Connecticut western news., 1890-02-19
HRS VIVIAN. !"

MNH WlMAN
 When l first cam to live In tho city was extremely interested in every one about me, and when to my we'll meant advances I got short but not unpleasant responses, I thought poe pic took me for a meddling sort of a fellow. and I rather drew back into my shell and kept to myself, but now l understand better, and when 8 man Is what used to term cranky, set him down as dead tired and let him alone, and that's how it happened that after working for nearly a year in the same room with dozen men J ames Murray was about the only one with whom l had even 8 common acquaintance.
 Some how 1 took fancy to the young fellow from the very first He was tall and thin, smoothed faced, with regular, clean-cut features and dark eyes and hair; boyish, looking, but dieni6ed and very quiet
 I had done him a few friendly turns such as men working together often get 8 chance to do one another and we had become pretty we'll acquainted. At least he must have known me and my family history pretty we'll; but he was rather reticent and beyond telling me he was q man of family" as he expressed it, he had never talked of his own affairs and I had often won- dorod whot bia f.r,il ,ioht oopoiet of
 One night. he invited me home to dinner with him. and, as you may imagine, accepted with great prompt ness.
 His home was at the outskirts of the great city-not ia one of the pretty suburbs, but in a thinly settled, bleak looking neighborhood, where there were many vacant lots, with here and there fair-looking apartment house or block of flats, but no houses that looked like permanent homes.
 The buildings all had that cheerless look seen in the neighborhood where renters change often; sort of transient air. as though the houses themselves might be portable; and one would hardly be surprised to see the great furniture vans that are always coming and going with imulense loads to and . from these localities carry away houses and all.
 My friend apologized for the distance, saying that cheaper rent had taken him % far out because now his family needed-more room than he could afford topag for nearer town.
 ''Ris family" again-well, In 8 few minutes should, ssee for myself A EiAa es the door of an upper fiat brought . neat little maid servant to the door, aad she showed us into cosy little parlor-empty for a moment, then filled it seemed to me, by 8 lively little tot of two or three years. Daddy Jim. Daddy Jim," he called as he climbed on him and ovar him and hung on bis coat; and then the pretty girl mother entered and Daddy Jim proudly presented mo to his family.
 We had 8 merry meal Everybody talked. even the baby. They both rattled away. and soon knew all about them Her name was Kittie, bahy's was Ned She called her hrs- band Daddy Jim" because baby had begun it and it sounded funny. Both were orphans-he was 8 and she was 1a She had married at 16, because mother had died then and left her alone, and Jim wanted to take care of her. They had been engaged always, every since they were children; and 90 as l heard their story became more and more interested in them, and re- solved then and there to be a sort of 8 father to them. Not that I was so aw- fully old (my hair has always been thin this way-early badness runs in our family), but they seemed such in. fants to be all alone in the world.
 I think they must have liked me, too, for soon an invitation to dine with them on Sunday became so much a matter of course that I should have felt hurt had it been omitted. be- came their confidential friend and was consulted in so many of their plans that felt myself quite important, assure you. helped Kittie select Jim's birthday and Christmas gifts, and gave Jim the benefit of my ex- perience in shopping when Kittie sent him for purchases at the great dry goods stores. In fact began to con- slider myself one of the family.
 Now there was employed in our of. fce as typewriter a Mrs Wyman, g very handsome woman of about thirty five years of age. A relative of one of the firm, her story was we'll known among the men in the office. She had been left an orphan with considerable money, and at the age of sixteen had married against the advice of hel friends; her husband had abused her, spent her little fortune. then died leav. ing her to support herself.
 She was, as have said, beautiful, but very bitter and sarcastic, and feel ing that sine owed the world grudge. she was not apt to spare any one. think the men were rather afraid o ber sharp tongue, and she was not or particularly good terms with any O them except Jim, and from the frs day she came she seemed to take z fancy to him. .se
 She was not a bad-hearted woman and. as l afterwards found out, she didn't know Jim was 8 married man, but she seemed to have 8 sort of ia cipation for him which caused me nc little anxiety. Not that Jim was a all In love with her or likely to forge Kittie, but he was so very young ani