Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1890-04-18

| III
debts, he had sold off the better portion
OF the furniture, retained two or three
OF the rooms as habitable for himself.
WIFE and one servant, and closed the
shutters OF the rest. There they lived
life OF righteousness; and Selma.
! MRS. Dalrymple. would sometimes UNI
lock the doors of the once familiar
rooms, and pace alone about their dusty
| floors, in anger and remorse almost un-
controllable-anger against her his
Dand. who need not have proceeded to
this extreme pass, and remorse for her
own folly, which had led to it.
Three years went by and things grew
worse; more wretched indoors, more
| oppression out. One day Mr.. Lee came
| up to the Grange, a respectable farm
er, who had rented all his life, and his
father before HIM, under the Dalrym-
Piles.
Sir" began Farmer Lee, without
any decentralization, when he was adj
mltted to the presence of his landlord.
| ~ am come up about that paper which
has been sent to me from Jones, your
| lawyer. It's a notice that next Mi
chaelmas, when my lease will expire,
the rent is to be raised.
"Wellp' said Mr.. Dalrymple
IA pound an acre"
"Well?''
"a pound an acre." repeated Farmer
Lee. with increased emphasis, as if he
thought he was not heard. Jones
must have made a mistake; you never
could have told him that, sir. Nv
daughters think he wrote it when he
was drunk; for every body knows that
he has fits OF drinking"
'They are the instructions gave
him, Mr.. Lee.'
''Io raise my rent pound acre!'
echoed the farmer, forgetting his gram
mar in his Excitement.
EXACTLY. The farm will bear it,
mo, it won't bear it, sir, and I
won't pay it
IL am sorry for that, Mr.. Lee, be-
cause it leaves only one alternative"
"And what's that?" asked Mr.. Lee,
ITO substitute in its place notice to
quit
''To quit! to quit the farm! for me to
quit my farmr' reiterated MIR. Lee, in
his establishment. "Why. it has been my
home all my life, sir, and 1t was my
fathers afore me. was born in that
farm, Mr.. Dalrymple, years and years
before you ever came into the world,
and mean to die in it,"
Mr.. Dalrymple did not acquiesce or
him with his impressive face, and cold,
colorless eye.
Its my labor, sir, that has made it
what it is" continued the farmer.
when my poor old father died, it was
not half the farm it is now Early and
late have been at my post, working
myself and seeing that my men worked.
have spared neither labor nor money
to bring it to it present fine condition:
you can't deny. Mr.. Dalrymple, +; at
it's the best worked and most flourish
ing land on the estate"
''My good sir, 1 do not deny it. I say
as you do; that it is too tlourishiug to
remain at it's present low rent
"Ihe rent is not low, sir: the rents
fair rent, fair for master and fair for
tenant. Ask any impartial person, ask
lar: Cleveland, Or ask Jones, and they'll
say as do. You don't seem to take
into account, sir, that my money has
not yet had return for my money
spent If you raise the rent twenty
shillings an acre, the money may Just
as we'll have been chuckcd into the
Dirt
~ can make no alteration in my de-
cision,' said Mr. Dalrymple Il have
these complaints from day to day;
nothing else but complaint The land
on my estate has considerably increased
in value, yet those who zap tho benefit
object to pay ii higher rent. had two
OF you here yesterday, Watkins ana
Bumford.
They have spent money on their
farms, too, they have, and the land
hasn't answered to it bad. Good farm
ers are Watkins and Bumford, nodded
the speaker. approvingly. "but they
have not spent half what 1 have. You
see, sir, we never looked for Mr.. Dali
rymple's dying young. and-''
''Are you speaking of Charles Dali
rymple?" interrupted the owner of the
Moat-Grange.
mo, poor fellow. 1 don't mean Mr..
Charles, 1 mean his father. Squire
Dalrymple did die young, sir, SO to
say; you can't call a man under fifty
old. Well, he was a good landlord,
and we were not afraid to lavish money
on our farms, because we knew we
should be allowed to reap its fruits our
selves. That's how it was, sir
''Mr. Dalrymple's rule is past and
gone; he was always Indifferent to his
own interests. Had he been more alive
to them, his death would not have left
his family in the helpless condition that
it did"
You mean Mr., Charles death and
your succession, SIR boldly returned
the farmer, though its tone lost none of
its respect. when Squire Dalrymple
died and Mr.. Charles succeeded, the
family still lived on in comfort at the
Grange here, as they had done before.
And as they would have done after,
had he lived, generous young fellow"
"a squandering young profiigate!"
scornfully retorted Oscar Dalrymple.
well, he's gone, poor soul, and it
will answer no end to speak for or
against him, but he was a favorite on
every road throughout the estate And
his death brought you to rule over us,
and l am sorry to have to say, sir, that
your rules very hard one.''
lit will not be made easier" CURLY
rejoined Mr.. Dalrymple. II told Bum