Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1883-11-08

L1iaHs VI Jul own peculiar lnSllIuIlOuS--
the sitting-room sofa, with the damaged
springs and arms. that rolls off like a
cannon if you unwarily touch it. You
did that, Billy" threw in, parentheti-
cally, land you always said you would
mend it, and never have Is there a
lock in this house in running order, a
window that does not require prac-
ticed hand TO open or close, or door
that shuts as it should? We are used to
skipping the third back step, because
| the landlord won't mend it: but would
a stranger take kindly to that method
of descent? He might like blinds that
fasten either one way or the other, and
do not have to be nailed according to
the season, and furnace that is not
always coming to pieces in the coolest
weather. and a front door that has not
a gap of a half-inch between door and
lslll, and dining-room where the house
has not settled so that there is an in
chned plane YOU could coast on from
the window to the stove" Iwound up,
breathlessly.
Apparently our united objections
had negatived the plan beyond gues-
ton. For full five minutes we sat in
silence. Then:
g wonder if he would mind a cold
dinner washing days?' said voice
from the shadowy doorway.
He viii not be here to dinner or
through the day; that is the best of it, -
said Matilda. thoughtfully.
q shall have nervous prostration if
we don't have somebody threatened
Lou. L will not be left alone
But We will not have Just anybody.
If we are really to have a boarder. we
must have one that viii suit US exactly.
l will tell you the kind we WANT -
But they don't keep intelligence
Offices for boarders." objected Jack.
THAT need make no difference He
can be found" and leaning back in my
favorite low chair, | proceeded to give
the necessary qualifications in our de-
fender. a thick, brown mustache
| There is nothing | dislike more than
thin. sandy enc. He is to show no sus-
! picion of badness. What a pity it is so
many young men are fast getting bald!
Easy to talk with, handsome teeth. me-
dunn height, and rather slender There
| is something positively oppressive IN
i big man about small house. Dark
| eyes, too. 1 never did like pale ones.
And be sure his hat is nice. If it is not,
we shall have nothing to say to him.
! quoting half to myself from my favorite
writer,
Virtue may struggle in bad cravat.
But han. man !. and nature scorn the shocking
and before reached the end of the last
line it dawned upon me, to my sud-
den horror, that / had been describing
somebody the exact opposite of Jack
| Walcott.
But luckily he had not noticed. He
was not one who did notice such things.
and indeed midway in my description
had begun to occupy himself in clean
ing his pipe, preparatory to another
good smoke, from the unusual amount
of care he seemed to be bestowing upon
it, till we were undeceived by his put
ting it in his pocket and rising. ''Not
going?" in chorus. Yes, he must. Oh,
yes, he knew it was early. but he had
some writing to do at home; and he
went off, fondly accompanied by Billy
to the end of the street, leaving behind
him the promise that he would find tine
desired boarder for us. We felt at ease
on that point, for what Jack promised,
though it had been the discovery of the
north pole, was as good as accom-
plished. Three days later Billy left us,
agreeing with manly Indifference to
'.come home when he could and write
when he had time" Not for worlds
would our brother have had it appear
he would want to see us as much as we
should him. His farewell present, with
deriSive grin, was a brass chain for
the front door. 1t was received, how
ever, in quite another spirit. and speed
lily became Lou 5 greatest comfort. she
even putting it up when we were at
dinner, or she was left alone FIVE min
utes in broad daylight
For our Reign of Terror had begun,
and the brass chain was but one of the
many eXpedients of the fertile feminine
mind-of course it was the invention of
a feminine mind-has devised that
thieves shall enter not, and at which a
burglar with any sense of humor must
smile as he calmly strips the house of
its valuables. Every night at shutdown
we made round of the house, and
locked all the windows we could. Upon
those which could not belocked-thanks
to our landlord again-were placed flat
irons. The back doors were likewise
secured by contrivance like a huge
hair-pin placed over knob and through
key. There were nine of these. Lou
had them in charge At bedtime a
made in body, not even the cabinets
and small closets being overlooked, all
the dresses in the latter being probed,
that no man might lurk within their
folds. Every night all the silver was
placed in basket and hidden under
pile of comforters; the few valuables
that still remained-relics of other days
were slowed away in various odd
places They might almost as well
have been stolen, for the next morning
we never could remember where we had
put them, in our terror the night before,
while each of US had particular object
for which we cared. and about which
our fears tenderly lowered.
Every night, the last thing, Lou would
60 to the spare-room closet and look at
her best bonnet. Why, we did not
know, unless possessed by the idea that
the burglar wanted it for his wife. And
tho visit room Ia rlr nnnania6 on