall, and on the whole I was;
very we'll satisfied with the result Of,
our labor.
When all was done, John wrote e
notice: Room to let; Inquire Within ,,
But though 1 placed it in the shop win
dow, where 1t could be plainly seen!
from the street, nearly three weeks
passed. and we had only two appli.j
oants for tho room, and from persons,
who only looked at it, and then went!
away.
One morning. rs I was busting the
counter and putting the shop to rights.
old man standing in front of the win.
dow, his eyes fixed upon the notice.
and his moving lips slowly syllabifying
each word.
He wore shoes with big buckles or
Guolup nuu . 6uuA-COOLtu COAtv Will
short waist and long skirts, and which
looked as II it might have been his
grandfather's.
But the oldest thing about him was
the long white hair which fell upon his
shoulders, and the heavy beard Of the
same color which touched his breast.
A broad brimmed hat completed his
quaint, QuAker-like appearance.
The door being ajar, before I had
time to lay aside my duster, he was al
the counter.
He stared at me for some moments
without speaking, and then pointing to
the notice with his cane, said:
..Will thee let me look at itr"
Inwardly hoping that this application
would not share the fate Of those that
had preceded it, I led the way upstairs.
To my great relief, our prospective
Iodger. far from Directing to the slop-
ing roof and old-fashioned furniture,
seemed to regard them with positive
feelings Of interest and admiration.
at il like the chamber l used tc
sleep in when l wa a boy" he said, as
he looked around, and speaking more
to himself than me.
As I wanted Margie to see him be-
fore I decided, Itook. him down through
IL sitting-room where she lay.
'sThis gentleman thinks Of taking
our room, sister," ! said as she glanced
up at US.
'H within my MEANS" i~nterposed
the stranger. II am o poor man."
Margiers clear, soft, penetrating
eyes were quietly reading the face o.
| the speaker. What she saw seemed
satisfactory, for she nodded In reply to
my questioning look.
In spite Of his threadbare apparel, he
looked so thoroughly respectable that
was half ashamed OF tho question I was