St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1885-04-25
IN PARENTHESIS.
4 Conversation Incident to q Ger
tain Morning Call.


tain Morning Call.
Thescene is an elegant drawing-roo
IN large city of the Northwest. Mrs.
Newrich is making a morning call upon
Mrs. Van Highton, who exclaims, in hel
most gushing manner:
Il am delighted to see you in such
exuberant health and spirits, my dear
Mrs. Newrich. How is your charming
familyp"
20, sorter middlin'. Pretty we'll tired
out with Serainy, who's gettin' ready
to be married, and is a-pesterin' us to
pieces about her trosser. She don't
seem to think nothin' here is good
enough for her, and wants everything
from Paris. Her par says if this wed.
ding don't land us in the poor-house he
shall bless his stars. Girls is awfully
expensive and unreasonable"
'.But you, with your millions, need
not mind a few thousands lavished on
that lovely girl" (Aside-..What a
shame to throw away fine clothes and
costly jewelry upon that tallow-haired.
freckled, dull-eyed, scrawny. stupid
creature! No man would think of mar
rying her If it were not for her father S
money!
Il s'pose my husband is rich as Gre
osus. but that don't keep him from
groanin' over the money it takes to keep
up the style we live in. He wants il in
land and stocks, where it will be bringin'
in somethin'. The more he has, the
more he bankers arter."
west the dollar is almighty. Therefore
he wisely reaches out for it in all direc-
tions," replies Mrs. Van Highton,
suavely, with this mental commentary:
(.He's cold -blooded, horrid, rascally
old Shylock, bound to have his pound
OF flesh; and everybody says SOY
'Uriah says that money is the one
thing needful in this world, remarked
Mrs. Newrich; .'that nobody can't be
nothin' without it."
"a very wise observation" returns
Mrs. Van Highton, adding, beneath her
breath, ("He certainly can not. won
der il he has forgotten the time when
he worked as day laborer on the rail-
road and his wife boarded the hands
and did their washing?'O Thinking it
well to change the subject, a sore one
to her just then, she said, sweetly: 81
hear that You have been investing some
what largely in paintings and statuary.
Knowing your esthetic tastes, l am
anxious to see these rare works of art. y
ssYes, we have. When we was in
Yurrup last year we bought lots OF
statutes and pictltrs-works OF the old
marsters and good many articles OF
virtue, as Serafiny calls EN-"
Mrs. Van Highton, aside-("A great
deal uou know of the old masters! You
have no doubt been wofully taken In,
and it serves you right. y
1--WE bought 'em in job lot. and OF
art connoshers, who swore that they
were geniwin. They orter be, consid-
erin the money they cost"
..Will you kindly name some OF the
paintings?"
There's MadOnny with heavenly
cheribubs by Rattle, sculptur piece by
Fra Diayolo, Venus arisin from the
sea by Leonard Winchy, and lots OF
other high-up things by old fellers with
outlandish names that l disremember.
and couldn't pronounce nohow. Sera,
finy begs me never to try. She can tell
yc an about 'em. She reads the art
hooks and has the art lingo at her
tonone's end. She says she wouldn t
give house-room to picture painted in
Ameriky."
. most admirable art connolsseur.
1.Pretentious mink! She doesn t know
tho Greeks from the Romans. She can
Mt toll an old master from tea-store
chromor'O was Mrs. Van Highton 3
mental criticism; but she SAID. oianaiy:
"How proud you must be OF your
daughters accomplishments!
a smile of gratified maternal vanity
irradiated the broad, rcd face OF MRS.
Nawr;ch ..Yes, Serafny knows .
heap." she said; .'but she has no loee
Of the valew of money, and / can't trust
her to buy things. Ipromised to shop
,r;,h her th;s mornin,, and Must be
a-ooin,. rye ten thousand other tnings
to do"
with your large establishment and
extended visiting list your time INST Oe
more than occupied.
with a housekeeper to see6 things,
and corpse of trained servants. have
no,hinp to do to hope but to give
orders. But my outside duties is tre-
menjus; just look at ipy program tor
to-day"