St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-05-16
THE EIGHT FORTY-FIVE.

-Ruckert in Temple Bar.
THE EIGHT FORTY-FIVE.
Everybody outside the Office of Jonathan
Greysark q Co., East India merchants of
Rood lane, City. knew Jonathan Greysark
simply as very wel-tOdo bachelor of five
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. well-dressed, genia
and atfable as man well fitted out with
the good things of this life and unhampered
by ties and encumbrances should be. But
Philip Penn, whose days were passed
within the Office, regarded his wealthy and
popular employer from somewhat differ
ent point Of view. Mr.. Penn had by stead
mess and business knowledge in no small
degree helped Jonathan Greysark to his en-
viable position in the commercial world;
he had served the house faithfully
for upward of twenty years, yet
he was still simply clerk, in which po-
sition, despite frequent prayers and petit
tions.Mr. Greysark was apparently determ-
ined to keep him until the time came for
dispensing entirely with his services. AL
together, poor PENIS life was by no means
happy one. for, in addition to his CONNER
cial troubles he had an eternally grinnng
domestic skeleton in the shape of a black
guard brother, who had stood in the felon's
dock on charge of extensive forgery, had
passed many years in prison, and who now
could only be kept quietly in the back
ground by the allowance which the unfOrtu
nate Penn made him out of the exceedingly
moderate salary he drew from the Rood
lane Office. Greysark knew this, and was
also aware that furnished name was an
almost insuperable bar to his clerks adj
vance in any other line of life; so he
meanly took advantage of the fact by get
ting most unfair amount of work out of
Penn, and paying him a miserable made
quate salary for it.
Jonathan Greysark lived at Brighton,
and came up to town every morning by the
SAG express. In this famous train he had
acquired, from long usage, prescriptive
right to a particular seat in particular
compartment of a particular carriage, and
the guard suffered considerable reduction
in his weekly largesse if he allowed stran-
ger to usurp his place.
But the old guard having been shunted
elsewhere, and a strange official who knew
not Jonathan having been substituted, it so
happened that one morning Greysark his
rug on his arm and his paper in his hand,
staggered gravely and magisterially up to
the carriage only to find his particular COM
partment, and in fact his very seat, occu-
would have resented this unwarrantable in
trusion in an unmistakable manner, but
upon this occasion, as the occupant was
pretty, modestly dressed girl of eighteen OF
Whereabouts, he could only vent his feelings
in grunts and scowlS and betake himself to
another seat. But when the next morning
he found his place similarly occupied, his
position became somewhat embarrassing,
and only the girls pleasant face checked
audible expression of his discomfort. The
same thing occurred the morning after and
the morning after that, and the young S:45
bucks, who, of course, regarded the affair
as a capital joke, remarked that the great
man instead of ramping and raging away to
another carriage, not only contentedly went
into the same one, but passed a much
greater part of the hour and a quarters
journey in looking at the girl over the top
OF his newspaper than in studying the city
article. In fortnght's time it was OBJ
served that he handed her out. CARR ed her
little parcels and saw her safely into an
omnibus for the Mansion house, and in
three weeks time it was noted that he
chatted as easily and Familiarity with her as
if he had known her for years.
In short it became very evident that the
wealthy bachelor of Rood lane was enam-
ored of the young lady. When his atten-
tions first became marked she assumed the
proper attitude of unprotected virtue, and
confined her answers to rather curt mono
syllables, but when her feminine perspecu-
lty assured her that her admirers behavior
was inspired by the most honorable of in
tentionS she unbent and told him that her
name was Phyllis, that she was stu dent
at the South Kensington school of art and
that she resided at Brighton with her
aunt.
miss Phyllis, said Greysark one morn
ing, US they walked along the London
bridge platform, ''as some sort of
assurance thas 1 only entertain the
most genuine feelings of respect and
and admiration for you. | think
that L should mention that my name is
Greysark, that l am the head of one of the
most respected houses in the city of London,
and that as l am quite aware that an
acquaintance of this casual nature is ant to
give rise to erroneous impressions in the
minds of people who only judge by appear
ances, with your permission nothing would
give me greater pleasure than to call upon
your aunt at Brighton"
AT the mention of the name of Greysark
the girls color deepened somewhat, and she
raised her eyes to his face for a few
seconds. Then she said
81 am sure that my aunt would be de-
lighted to make your acquaintance, MI.
Greysark."
Accordingly, on the following Sunday
Mr.. Greysark. instead of performing his
usual weekly duty to society by an after
noon lounge on the green, betook himself to
Regency square and waa ushered into the
presence of a smiling, gray-haired lady,
who might have stepped from an ancestral
picture frame, and who received him with
the stately urbanity of courtier of the old
school. Being man of business, Jona- |
than Greysark lost no time in beating about |
the bush. but plunged at once in medias |
res, described the origin of his acouaint-
ance with Phyllis, expressed himself in
such happy language, blew his own trumpet |
IN such a pleasant, unassuming manner de- |
clared his devotion in such fervid phrases.
in fact, put matters before the old lady in
such an attractive light that she was com
pletely won over.
of course, Mr.. Greysark," she said. in
reply, ''as am only the girls aunt, | have
no direct authority in the matter. But if
Phyllis regards your suit as favorably as I
do, can only recommend that you should
address letter to her father in London
state the case as you have stated it to me-
and abide by his decision"
but it is an extraordinary phase of orr
said the merchant, .sthat I
do not know your nieces surname yet"