St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1881-10-21

Mr.. Josiah Blagden and his sister. Mr..
Blagden did not impress me favOrably.
He was a stout, fiorid- Accomplishment
man, remarkable for the extreme
breadth of his white waistcoat and for
the profusion of jewelry displayed
thereon.
"a safe man, my dear sir; very
safe man." said Mr.. Spaulding to me
at lunch. "Why, l suppose his turn
over is about half million a year-the
iron trade, you know" added the old
gentleman by way of explaining that
Mr.. Blagden was one of the metal
kings of England.
"Self-made man, tOO," said Mrs.
Spaulding "began life as foundry
boy"
From what | saw of Mr.. Blagden
within the next few weeks, his origin
could have been pretty accurately
guessed from the manner in which he
imported the ''foundry- boys" manners
into the sphere in which his industry
and success had led him. He was es-
sentially vulgar man, who bullied his
sister, a meek, silent little woman,
with a good heart and IA kindly nature,
as | discovered later on.
As we drove home from lunch that
day Jim was strangely depressed. |
guessed his thoughts pretty accurately,
for he burst out into Il tir;itle against
Mrs. Spaulding on our arrival at home.
81 shouldn't wonder, Regy," said he,
''if that fellow Blagden hasn't been in
vited down here as IA suitOr for Nellie.
He's a friend of Mrs. Spaulding's
know, because she herself comes from
the BLACK Country"
Jim's state of mind from the moment
he brOached this theory, may be better
imagined than described. For the
next three weeks | am bound to say
that his temper was well-nigh unen-
durable. One evening at dinner at
Mount Grove, | felt half afraid that he
was going to intiict personal chastise
ment upon Mr.. Blagden Il feat |
should have much rejoiced to have
seen skillfully performed, after the
iron masters coarse invectives against
the medical profession, which had been
called forth during some argument con-
cerning doctors fees. Nellie's attitude
toward Jim appeared to have under
gone no perceptible change. She was
gentle and loving as before but | fam
cied that Mrs. Spaulding cOntrived dex-
trously to keep Miss Blagden and
Nellie as frequently together as pOssi-
BILE, and thus Jim's tete-atetes were re-
duced to miserable minimum. Worst
of all, as jim remarked to me one day,
Nellie had confessed that her step
mother had on more than one occasion
limited that Mr.. Blagden's visit and
stay were not prompted solely by
friendship to her parents. Mrs. Spauld-
ing was, in other words, a clever
woman, playing nice little game of
diplomacy, and while keeping on the
most friendly terms with jim, was, to
my mind, furthering her own aims and
ideas of matrimonial alliance for Nell
lie with the elderly ironfounder. |
know that most of my readers will say
that Miss Spaulding should have set
tied the matter for herself, and have
given Mr.. Blagden to understand that
his attentions were unwelcOme and
hopeless.
| SO things went on at ROckhamptOn,
with diplomacy at Mount Grove, and
despair at No. IA High street, where
DR.. James Brooke announced his will
lingness to relieve the afflicted daily
from 10 to II a. M, and from to 3 p.
III. had been sitting cOgitating over
matters one evening at the Red Lion
Jim having been called to distant
part of the parish-when IN idea
founded, | believe, on quotation from
an old French author, occurred to me.
The quotation was to the effect that
"when moral suasion fails from any
cause to change an opinion, it is lawful
to appeal to the most trivial of our
emotions" Happy idea, thought l.
shall see whether or not | can work il
out to the advantage of DR.. James
Brooke and-shall | add it to the
confusion of Josiah Blagden, Esquire
My plans were then rapidly matured
Morning, noon and night find me busy
in the old church. | am hard at worl
on canvass in which the interior O
the edifice grows under my brush day
by day. There are no sounds of tn,
"Kyrien now; nor are the jubilan
strains of MendelssOhn heard, as on ;
bright sunny day not far gone by. Mel
lie does not come to practice her ole
favorites as of yOre. Blagden, know
hates music; and painters, as he once
expressed tin shocking bad taste
are usually stCtN lob.
: Mr.. JOsiah's white vest and cabl,
chain, with enough appendages attach
, ed thereto to have set up a small jew
eler in a thriving way of business. Th
) aisle and gallery of the church are nov
complete in my picture. paint it a
| sit i'll the aisle in the distance yOl
, can see the altar and chancel and tn
vicar, who looks in upon me occasion
7 ally, says it is as like as can be. He i
curious, however, to know the natur
| of the figures | have sketched roughl
: in. There is a group passing down til
, aisle from the altar rails, where the vi
car can still be seen at his post; an
there is Il figure standing alone an
5 solitary in pew, as if facing the ad
E vancing party. The vicar cannot quit
( fathOm the design. The church he ca
| understand, but the meaning of til
: picture puzzles him. | bid him wal
2 patiently for the solution of the myste
, ry.
When my study of the church wa
Z. completed, | went to the Red Lion, an
Z there | painted in my figures. TheI
J. was little need for models, for III
sketch-bOok was full of studies. Turn
$ ing to my picture, now progressin
:, rapidly, find that there are heads {
e two elderly men, and there is carefl
u sketch of young mans face likewis
It There is a fair girls face and a matror
e lV countenance, and another face whic
o seems not unlike that of Miss Blagdel
e At last my task is completed. The pi,
:, ture is a mere "study," but it is a car,
/, full study withal. The old church yo
: recognize at a glance; the figures
e well, we shall see.