The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1884-08-02
The Telegram.


of thing!" said Mr.. McElroy. elf l
don't, l shall certainly come to the
poor-house. 1 haven't saved money all
these years to rain it down on peoples
heads as if it was hail-stones. No, De-
linda, haven't got five dollars to spare.
Your winter bonnet is quite good enough
to wear for a month longer. Every
body else have their spring suits? Well,
if everybody else is fools, that amt no
reason that you should be. Six dollars
for subscription to help buy the new
minister's furniture! Not if konw it,
lanes When l came to Bloodville, l
bought my own furniture, and there's no
reason that the new minister shouldn't
do the same thing. The egrocer's book?
l never saw anything like the way our
housekeeping bills run up! 1t 'ud be
a deal cheaper, so far as l can see, to
90 to New York and board at the Wind
cor Hotel than TO live here, unless you
and Sarah can manage little more eco
nomically, Matthew. And as for those
singing lessons that Lucy wantsto take,
you may tell her no!'
"Lucy thought" meekly began
Matthew Startling.
But his uncle interrupted him curtly
with
"You may tell her no! And that
ends the question.
John McElroy was man who had,
in the local dialect, "saved a lot of
money" Being great deal too eco
nomical to marry, he had invited his
lame nephew, Matthew Startling, to come
with his family and keep house in the
old red homestead and thereafter he
took credit to himself for supporting all
the Starlings, although Matthew toiled
diligently at his trade of shoemaking,
and James, the eldest son, managed the
farm with skill and success, while Mrs.
Startling and her two daughters, Lucy
and belinda, were the model dairy-wo-
men and best managers of the vicinity.
In an evil hour Matthew Startling had
borrowed thousand dollars of Uncle
John, to pay off an old debt that hung
around his neck like a milestone.
He had kept up the interest pretty
regularly, but it would have been about
as easy to pay off the national debt as
to discharge an obligation of thousand
dollars; andin this way Uucle McElroy
contrived to keephim ground down in
to the very dust.
Had it not been for this thousand
dollar debt, the Startling family would
have crept out from under the harrow
of Uncle Johns tongue and temper long
ago. :,
"Itdon't 'tseem asifwe could standit >"
said Mrs Startling, plaintively:
''I don't care how much ne scoldS
me-" "said belinda, "but he has no busi-
ness to tyrannize SO dreadfully over
poor mother" )"
eff could only raise money enough
to take a quarters singing lessons, l
could earn hundred dollars year in
the church choir" said Lucy.
"If!" said James, laughing. "That's
a big word Loo, for such a little one.
If Uncle John would only let me plant
crop of tobacco up in the south field,
am sure l could raise twice as much
money as the turnips will bring us.
But Uncle John sticksto old traditions,
and that little if stands in the way. l
only wish that the farm were mine !"
The housekeeping book was particu-
larly aggravating that morning and
Mrs. Startling had shed few quiet tears
before the interview was over.
81 hate whining women ~ said Mr..
McElroy; stand 1 hate extravagant
ones!"
"I try to do the best can,'' said
poor Mrs. Startling.
And when the book was flung wrath
fully on the table, and Mr.. McElroy
had dismissed his nephew's wife, he sat
thinking.
"I'll do It'll" he said, aloud. "I've
had it in my mind for some time. I'll
send these Starlings about their business.
I'll put an end to these everlasting i'm
positions of theirs. They only care for
me just the length of my purse. They
hate me, ever one of 'em. l can see
through 'em, dull as they think me!"
As he sat there, a little lad came to
the door, with yellow envelope in his
hand.
GA telegram for you,'' said he.
twenty-five cents, please"
Mechanically, Mr.. McElroy paid the
money, and he put on his round silver
mounted spectacles, as the little lad sped
away under the lilac bushes, which were
just beginning to put on their fringe OF
purple plumes.