The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1886-08-29
OUR TREASURES.

-
TO swear eternal friendship Better not,
old man; we should quarrel before the week
was OUT
@Dont be frivolous We're not playing Boz
and Cox This is serious. What do you say
u taking u houses'
"A wllat." shouted Tidd, as il had sug
gestesi our taking railway station.
"A house--a house Of our own. where land
ladies would cease from troubling and the
cold meat be at rest; have done. once for all,
with these abominable furnished apartments
What say YOU"
He didn't say anything, but looked at me in
spcechle-ss anltznInent- The idea was too large
for him to take in all at once. l saw that be
would have IT, swallow it gradually, as the
boa cons:ri tor does his prey. proceeded to
lubrisate it for him.
~Why shouldn't we. We've stood the in
convenincsss and the extortions OF lodgings
long enough. Why shouldn't we rent a house
for ourselves. We can afford it; indeed, in
the long run, believe we should save money
by it"
Tidi already looked a shade less astonished.
j could see that he was beginning to like the
idea, AMI before we parted we had agreed
that it should become accomplished fact.
We would take a house. We shook hands
upon it; and when Timpcrley Browne and
Thomson Tidd shook hands upon a thing, it
was as good as done.
Tidd and I are both bachelors; not old
bachelor by any means, but confirmed bach
elors. Tieid is an architect, with a taste for
music and dry sherry. am q tea broker,
with nm office in Mincing lane. We had al
ways lived in apartments, sometimes apart,
but more often together; We had endured
every possible variety Of landlady and every
conceivable species Of "cat," from the feline
who would use my Rowland's Macassar and
my favorite hair brush To the tom" who bor-
rowed my diamond shirt studs and smoked
my best cigars. We had tried chambers in
what i facetiously termed an inn, but we
found that S,.ylia the "laundress" was, il pos
sibIc worse than Charybdis the landlady.
Tho last straw in that case, l remember, was
finding Mrs GlOOge ther very name was
an outrage humanity wearing my
dress lDots. / tried boarding house
for short time, but 1 have an I'M
fortun:.t, tendency to make myself
Agreeable. and among the boarders there was
widow, also with u tendency to make herself
agree.,l.. and, WELL / won't 60 into de
tails :ai e it to say that never had such
a ca-taIse in my life, and I'll take good
care never such a risk again No more
boas1h houses for
In>s oge. the details of our house hunting
and Il, furnishing We were fortunate
enou u u ss,etirc IL house in which the pro
pris.,a. lad ki..lself resided, and which consc-
qucii'.' i4rss.>s,d a variety of exceptional at
tract. - conservatory, a bath room, hot
wat1r AZ. ca everywhere. and last, but not
least, ,.aS -Elriy admirable kitchen range
soin-.ho y "a. others patent, and known as the
"fres..t -. We engaged cook, who was to
do inr Generally, and who was also war
raIt !! to T., treasure, and Tidd and re-
joie,.i +, anticipation over the recherche little
dini..-,.; With should be able to give our
bach. ..t- fri ids, TOller, of the stock ex-
cban:,c, AMI Tracy of the probate depart
ment. Hitherto such Inequalities had been
exchanged at our respective clubs. Ours
Ia MegHra, and theirs was the
Polyrosiiliil, and the Polypodium had, as q
rule. r..shsr the best of it. Now, we latterei
ourszlv,=s it would lie all the other way
"We'ii make em turn green with envy, Tidd
my boy" said one evening when we were
tatkii:y ovIr the matter. 1t wasn't n Chris
tim way 81 looking ut it. l feel that now,
and :Infspose what happened was what old
ladies call a Judgment; but l really don't
think it deserves such an awful retribution
The furniture was in at last, the carpets were
down, ami the curtains were up lit wasn't
quite easy it sounds, but it was done)
and W. came home at g O'Clock one awful
Wednesday TO partake of our first dinner in
our own house We met ON the doorstep
ming Ia donna mobile" and had bought
anew hat in honor OF the occasion We each
produced a latchkey, but Tidd got his
out first, and had the honor Of opening the
door. We hung up our hats in our new hall,
and thence proceeded to our new lavatory,
where washed our hands with much So
lernnty- We then took up positions, one
on e.t,'i side of the fire, in our new drawing
room, ai.a waited the announcement Of din
t.,. hll IA nsrxA6I faSf W
consi Il ~ 81 a pair Of sOles, duck and an
apricot tart; and dinner was fixed for a quar-
ter pa 1 ST.. There were just five minutes to
wait. Ihc i've minutes passed, and an
Other five after that, and another, and
anoth.s, and yet dinner was not announced.
Tisi.i AMI l began to look at one another
anxiouIy. 1T won't do to hurry her."
said -Of course she will hardly have got
things into going order for the first day or
two" TsiL admitted the Justice of my re-
mark and We wait.sl another twenty minutes
or 50. Il say, this is beyond u joke" said
Tiid Hadn't we better go into the dining
room. Perhaps she has served dinner and is
waiting for US"
We moved to the dining room accordingly
The cloth was laid in the first style of art
but tlier. was further sign Of dinner, and
after waiting another ten minutes l timidly
rang the bell 1t produced no result, and
TidI and I began To look at each other in dis
may.
"Perha,ss Trotter" Jour new cook sis taken
ill.," suggested Ti,ld- Hadn't you better go
down AMI ssc.'
.IInlnt you better go down and see,"
rctortei. "iou don't suppose I'm going to
beard "A ..w cook ia her own kitchen"
at ~-e. YOU who suggested taking the
house. sill Tidd, viciously.
loo.:e,! 1t hun more in sorrow than in
angcr.
-Tiit,r l said with emotion, shall the
friendship of years bc imperiled by the UNI
punci ;s.tlity al nsenial ut 4l6 a Year,
Never LIT have one glass of this old
MAXI ,ind ticn will toss which Of US
shall -, ,i.ss.ai and beard her in her den"
Til ;f.r III my hand, and the rupture was
nvcri : 81 had glass of the Madeira