The Allen House

A free download from http://www.dertz.in


The Allen House

The Project Gutenberg Etext of The Allen House, or Twenty Years
Ago and Now
by T. S. Arthur (#3 in our series by T. S. Arthur)
Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to check the
copyright laws for your country before downloading or redistributing
this or any other Project Gutenberg file.
Please do not remove this header information.
This header should be the first thing seen when anyone starts to view
the eBook. Do not change or edit it without written permission. The
words are carefully chosen to provide users with the information
needed to understand what they may and may not do with the eBook.
To encourage this, we have moved most of the information to the end,
rather than having it all here at the beginning.
**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts**
**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since
1971**
*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of
Volunteers!*****
Information on contacting Project Gutenberg to get eBooks, and further
information, is included below. We need your donations.

The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a 501(c)(3)
organization with EIN [Employee Identification Number] 64-6221541
Find out about how to make a donation at the bottom of this file.
Title: The Allen House, or Twenty Years Ago and Now
Author: T. S. Arthur
Release Date: October, 2003 [Etext #4588] [Yes, we are more than one
year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on February 12,
2002]
Edition: 10
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
The Project Gutenberg Etext of The Allen House, or Twenty Years
Ago and Now by T. S. Arthur ******This file should be named
tahty10.txt or tahty10.zip******
Corrected EDITIONS of our etexts get a new NUMBER, tahty11.txt
VERSIONS based on separate sources get new LETTER, tahty10a.txt
Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US unless
a copyright notice is included. Thus, we usually do not keep eBooks in
compliance with any particular paper edition.
The "legal small print" and other information about this book may now
be found at the end of this file. Please read this important information,
as it gives you specific rights and tells you about restrictions in how the
file may be used.
*** This etext was created by Charles Aldarondo
([email protected])
etext creator notes: The "missing" quotes and missing [Gap in sentance]

were in the original printing, so they were left to keep it as close to the
original.
THE ALLEN HOUSE;
OR, TWENTY YEARS AGO AND NOW.
BY T. S. ARTHUR.
PHILADELPHIA:
1860

PREFACE.
WE point to two ways in life, and if the young man and maiden, whose
feet are lingering in soft green meadows and flowery walks, will
consider these two ways in sober earnest, before moving onward, and
choose the one that truth and reason tell them leads to honor, success,
and happiness, our book will accomplish its right work for them. It is a
sad thing, after the lapse of twenty years, to find ourselves amid ruined
hopes;--to sit down with folded hands and say, "Thus far life has been a
failure!" Yet, to how many is this the wretched summing up at the end
of a single score of years from the time that reason takes the helm! Alas!
that so few, who start wrong, ever succeed in finding the right way; life
proving, even to its last burdened years, a miserable failure!

TWENTY YEARS AGO, AND NOW.
CHAPTER I.

THE rain had poured in torrents all day, and now, for the third time
since morning, I came home, wet, uncomfortable and weary. I half
dreaded to look at the slate, lest some urgent call should stare me in the

face.
"It must indeed be a case of life and death, that takes me out again
to-night," said I, as my good wife met me in the entry, and with light
hands, made active by love, assisted in the removal of my great coat
and comforter.
"Now come into the sitting-room," she said, "your slippers are on the
rug, and your dressing-gown warmed and waiting. Tea is ready, and
will be on the table by the time you feel a little comfortable. What a
dreadful day it has been!"
"Dreadful for those who have been compelled to face the storm," I
remarked, as I drew off my boots, and proceeded to take advantage of
all the pleasant arrangements my thoughtful wife had ready for my
solace and delight.
It was on my lip to inquire if any one had called since I went out, but
the ringing of the tea-bell sent my thought in a