Waterbury evening Democrat., 1891-09-23
CHAPTER II.
unpromising

John and Mary Green had married
against the wishes Of their parents.
Mary's father objected to the match be-;
cause John was not as high in the
scale of life as he thought his daughter
might aspire, for she was a bankers
daughter and John was but a common
clerk. Then, to even up matters, Johns
father retaliated by declaring that no
son of his should ever marry into a
family the head of which presumed to
look down on the Greens. ;
Having come to this kind of terms on
both sides, the elder Blatchford, the
banker, and the elder Green, the farm
er, strutted about with as much POM
posity as they could command, each
doing everything in his power to show
how vastly superior he was to the
other, and each succeeding to perfec-;
ton in making himself ridiculous in the
eyes of everybody but himself
Thus it went on for a year, the two
old men passing and repassing and new;
er speaking, or deigning to look at each,
other. In the meantime the two lovers
met clandestinely, and enjoyed them
selves fully as well if not better than
they would if their parents had acted
with moro sense. They met, courted
and married-married two or three
years sooner than they would have done
if they had not been interfered with,
but had been allowed to continue their
courtship uninterruptedly. So much
for the wisdom of their parents.
John held a position at a fair salary,
and had saved up money enough to buy
and furnish a neat little cottage home!
Here the couple settled down as happy
as two lovers could be, and Mary laid
aside her rich attire and easy life, and
readily transformed the bankers daugh-
ter into the poor clerks wife; and she
felt mono the worse by the change. She
took up the duties of housekeeping and
soon became quite proficient.
Banker Blatchford and Farmer
Green, as soon as they learned that
their children were married, proceeded
forthwith to disown them. Mary made
one attempt to win her fathers for
giveness, but he refused her petition,
saying she need no longer consider him
in the light of q father, nor, indeed, in
any other light save that of a total
stranger.
''You have married as you wished
and not as 1 would have had you," he
said, $50 go your way and I'll go mine.
You have chosen to disregard my adj
vice and desires, and have tied yourself
! to a penniless wretch, and from this
time forth 1 know you not. You must
, look to John Green for everything, anG
when poverty and want overtake
! you, as they certainly will, don't come
! to me for assistance, for 1 swear tina
| you shall never have a penny or {
+ crumb from me-"
, That quite settled matters between
: the rich, proud, old banker and his low
ing, tender-hearted daughter and from
that time forth they were strange t.
each other; and though for two year
!, they lived in the same town, and Otter
: met and passed on the street, no sigl
of recognition was shown by either
q Poor Mary could show pride and def
ance enough when she was in he
:. fathers presence, but no one ever knev
. what tears she shed and what heart
aches she suffered when she was a
home alone. She loved her father mex
= to John, and even after his cruel speec
- she would have gladly thrown her arm
= about his neck and plead for his Low
=. and forgiveness, only she knew that h
= would repulse her if she did.
Johns father, not to be outdone b
Blatchford, notified his son never t