her with mutual simplicity, and, having their little
quarrels, always made them up again with much affectionate remorse, and,
scorning the prudential advice of outsiders, believed in each other and
the better day which was to come, when one or the other gained worldly
goods enough to admit of a marriage in which they were to be happy in
their own way,--which, I may add, was a way simple and tender, unselfish
and faithful, enough.

It was quite evident, however, that Griffith was not in the best of
spirits this morning. He was not as sanguine as Dolly by nature, and
outward influences tended rather to depress him occasionally. But he
never was so low-spirited that Dolly could not cheer him, consequently
he always came to her with his troubles; and to her credit, be it said,
she never failed to understand and deal with them tenderly, commonplace
though they were. So she understood his mood very well to-day. Something
had gone wrong at "the office." ("The office" was the editorial den
which swallowed him up, and held him in bondage from morning until
night; appropriating his labor for a very small pecuniary compensation,
too, it may be added.) "Old Flynn," as the principal was respectfully
designated, had been creating one of his periodical disturbances, or he
had been snubbed, which, by the way, was not a rare event, and to poor
Griffith slights were stings and patronage poison. He could not laugh at
the enemy and scorn discomfiture as Dolly could, and the consequence of
an encounter with the Philistines on his part was usually a desperate
fit of low spirits, which made him wretched, bitter, and gloomy by
turns.

This morning it appeared that his spirits had reached their lowest ebb,
and before many minutes had passed he was pouring forth his tribulations
with much frankness and simplicity. Mr. Griffith Donne's principal trial
was the existence of an elderly maiden aunt, who did not approve of him,
and was in the habit of expressing her disapproval in lengthy epistolary
correspondence, invariably tending to severe denunciation of his mode of
life, and also invariably terminating with the announcement that unless
he "desisted" (from what, or in what manner, not specified) she should
consider it her bounden duty to disinherit him forthwith. One of these
periodical epistles, having arrived before he had breakfasted, had
rather destroyed Griffith's customary equanimity, and various events of
the morning had not improved his