Middletown transcript., 1881-09-23

1
sister music, and compelled Fanny to
practice two hours day, with relent-
lessness that seemed to their neighboT
simply inhuman. There was also daily
lessons in elOcutiOn; and the Ralst0ns
had a great many friends in Fair
weather, who were always coming to
see them, and occasioning so much
talk and laughter, and additional mu-
sic, that the unfortunate man, who
was trying to embOdy his ideas, began
to think the ancients had never shown
their good taste more plainly, than by
consecrating altars to the genius of
silence. Mr.. Elmering could not very
well sue his neighbors, on such grounds
and he did not care to move away; he
merely fled from the commOdious and
sunny front-chamber, to a corner-roOm,
much given to cobwebs and damp, and
revealing, through its one window, a
perspective of potato-patches and un-
finished buildings.
Nor did he incline the more toward
the Ralstons, when he heard that Mar
garet was {" the Miss Ralston, so well
known for her gift of reading and reci-
tation." He deprecated any kind of
career for women, which brought them
before a crowd for miscellaneous criti-
cism, and for the women themselves,
who coveted such careers, he had small
charity. Margaret was probably dis
agreeable creature, eaten up with van
ity, and love of notoriety and as he
carefully avoided all communication
with the Ralston household, he had no
opportunity of correcting his ideal por-
trait, by comparison with the origi-
nal.
This unsocial behavior was, certain
ly, no way to recommend himself to the
good graces Of family of ladies. But
Margaret had grievance of her own.
Two or three years before, some over
oficious friend had called her atten-
ton to magazine article, rejecting
severely, not to say savagely, upon some
modern theories of womanly indepen-
dence. 1t contained great deal of
truth, and great deal of injustice, and
was far too cleverly written to laugh
at. The injustice hurt Margaret, more
than the truth consoled her. She would
have liked to challenge the authors ar
guments, with some chapters out of
her own experience, and out of other
lives she knew of. She took pains to
ascertain his name and, presently, in
the course of events, she found her.
self living under the same roof with
him.
When it became apparent that Mr..
Elmering did not intend to notice his
neighbors, Margaret took this loftiness
to herself, as a personal slight.
For we are not living in hotel, OF
in a French fiat, but here, in this iso-
lated house, y thought Margaret, with
some bitterness. "He knows am one
of the women he finds fault with, and
considers me strong-minded and hor-
rible, l suppose. 1 should like to ask
him. what he would have had me do
l am sure, l never wanted to appear in
public but one can't stand upon cere-
mony forever, in world where one is
liable to starve to death. I am not
sorry he has turned out to be such a
disagreeable person not that his Opin-
ion of me would have mattered, in any
case. [ don't care what it is.
So the partition between the two
halves Of the double house, though only
the thinnest of lath and plaster, might
as we'll have been impenetrable granite,
for all the difference it would have
made to either of the households it
separated. The very servants declined
to know each other. Mr.. Elmering's
Paul and Mary Ann, being on the aris-
tocratic side of the house, looked down
with scorn on the modest Kate, in Mrs.
Ralston's kitchen; and not to be be-
hindhand with them, Kate lost no op-
portunity of disparaging those " fine
city servants y and of limiting, darkly,
that, as likely as not, their master
would be found murdered in his bed,
some morning. What was worse, no.
body expected change in this condi-
tion of things for where neither party
is willing to conciliate, OF be concili-
ated, the way to an amicable under
standing is tolerably well blocked. But
there is factor, potent in human af-
fairs, called accident.
Long after Mr.. Elmering had disap-
peared from sight, that evening, Mar
garet and her mother remained sitting
on the porch, talking softly together,
OF silently watching the light fading
out of the sky. A sound of trampling
and painting, and rush of feet on the
steps, startled them both and the
great, black head of Mr.. Elmering's
dog was thrust up between them, al
most at Margaret's elbow.
''That dreadful dog p cried Mrs.
Ralston, deserting her place, with a
small shrek of dismay, and darting in
to the house. Margaret rose, too but
with lips growing white. Her glance
had passed over the dog, had seen his
master following behind, hatless and
coatless, and discerned what burden he
carried in his arms. She hurried out
to meet him but she could not speak !;
she could only look up mutely into his
face.
"Don't be frightened the child is
safe,'' said Mr.. Elmering, answering
the terror in Margaret's eyes. "She
has had great shOck-she is very
weak yet ; that is all. She should not
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