The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1882-03-08

shawls p she hesitatingly asked a young
girl, with unkempt hair and sullen face, who
leaned out of one of the side windows of
No. - Margin street.
Don't know anything about it" said the
girl, indiferently
SCan't We spake the lady daoent. Meg2n
snarlingly interrupted fat old woman,
looking out over the girls shoulder. It's
through the alley, miss, dear-up two pair
O. stairs--the little room under the skylight
Ask for Mr. Conforto, nliss-the say-cap-
tin. Shure the shawls is great bargains,
betoken there amt been no duty paid on
'em, miss ~ with a grin which displayed
few gnarly stumps of teeth in sunken old
jaw.
Through the alley !"-"up two pair o.
stairs pa little room under skylight !"
Instinctively Flora recoiled, and the old wo-
man perceived it at once.
''Shure, miss, I'll go wild yez an show
yez the way" said she.
And not knowing how to refuse this offer,
Flora unwillingly followed her. waddling
footsteps through a dark and dismal alley,
across paved court ana up TWO narrow
flights of stairs, to a gloomy, half-lighted
room, where short vulgar ran sat, smok-
ing q black pipe, in the midst of boxes, bales
and bundles. fas-s9
Bargains, miss ?" said the short, vulgar
man, jumping up. Cheddah, Bhurlpore,
Lacca, Valley Bokharah- which win I show
you, miss P"
Flora hesitated and colored. under his
brazen stare.
81 had not made up my mind to buy"
she said, "and--n
''Oh, but You must buy :" chartered Cap
tain Conforto. g You shall buy. You can't
help buying in place like. this, when I
show You what we've got"
And, jumping around like an overgrown
kangaroo, he unfolded some coarse, high
colored, striped shawls, one or two with a
rivulet of white seeming to meander over
dull-red grounds and some that seemed to
have been out in storm at sea and got
thoroughly stained with salt water.
Flora, however, uneducated in technical
tiles, was an artist at soul, andrecoiled from
these gaudy denominations.
s.I-I don't quite like these" she hesitat-
ed. " l do not think [ will purchase to-
day."
s'Not like them!" echoed the sea-captain
If sea captain he was. " Not--like them
Nobody ever said that before to Leotard
Conforto / amt used to be talked to in
that there way, But If the lady don't like
'em, she needn't to buy 'em. | amt oblig-
ed to put my bargains down peoples
throats, that 1 ain't.n
And he hustled around, ..muttering to him
self, and tossing the things about brushing
past Miss Fountain very disagreeably once
or twice as he did so.
Flora turned to so, but her fat guide had
unaccountably disappeared, and she was
obliged to retrace her steps as best she
could.
"At all events, she said to herself, I'm
glad am well out of that place
Making the best of her way up to Third
avenue. she entered a car to ride home but
when i.,s l.ss.,sa i'm aasr ,orse. to-f'as
her fare, the little purse into which she
had so carefully packed her money was
gone.
1t flashed over her then, all in an instant.
Her pocket had been picked and probably
by Captain Leotard Conforto himself.
"Never mind the fare, MISS" said the
conductor, stout, fatherly old man, who
doubtless had daughters of his own. I'll
see that it's all right, and you can pay me
any time you please"
So Flora got home just in time to burst
out crying on her fathers shoulder, and con-
fess it all to his kindly ear.
"Oh, papa, papa! !" sobbed she. 8" I have
disobeyed you, and never, never can for
give myself"
Mr.. Fountain only patted her cheek ,and
kissed her.
"Don't fret, Flo" said he. We've all
got life's lesson to learn, and experience is a
rigorous teacher"
The police, sent to break up Captain Con-
forto's den in Margin street, found nothing
and nobody there bnt mild old gentleman
in spectacles, reading the papers, who had
charge of letting the premises. He had
never heard of Captain Conforto-neither
was the fat woman, who had acted as vol
unteer guide to Flora, TO be found up stairs
or down.
g It's a bad block, this ere, " said the po-
liceman, to Mr. Fountain. They calls it
Swindle Row. But they're that slippery
here as nobody can lay finger on EN-"
So began and ended poor Flora's dream of
T.. u. II.
Shipping Mrs. Penrith Duke is wearing away
also, especially since that high toned lady
gave a soiree donsonte, and neglected to in
vite Miss Fountain, observing, languidly,
that zone couldn't fill ones drawing room
with nobodies :"
And Flora has come to the conclusion that
perhaps the Gates, the Plumers and the
Hazels of life are as desirable as the PEN
rith Dukes.