The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1885-01-09
MAJOR CORNELIUS.


ing house kept by an eminently respect
able Cd maid, Miss Jones, who treate
all her boarders with consideration an
did not exact from them more than the
were able to pay. We dinedat her hous
only on Sundays aud on Christmas Day
that Is, unless invited out. The Dime
was always early-at ! o'clock. and al
wavs followed the same order. On tn
first Sunday in the month we had CHECKER
and bacon; on the second, boiled beei
garnished with carrots and turnips lalter
mating with parsnips), and suetpudding
on the third Sunday we had roast muttol
and fried potatoes; on the fourth, roas
beef and mashed or boiled potatoes. Whel
there were five Sundays in o month, til.
additional Sunday was supplied with beef
steak pudding, three pounds OF beef to
pudding.
| do not know how it was that the boilet
potatoes at Miss Jones' always tasted O
dish.clout, know very well that the
potatoes are not boiled in q cloth; never
theless the pudding, which is, did no
taste OF the clout, and the potatoes did
There are several insoluble mysteries en-
countered in life-this was one.
Our lanolady was tall, pale, sandy
haired. She lived en- deShdJiue in the
kitchen all the morning: but 0 a: N. a
kiast, and at 4 4. NJ when We board
ers dropped in from our work, she was
prim, laced, curled, and stately. How
She managed to become SO in n few min
utes, | never knew. That also was one
OF the insoluble mysteries OF life.
When one OF us stayed at home indis
posed, we found that by $3.50 A. N. she was
what we called in our slang "disll.shoyell'
cd )" mott curl in place, smirch across
her cheek and her neat merino gown re-
placed by dress not fl for q lady to wear
Miss Jones was the ideal maiden lady oil
propriety, dignity and thrift. She was
good.natured; on one point, however, she
was memorable never allowed her
dodgers 10 fall into debt; we paid, weekly,
beforehand, one pound per head. She had
an al!able smile, and similar remarks on
tho weather for all her boardcrs. Each
had a rasher OF bacon OF the same size al
breakfast, and two Jumps OF sugar i'll his
tea, and one spoonful OF brown sugar in
lis coffee. Each, also, had All egg, and all
the eggs tasted OF limewater or sawdust
alike.
All the boarders were males except
one, an old lady with q false front, who
combed her back hair with an anti
moniacal comb to blacken it, and this
always made her collar grimy. She wore
also set OF false teeth; both jaws were
thus iurnished-how contrived we never
quite made out. That also remains one
Of the insoluble mysteries Of life. They
were somehow cobtriyed to fit with
springs, and were so badly contrived thai
in eating she did not look her best, and
sometimes presented very unattractive
spectacle indeed. Tho old lady did mol
like US, and we did not like her. She
often had deyilled kidneys for breakfast
we never, but she paid extra for them
and when she had them, then inevitably
the teeth went out OF gear. Behind hei
back We were accustomed to mimic her.
she knew It by some extraordinary intul,
lion, mysterious to us for long time, till
we discovered that the naid-o;-all-w0rk
had sneaked to her OF what We said and
dlu. She scarcely spoke to US at meals
except in peremptory way, to have the
mustard or toast passed to her. We took
a malicious pleasure In neglecung to anti,
cipate her wants, and force her to demand
the butter or toast, ETC., and not to heai
her requests to have them passed till she
raised her voice angriiy and repeated
them very loudly, when we Immediately
began to serve her with mustard, pepper
egg.spoons, empty sardine tins, any and
every thing, with mock eagerness to fore
stall her little wants. We were rude tc
the old lady, admit, but she was very
aggrayating. However, my story has
nothing to do with her, sol may dismiss
her; it concerns an old gentle
man who was our colodger and boardel
at Miss Jonea's pension. lie was Majol
Cornelius, o thin, gray-haired man, with {
refined lace and with the most deitpatei!
cut noGtrils ] think ] ever saw. he wa
scrupulousIy careful about his clothes,and
though they were old and threadhare, M
one could doubt that he was gentleman
by birth, breeding, and in feeling. Their
was something very sweet and progresses
ing about his face. 1t was pale and grave
buta kindly smile lurked about the del
cate mouth, and the gray eyes were soft
He was rather lame, from wound he hat
received at Waterloo. He bad his pen
sion, and he lived on that he had moth
ing beside TO live on. That, however
would have sufIiced to keep him in com
fort had he not in an evil hour stoot
security for a younger brother. We nom
Of is knew the circumstances exactly, stst
I cannot now say what was truth ant
what was conjecture in the story whisper
ed among us. My impression is that tn
brother. 10 whom he was deyotedly at
tached. had not behaved honorably; h
had left the country, and the Majors re
sources were strained to theutlnost TO NEE
the demand that came on him as security
I'VE none OF us vontured to ailudc to thi
tonic: the disgrace ranked in the oil
mans heart; there was an ever.opel
wosnd there, which We were careful no
to touch. -,
There was childlike simplicity In TIL
old man which rather amused US young
sters then; now, looking back on him,
find It was infinitely touching. We, how
ever, laughed over tive knew mucl
more OF the world than he. To Nils
Jones and tho old lady with the teeth HI
was courteous, with an old.fashioned conr
tesy that fiattered them and won thei
hearts. He paid Miss Jones the same .
we, Gl per week, but he dined daily q
home. I'VE used to say that Miss Jone
set her cap at.the MAJ or, aud that she onl
allowed him to remain on these moderat
terms because she desired to become Mn
Cornelius. do not believe II was so. .
| think she strained a point 80 as to retail
| an old Waterloo officer in her house, !
give il an air OF superiority above othe
i Boarding hopsesiu the street,
Whenever think Of Major Cornelius
remember his hair. have already sal
Il was thin; 1t was always. elaborated
brushed and watsred, the hair drawn fol
ward from behind tho ear, and turned ]
q sort Of curl over the temple. His collal
were always clean and very stiff, and b
black crayat tight around the throat.
A kind old mani When Robbins wf
I'M with rheumatic fever he sat up wit
him night alter night, and ministered
him as q nurse. When Robbins was be
ter; and able 10 receive our cal, he sat y
. | T., III. knd 1anntnfr nm the Major wi