The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1890-01-25
A CRUEL CONSPIRACY.
Old Mr.. Brown and His Sons Love
Affair.

Old Mr.. Brown, the wealthy tallow
merchant, was haunted by a morbid
dread that his only son Jack would
make an imprudent marriage. The re-
lations between the two were little
strained, owing to the young mans OBJ
lection to engage IN mercantile pursuits.
He had wished to enter the army. which
old Mr.. Brown regarded as hot-bed of
vice and dissipation, and having been
thwarted in this, the lad would conde-
Bcend to do nothing but to read languidly
for the bar, obviously without the least
intention of adopting the law as a pro-
feSsion. This naturally irritated his
father, who speedily became convinced,
from the. Stories which reached his ears
of Master Jacks proceedings, that ex-
travagance and dissipation can be prac-
ticed by a plain civilian without any
military training whatever. But though
Jack Brown had quilted the parental
roof, and his father rigidly restricted
his allowance to 9300 a year, which led
to great many unpleasant discussions
between them, they were not completely
estranged, for each secretly entertained
more respect and affection for the other
than he cared to show.
But perhaps the real origin of the
GOODNESS and of old Mr.. Browns per-
petual uneasiness was to be traced to an
early love affair of the young man who,
when scarcely one-and-twenty, had en-
gagged himself to a pretty but penniless
girl-a governess in the family of
neighbor. Miss Mary Marshlands was
highly educated and accomplished, and
a lady by birth and training; but the
old tallow merchant would not hear of
the engagement, and vetoed it in very
peremptory way. But, though he sue
ceeded bya vigorous exercise of parental
authority in reducing his son to submits
sion, and sent him off on voyage round
the world in charge of tutor, the lad
displayed a startling spirit of headstrong
independence. and solemnly warned his
father that, if he should contemplate
matrimony again, he would take care
not to risk his happiness by disclosing
his intentions.
Old Mr.. Brown was more impressed
by this announcement than he realized
at the moment, and as time went on and
Master Jack seemed to have completely
recovered from his early disappoint-
ment, his father sometimes doubted
whether he had done wisely to inter-
fere. He feared that his son was lust
the sort of misguided, susceptible young
man to be inveigled into matrimony by
some designing adventures, and if such
catastrophe occurred it was not pleas
ant TO reflect that the lad, warned by
his previous experience, would, in all
probability. keep his own counsel, and
not afford his anxious parent the oppor-
tunity of rescuing him from .his own
imprudence.
Old Brown got this idea so firmly into
his head that it rendered him perfectly
miserable, and, unluckily. his son al
ways maintained an attitude of marked
reserve concerning his private affairs,
which increased the old mans uneasi-
ness. 1t must be owned that Mr.. Brown,
ST., was not the sort of father whose
manner invites confidence, for he was
habitually gruff and unsympathetic.
But 1t is certain that the young man did
rot appear to relish his parents fire.
marriages, and old Mr.. Brown noticed
that on such occasions his son always
FASTENED to change the conversation.
This was so conspicuously the case on
one particular evening that the old gen.
tlcman, who fancied that he had re-
Gently noticed sort of yelled defiance
in Jacks manner, resolved to satisfy his
suspicious by making some inquiries
among the young fellows friends.
1t SO happened that on the very next
day after he arrived at this determine
ton, he came across in the city young
man who was a member of Jacks club.
The opportunity seemed too good to be
lost, and Mr.. Stephen Carlow had on
previous occasions shown himself to be
OF communicative disposition. In fact,