The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-08-22

ton. SO no iodeer knows what his bill viii be.
de pays 90 much a week for the rooms; but the
extras he cannot even guess at.
It is a few features OF lodging house life that
l set out to tell you OF. At tirst ] had my family
70 the Continent l have been alone. 50 / have
saa opportnnities OF seeing various phase, OF
Upper Woburn piSce house. / was alone, and az
that was something on tho plan Of a boarding
66iE nIn;, l took my meals With the fSSm nty y, in the ;
evening. The tirst pcculiarity, that I noticed
about the place was the InQuirins turn Of mind
my room, and whenever I returned from a walk
| found that my things had been we'll ransacked;
s St,.' FOR mann @sS nst t u carries sSrrRsi' c eTeH may %SyrI PiS :
always in the same pockets, and whom they are
transferred he knows that they have been tam
Nothing was taken. as far as I could see. but
everything was thoroughly examined. l natu.
II in the least, as l had nothing that would not
bear examination. But several little things 1
maid to ~ the ifs"ihsi So TpSs esSn a system TTei i1 oi
appearing IN the room suddenly when not eN-
PSssfSd; and three ,mo times ! caught my lNndisdy
had an excuse ready, of course; she was looking
to see whether my laundry had come home; or
such nimsy pretext.
1T was simply curiosity on her part; she
wanted to know who l was and what I was;
whether my clothing was made OF silk or merino,
and such Important matters. My letters, such
iation to her. Some l Know were. for after I
found her out there was hardly u day but a let.
ter lay open on my table from some prominent
banker informing me that 80 many hundred
pounds had been deposited with him to my
credit and subject to my order, Those letters
lady's heart good. II l had had as many remit.
tances as appeared from the letters. Knight have
After a few weeks two more Americans ar
rye. At the house-both ladies. One was young
widow, the other a most decided old maid and 9
writer OF books. They occupied the front and
back drawing rooms, wore good clothes, and
kept tho lYeaf hansoms busy Carrying them TO
landlady told me after they had been there =
costly iufsi such handsome a Clothes AN0 '1'H
tics s. sSGasE . ! ns,pH Is n nsi I'm y iisins or qe esse
less about than woman's nnery. 1t was inter
estine 10 see how far she would go in eKamin:
ing the ladies goods. And how far did she 20 .
down to the dining room for me to see. First
was a fur cape, which the lAndisdy said could not
cloak mHIe OF some feathsry stun; then a book
written by one OF the ladies; then another book;
; 1srs ot .SeFI th PnS,0s sus I cannot az sa' re %rsrSst thers
all; and they came down one at u time to be ad
nired, always when the ladies were at the
theatre and could not return for some hours.
One evening the landlady disappeared for sew
eral hours, and when she returned TO the dining
"'Oh. no. said she; I have been up in tho
drawing room reading ono OF the American
you know. 1t tis is % Interes tHv - must watch
my chance and read the other.
"on another evening l heard the piano going
n the drawing room-the only piano In tho
house, OF course, and tho property for the time
OF the American dodgers. That evening also
appeared she told me without hesitation that
she had been 'practicing.'
They are both out. you know she added.
i do miss the piano so when the front drawing
room Is occupied. But those ladies are out SO
mS sfo ( ke sl,s sD me asr a S shsnse ,6 10 Keep Y . LPs m n@'l%i.
vice, my boy. and avoic musical lancladies: Tho
one am speaking OF disdained TO be called a
iand!aay. She was one OF the kind who took a
few paying quests 10 make Up the pleasant lam
Ay circle The! are always the worst, -,
low I logger who II n is nS' , ins tsfia nssre;ti H%s q % 81.
had an experience with ono N the Upper Bed
were with me, yol know. We had the front
dining room, on the ground aoor. and two sleep
inT NJ rooms Soa up Two aights; A LADY whom shall n i
drawing rooms, and. of cou 50, we had to pass her
doors n going up and down stairs. She gener
When many any 81 7 US IS passed a. sd4s and always " ysf had Sp a pi ISSt
Ill: word to say. First il was ab, Ut her canary
then sometimes about the Gather, and a.lrr
ward about her children, who had been sent &c
school at Hampstead;
very old. sithes. i think she put herself At 20
AID yop nigh ado about i've years % that; She
s Seop!e INTO T her par lp an and iH eams lgto io oyr.a my
You had better keep a lizzie shy Of tba,
yoq pretty soon. But it was useless for me &c
talk. Mrs. johnson was rather a dne looking
woman. and certainly we'll educated in spite OF
rapidly. She had London at her fingers ents
WAen we Wished to know about this place OIL
j yoS m ans uSs ss. aay 5 sasS Will, sG a st GS0 she A Moal |,
instantly tell you his family history throust
Of ;he nSei nifts-t or she vas las" Tem aaf noiH te = i.1G Il
invention, And sac wrote for several period
Gals, or said she did. and knew all about the bes
mIlltners and drcssmakers-
In the course o, a few weeks her own historJ
cane out-or part OF L, Her husband was
chester square. We We're Very guy shoro.' 81,
said ! one evening; and 'suy, Is sxSelLen, go Th;
md they had been separated for several years
she vas IN constant fear that he would eithe,
thrown himself into the Serpentine In Hyd'
Park. Her father was a very wealthy buiiel
living n grand style on Tavistock square. IL
and there was no hing in tho world that h,
Now, OF course, you see what Is coming
f Your .eicE perception 2oIo telIi 30. IN ,ne 2, The the Wo nal
that lRpattPhm her Wealthy le1hSy i father qI proved owed 'nf myth tSttep and mo ' he
drunken husband a spectre. But, my dear boy
you are entirely wrong there. II 4 were a
able part Q. !. is that the story was al true, IN
was an actual fact. as l found out in a way tina
you shall understand presently. He paid he
S StIl' e sea h w fanllsfsnps' o sne p %G. n no. ri fT not Tee
you yet what the mysterious one was; ! mus
keep, my little secret for = climax, like tn
povelists.
Well. one day my daughter missed a Shee
Of postage stamps from her poE~ttqlio-tyo o
Tor them, but no stamps. Then began 70 mis-
bottles OF ale from the sideboard-a particula
house who used that brand; never could dc
acquired such a habit OF walking of. Then
pair Of scissors disappeared from my desk
scissors or no pecuniary value whatever, bu
valuable to me on account OF associations. The
after a day or two a p.ir Of toilet scissors dis
appeared from one OF the sleeping rooms.
"All trtfing things, you see. hardly worth nc
ticing. And they would have passed withou
notice II / had not missed several important lie,
tiers from my desk drawer one day. They wer
letters OF introduction from sc. prominent a
American and written in sucn natterinR term
that in the wrong hands they might have cause
considerable trouble. l may say at once. that
found the letters a~fterward in another drawer
but, thinking them gone. I rang for the landlad
and told her OF the mysterious disappearance
largely for her own protection; for there wa
c~crtainly a thief in the house. and the maid
considered above suspicion.
"Thaf brought mt thu FamainhAF nf the atnF