Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1882-06-07
A HIGHLY RESPECTABLE FAMILY

but il was good while ago; and as regard
cd Catharine, the elder, her youth was
simply legend which nobody pretended to
believe in. Miss Catharine looked like q
slightly resuscitated Egyptian mummy with
gray puffs. Her face seemed TO be divided
by deep wrinkles into various territories,
like a geographical map. Her wrinkles,
like everything else about her. were dc
cisive; no mere semi-perceptiDle crows :
feet, but deep burrows which Time had
made, not gently and apologetically, but as
IL were with Yindictive purpose. Her
nose, which had quite q high-bred air about
the nostrils, betrayed consciousness OF It's
own gentiity; the eyes, which were OF an
indefinite gray color, were half covered by
somewhat dropping eyelids, which peculiar
ly expressed not drowsiness, but hauteur.
The region about the eyes was slightly dis
colored, as IL TO convey premonition OF an
event which, in the nature OF things, could
not be far distant. | forgot 10 observe
(what Miss Catharinc never forgoD that the
Misses Kolstad were Of highly respectable
family. They had been in state of decline
for century or more, but they had never
ceased TO be genteel.' Their father, who
had been active in contributing to the de-
cadence Of the family, had been, as both
Miss Catharine and Miss Lena expressed II,
a royal Norwegian Government officer, 1. c.,
he fGd been n clerk or copyist in one
of the Government departments but
his father, whom tradition asserted TO
have been gay old gentleman and q
trifle Of q roue, had been Judge OF
the Supreme Court, and had been the bearer
of several orders. The two old ladies cher
ished the memory OF this dissolute grand
father with o singular tenderness. They
spoke of him under their breaths, however
while their niece, Olga, was in the room
but they glorled secretly in him, and were
quite proud OF their fate in having been ru-
ined, before they came into the world, by
such a splendid gentleman.
1t was very lugubrious existence which
Olga led in the company OF her two aunts.
Her father, Anthony kolstad, the only
brother of the old ladies, had died when she
was nine years old, and her mother whC
had been pretty, but not strictly genteel, hat
married some exceedingly common individ-
ual, and had immigrated with him to The
United States. Poor Anthony had inherited
his full share of deviltry which fell 10 the 10
OF every male in the Kolstad family, and be
fore he was twenty-five years old he had haC
the indiscretion to fall in love with scullion
and, what was worse, had married her. Hi
married life had not been as tranquil rs /
might have been, but the birth of Olga ha(
made it less miserable than otherwise /
would have been. When his widow sc
sail for the land Of liberty, having first OK
changed her name for an odiously plebeial
ono, the Misses Kolstad had claimed th
daughter, and after a brief litigation ha'
gained possession OF her.
The transfer from tho easy-going an,
somewhat careless life of her home TO tn
strict and memorable routine of her aunts
household was formidable event in OIL
gas career From the first day she wa
MORALLY afraid of her aunt Catharine, who's
cap strings seemed to be bristling with dig
nifty, and whose bony hands, placed cross
wise over her stomach, had something vul
ture-like and terrible about them. He
aunt Lima, on the other hand, who was hell
| by her superior sister TO be slightly weak
minded, could sometimes DO almost merr
in hushed and guilty way, rs il she wer
ashamed of her own friyolity. Miss Catha
| rine's shadow seemed always TO be follow
ing her about, checking her spirits, an
making her demeanOr timid and subdued
| She felt sometimes irrepressibly gay at heart
! but remembering that she was Kolstad
she restrained her mirth, for it was not snip
! posed TO be dignifed in q Kolstad TO be mer
| ~. Miss Lina's meditations were neve
| deep, and IL never occurred TO her to nc
| fleet upon the hardship OF having been en-
| dowed with q joyous nature which ono
compelled to repress. She was good an
submissive old maid, who received all he
opinions ready made from her sister, who's
authority she never thought OF questioning
About her person there was something sol
and genial, and charming air of fadod gen
| tlllilt NiiSh NOAANhNu yum ntdlb III " ttuut
| spot II you stopped TO look after her in I'll
street. And between nine and ten in tn
| morning you would be very sure to mcC
Miss Lima in the street, for Il was at thu
hour that she went to market, with wor
| derful hat of the last century on her head
and her basket on her arm. Miss Catharir
| never went to market, nor did any kind
work except knitting; and embroidery viii
her eyes were still good. IL sometim,
CALLED her that her sister should go TO MAJ
ket, not that she pitied her sister, but b,
cause she shrank from making an exhIbitiC
| Of their poverty. Servants cost money, an
genteel families unfortunately are not a
| ways blessed in accordance with their d,
serts. And marketing cannot be dispense
with, even in the genteelest families
|
| III.
The street In which the Misses Kolstf
lived had once been fashionable, but w
now struggling bravely for bare respectabi
| ity. Small merchants who sold tobacco ~
oil-skin clothes and tallow candles were il
yading IL from the lower end, and an ms,
lent shocmaker's sign with black paintC
boot and red shoe had even the hardihoC
TO danglo and creak on its iron wire with
sight Of Miss Catharine's windows. 1t WI
the fourth or fifth house on the sunny sic
OF the street which had the honor OF she
tcring, In its third story, the two old gentl
women. The first floor was occupied |
newspaper offices; the second was inhabi
ed by compOsitors and pIinting-presse
and The last, which had u dozen projectil
windows, was arranged into series of q
tics, in which INDECENT students combin,
responsibility with economy. This wor
Is indeed 4 serious affair to q man who h
TO acquire learning, lodge and clothe al
board himself, and, moreover, cut q fiji
figure in society, and all on twelve dollars
month. In Norway, however, such thin
can be done, with proper amount of de,
terity and circumspection; - arold re
lcfsen, who wascboth dexteyl4 and ci
cumspect, knew with mathematical exac
ness the maximum OF splendor that cou
be eXtorted from the minimum of mean
He always bought cravats that had tv
presentable sides; he dined at the publ
"steam Kitchen at eight cents through q
week, and took his quarter loaf Of bret
home with him for supper, In order to
able TO dazzle the young ladies from q fasl
ionable restaurant on Sundays. lie new
wore coat In his room, but cnyeloped h
tall and elegant form In an antiquated dres
ing.gown, in order to save his clothes.
spite Of all these cXpcdents, however, Ha
old Tellefsen was anything but skin1ir
lie had, on the contrary, an Unsuitable an
bition 10 shine in the world and life reduc,
itself In his mind TO the problem of how
shine on twelve dollars month. His faths
who was q clergyman in distant count
parish, and had been blessed beyond h
deserts with children, could absolutely SPA
him no more, and Harold was thus co
fronted with the alternative OF trade o,
scantily supported gentility. lie natural
chose the latter, ana Necessity, who il
great oontriver, stimulated his inventiveneI
and enabled him TO impose upon cred
lous world.
1t so happened that the room which la
old Tcllefsen occupied faced not toward {
street, but toward the courtyard, viii
was, however, not incloscd on the 9th
three sides, but commanded beautii
view Of the Chrlstiania harbor and the win
ing, gitterfng ford. This arrangement
the udenps eyes had two conspicuous
vantagcs: first, II enabled him TO save |
coat while he took the fresh air; and IL pr
vented tho world from becoming too in
mately acquainted with his dressing -gow
which boine in an advanced stare az n