CHAPTER I.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 431, 25 December 1889, Page 3

CHAPTER I.

CITY. The names of * Snagsby and Toofcs, House, Land and Commission Agents,' shone out of their glass encasod frame, in letters of blue and gold, above No. 17, Utopia Chambers, Queen-street, Auckland. Snagsby was the plodding spider, always to be seen diligently scratching; away at the ink-stained desk, while his partner. Toots, hunted up business outside, acted the genial gentleman, bringing clients into the web ; gladdening the heart and filling the hands of the industrious Snagsby. Business throve, increased and aocumuluted to the bitter envy of neighbouring rival offices, and the partners were looking out for larger premises to suit the extended trade, when an accident occurred oi a, domestic character that upset all their calculations broke »)p the partnership, and sent one of them into gloomy exile. No one, seeing the serious Snagsby, with his staid business demeanour and keen intellectual face, or the man about town, lively Toots, would hsve imagined that such a trivial thing as a girl's btby face oould have brought such havoc between them, but such was the case. Mis Sample, Tonic Villa, Roiorua l-\oa><, supplemented a modesb annuity by letting her rooms to single gentlemen, providing them also with 'all the comforts of a home.' In; answer to her temptingly - worded advertioement, the two friends, Snagsby and Toots, then jusfc arrived p iom Melbourne, called, saw, and were duly installed in the i double bedded chamber. The go d lady j was delighted to s-ecute two such respectable boarders, feeling serenely seU-satis-ticd that she had two 'permanet.t' in tho house. The average landlady will go almost any lengths to catch and keep these desitable gentry. For a time ail went swimmingly, and everybody felt homely and happy, Snagsby would hurry home from business, ! buty his teet. in slippers and his nose in the j St.vk, after dinner sit by tho fire and almost j purr with contentment, while Toots, after tho evening meal, took himself off to his Club, each passing his evening the way he thought best. But Airs Sample had a daughter, a girl of seventeen, with a rosj', baby face, long yellow hair a;id big blue eyes, and the friends politely ignond her. Whether this piqued the young lady into exercising magnetic blandishments, or the constant companionship of a pretty girl began to impress the stony masculine hearts, certain it is that firsb "jinaffdby and then Toote began to pay her little attention?. Sometimes Snatj«by would bring home a posy of violets for Miss Nellie to wear at dinner, or Toots would insist upon taking her to the Opfra. Mrs Sample saw with pride the influence her daughter was exercising over the boarders, and her morher'a heart glowed with \anity at the prospect of securing such eligible young men tor her to choo?e from. | Thouerh no open expression of their feeling-* for the fair daughter of tho house had es- I caped the young men, certain little tra ts ! began to manifest themselves and symptons peculiar to those ticuled wiih Cupid's dart were gradually developing and unoonciously raising a bariier of reserve between the once open-hearted friends. Poor Snagsby was the hardest hifc of the two, and often made himself miserable by ieulous imaginings, fancying; hunself neglected if Nellie smiled at Toot? more than usual, and often caught himseli di&paiagingly comparing his own pale, sharp face wtth that of his handsome boyish partner. | Toots began to have silent moments, and | 1m gay tongue, bhat chattered unceasingly through a meal, keeping them in a lipple j of laughter, was now quiet, and sometimes spoke sharply when rallied by the genial i hostess. Mrs Sample viewed with dismay the change that was gradually stealing over her once happy domestic circle, and had serious thoughts of sending her daughter | into the country for a month or two, but the young lady burst into such a violent storm of weeping at the prospectof exile that the easy mother had to give up the idea. One evening at dinner the partners eyed greedily a white camelia placed coquettiahly in the srolden hair of their adored nne, each wishing for a quiet moment with her in order to secure it, but the young lady remained demurely in the sitting room till the clock tinkled ten, when with a smile fur eanh, she retired for the night. The partners, feeling something wanting in the room after she had gone, fidgeted, rose and went up to their chamber, and before them, on the dressing table,in a glass I of water, stood the white camelia daringly placed there on the wav to her own 100 m by the madcap UseW. They pretended to ignore it, disrobe', pyjamaed, and jumped into bed. Gently from under the blankets stole the hand and arm of Snagsby, stretching eagerly towards the coveted flower. His fingers touched the rtm of the tumbler and slid round to grasp the prize, when they came suddenly in cold contact with another hand that was groping round from the other side. 4 1 beg your pardon, Toots !' stammered Snageby, guiltily. ' Only feeling for a match,' returned Toots in excuse. After this little episode of the eamelia the reservo between the partners deepened, much to the genial Toots' distress, as he loved his plodding friend, and endeavoured to win him back to tho old confidence. One afternoon Toots, coining suddenly ino the office, discovered Snagsby leaning sentimentally over the blotting pad, upon which he had roughly sketched the features of the faccjuating N^ll. Feeling that such an oppottunifcy might never occur again for clearing up fche coolne«s that existed between them, Toots rallied his mend upon his taste for blue eyes anrl golden hair, when Snagsby fiercely tur< ed with glittering eye?, desiring him to ppare his remarks for a less sacred subject. Toots surprisedly apologised, muttering something about the absurdity of a child's face creating a breach betw een two friends, bub Snagsby only grunted and again leaned over »he desk. ' Look here, old fellow,' said Toots, dee-peratt-ly, ' This U getting ridiculous. Tell me candidly, for old friendship's sake, do you iove the girl V This frankness effectually broke down the barrier between them, and Snagsby turned a glowing face upon his inquiring partner. ' Look here, old boy.' said he, ' I can't explain — don't even understand it — but this I know. I love that child, as you fall her, with all my heart. You know me, know my temperament is not softly moulded, not easily impressed by any idle fancy : but themonth&of companionship with thatsweeb girl-nature have completely mastered me. It seems strange,' he continued with hi* eyes looking vacantly over Toots' curly head. ' that I the cool, keen, Snagsby— the model business man, should forgefc myself, into mii dulginer in such intoxicating fancjep, bub in my leisure moments I dream and weave,

plan and build up, and all my hopes are centred in one rosy face. Sentiment, sentiment you will cay, bub it is that which rules the world. Take it from us and our lives would be barren indeed.? • Well,' interrupted [oots, half alarmed afc his prosaic partner's excitement, * I wish I had known you were so hard hit, old boy — wist" I had known it a month ago. 5 • You know it now,' returned Snagsby, ' so leave me a clear iield !' 1 That's all very well,' said Toots, hesitatingly, • only you see *ve've been engaged Una three weeks, but kept it dark till today.' A week afterwards No. 17, Utopia Chambers, was to let, and lonic Villa, Rotorua Road, wanted a boarder to replace a gentleman who had suddenly departed from the houso and town.