In the city block where I live, there are just twenty-four houses on the other side of the street, and twenty-four on this side, six lamp posts, and eight ailanthus trees in green boxes.  Oh, dear me, what a tiresome row!  That’s what I thought when I first came to lodge here; for, as I am an old bachelor, I don’t want a whole house to myself; but now, when I sit at my window and look out at the street, I find no end of things to amuse and interest me; particularly when the gas is lighted of an evening, and I can see a little way into the parlors of the opposite neighbors.  I suppose they know that an old bachelor like Josiah Oldbird can do no harm by looking on at their evening amusements; so they do not pull the blinds down if they chance to see me, sitting lonely at my window, and willing to accept such crumbs of their society and happiness as I can glean over the way.

First, then, is the family at N, three maiden sisters and a bachelor brother.  As I don’t in the least know their names, I have dubbed them the Bluejays, because the three maiden sisters always wear blue merino gowns in winter, and blue muslin ones in summer; and because they are all so fond of singing that no family of birds could be more musical.  They have a pet poodle and a pet squirrel, too.  The poodle is very fat, and his hair sticks out so much all over him, that he looks perpetually astonished, as if he had just seen a spook.  He always stands on the window sill, when the sash is raised of an afternoon, and glares into the street until he sees the bachelor brother coming.  Then he achieves a series of frantic yells and bounces, until somebody comes to open the door and lets him out, when he waddles to the front steps to meet his master, wagging his tail to that tremendous extent, that it looks like the shuttle of a steam power loom.

The squirrel is slim and sleek, and seems to enjoy life amazingly, he hops about so.  When one of the Miss Bluejays takes him in her arms, he won’t stay there, but gets away, and walks all over her head and shoulders; and at last runs down her back and disappears.

Then, at N, a very fat gentleman lives with his fat and pretty wife, and round dumpling of a baby.  As I don’t know him either, I call him Mr. Fatty, and he seems to be a “good-natured giant.”  I saw a little boy actually stop short to stare at him the other day, when he was sitting out at his front door he is such a regular roly-poly of a gentleman but he only laughed good-temperedly, and never got vexed in the least.  I don’t advise you to try this with all fat gentlemen though; they might accidentally sit down on a chair where you were afterward, and that would be the last of you.  This piece of advice, however, is a great secret between you and me!

He is so glad to meet the fat baby when he comes home at night, that I can see him in the parlor first kissing it almost black and blue, and then tossing it up in the air until I feel as though its head must come bump against the ceiling, but it doesn’t and at last, carrying it off perched on his shoulder, and looking very much perturbed in its spirits.

But the pleasantest neighbors of all live exactly opposite, at N.  They take tea every evening in the back parlor; and as the front window shades are up, and only the back room lighted, I can always see them at their cheerful meal.  The rooms are furnished in winter with dark red velvet carpets and furniture; with red damask curtains and red velvet paper hangings.  In summer they put up white curtains, and carpets and furniture have cool, cream-colored linen coverings, so that the parlors look cozy and charming at all seasons.

As for the family there is a papa and mamma, of course, and a dear little girl and boy.  The little girl is about ten years old, I should think, with great, dark-blue eyes, and curling auburn hair.  Her cheeks are as rosy as ripe peaches, and her teeth as white as so many pearls.  Her nose does turn up at the end a little, to be sure; but that is rather saucy and becoming than otherwise; and she always looks so sweet tempered, and full of fun, too, when I see her of an evening, that I am sure she is as good as pie, and as merry as a cricket!  Her little brother, who is a year or two younger, looks very much like her, and their obedient and pretty behavior at table is something really beautiful to observe.

It is nearly a year now, since I moved into my lodging at “N,” and began to wonder what N’s name was; and now I must make haste and tell you how, only last June, I became acquainted with these dear little neighbors of mine.

One pleasant Friday morning, after breakfast, I put on my old-fashioned beaver hat, and taking my gold-headed cane in one hand and my market basket in the other, I trotted out to buy something nice for dinner; for, you see, I am a particular old bachelor, and like to market for myself.

Just as I was coming down the steps, the door of N opened, and the little girl ran down her steps.  She looked so bright and pretty in her cunning round straw hat with the blue ribbons, and white Marseilles cloak, carrying her satchel of books and lunch basket in her hand, that I could not help nodding to her.  So she nodded to me, and then I nodded again and smiled, and we each walked along on our own side of the way.  When we came to the corner I thought I would cross over and scrape some more acquaintance with my little neighbor.  Now on the side of her satchel, I saw, when I came near her, was printed in gold letters, “Nelly Lawson;” so I said, as cheerily as I could, in my old, quavering voice: 

“Good morning, Neighbor Nelly!”

The little maiden looked up in my face in a shy fashion at first; but when she saw what a mild, gray-headed old bachelor had bade her good morning, she took courage, and answered, “Good morning, sir.”

“So you are going to school this fine day?”

“Yes; I go to school, but brother Jimmy doesn’t; he learns at home.  I think he is going next year.  Have you got a baby at your house?  We have.”

“No,” said I, sighing; “I haven’t got any baby; I am an old bachelor.  Will you marry me?”

“Oh, I am too little,” she replied quite seriously.  “You will have to wait until I grow up to you.”

I laughed, and asked her, “Don’t you want to go to market with me before you go to school?  There is plenty of time.”

“No,” replied my little neighbor, firmly; “I can’t go anywheres that mamma does not know of.”

“That’s right!” I said.  “Don’t do anything your mother would disapprove.  Well, Neighbor Nelly, since you won’t go to market with me, I must go to school with you; and tell your mother that Neighbor Josiah Oldbird would like you to take a walk with him to-morrow; will you?”

“Oh yes! that would be real nice!” said my little neighbor with a joyous skip.

By this time we were walking along hand in hand; and soon, seeing my little neighbor look in at the window of the candy shop round the corner from our street, I thought I would take her in and buy her some candy.  So in we marched, Nelly’s great blue eyes dancing with pleased expectation, and stood close by the counter, waiting for our turn to come.  There were a good many people in the candy shop, and we had to wait some time; so, to amuse ourselves, Neighbor Nelly and I turned round, and began looking at the funny folks near us.

There was one very fat old country woman, who seemed to be buying “quarter or pound,” as she said, of every kind of candy in the shop.  As soon as the papers were handed to her she began eating out of them, and before she left, I should think, she had eaten about two pounds of candy.  Besides the old woman, there were a great many little children, who only wanted a penny’s worth each; but they hesitated so long whether to have “taffie” or “molasses,” a lemon-candy horse, or a cinnamon-candy trumpet, that they were the most troublesome customers of anybody.  Then there were several older boys and girls; some, I am sorry to say, picking up a loose bit of candy every time the shopman turned away as if that were not stealing; and finally, there was Neighbor Nelly and I, who did none of these things, but just looked on, and waited until the shopman came to serve us.

I bought some lemon candy, as clear as a bit of yellow glass, and some pungent cinnamon, and delectable chocolate; and then I popped the papers into Neighbor Nelly’s satchel, and we hurried on to school.  We had not far to go now, and when we came to the house, my little new friend bid me good-by, and thanked me so sweetly, that I went away quite a happy old bachelor.

In the evening I was looking out of my window as usual, when I saw the servant girl come in to light the gas in the back parlor at N, with Neighbor Nelly and the little brother Jimmy behind her.  While she was setting the tea table, the children came running to the window, and both nodded and smiled at me.  Presently the little boy thrust both hands in his pockets, and held them up crammed full of candy.  “Thank you, Mr. Old Bachelor!” he shouted; “we like you real well!”

That made me real happy; for I am not a crabbed old bachelor by any means.  In a minute more their father came home; and as they all sat around the pleasant tea table, I hope they talked of their lonely old neighbor, who watched them from his window.

The next morning, as I was reading the paper, in came the servant and gave me the funniest little note!  It was addressed on the outside, “To my neighbor Oldbird,” and ran thus: 

          “Mydear neighbor: 

          “Mamma says I may take a walk with you this
          morning, because you are a good old bachelor. 
          Jimmy wants to go, and Gipsey.  Gipsey is my dog. 
          He is black and tan, and his tail curls round so,
          that papa says you might use it for a cork-screw. 
          Jimmy and I mean to try some time.  Gipsey likes to
          be on the seashore, and so does baby.  We are going
          there next week to Long Branch.  I hope you will
          write me a letter when I am gone, and I am
                    Your affectionate
                                        “Neighbor Nelly.

          “Saturday Morning.”

You may believe how pleased I was with this dear little note, and I thought I would answer it.  So I sat down at my writing desk, found a cunning little sheet of paper, with a flag on it, and commenced.

Now I happened to think, at that moment, of some very comical letters written by the great poet, Tom Hood, to his little friends on the seashore; and as they were ever so much funnier than anything I could have written, I copied one of them out, and sent it to my little new friend.

          “Mydear neighbor Nelly: 

“I am very glad you are to walk with me, and very sorry you are going away so soon.  Do you like to be on the seashore?  I did, when I was a boy.  I and my brother chucked hundreds of stones into the sea, when we were there, but we came away before we could fill it up.  Then there is the fun of finding shiny pebbles and jelly fish on the beach.  I used to think jelly fish were made of sea-calves’ feet, and no flavoring.  I suppose the mermaids eat them at their parties.

“Then there’s fishing on the seaside.  I used to catch flat fish sometimes, with a long string line, it was like swimming a kite.  If you go out in a surf boat, take care it does not “flounder” and get “squamped,” as some people say, instead of founder and swamped.

“Have you ever been bathed in the sea?  I was, and, dear me! how I kicked and screamed; or, at least, tried to scream, but the sea, ships and all, began to run into my mouth, and so I shut it up.  Remember, when you are bathing, if you meet with a shark, the best way is to bite off his legs, if you can, before he walks away with yours; and pray, pray, pray take care of yourself in the sea, for in some places, they say, it has not even a bottom to go to.

“Could you bring me a little crab off the beach?  If you would catch one for me, and teach it to shake hands without nipping and biting, it would make me quite happy, for I have not had any toys or playthings in a long time.  It would be a good plan to hire a little crab to teach the baby to crawl, if he can’t walk yet.  Bless him!  But I must not write on him any more; he is so soft, and I have nothing but steel pens.

“Now good-by; give my love to everybody, and my
compliments to all the rest, and believe me, up
hill and down dale,

“Your affectionate neighbor,
“Josiah Oldbird.”

Then I put my letter in a flag envelope, sealed it up tight, and wrote on it, “To my dear Neighbor Nelly,” and had the maid take it to her.

Presently I could see two little figures flitting about in one of the upper chambers, and soon after all four of us, Nelly, Jimmy, I, and Gipsey, were in the street.  Gipsey was a “toy terrier” that ought to have belonged to “Commodore Nutt,” the dwarf at “Barnum’s,” and ran along on three legs most of the time, with the fourth, and his cork-screw tail elevated in the air for joy at being allowed to join the party; while the children were all hop, skip, and jump, and kept tight hold of a hand of mine apiece, as though they were afraid of flying away if they let go.  Meanwhile, I walked quietly along, with my market basket on my arm, a sober old bachelor.  I expect the people who passed us in the street thought me a rather incongruous addition to such a frisky party; but then, you know, children must caper about.  Bless your heart! it would never do in the world to see children mincing solemnly along, like little old men and women; it would be as absurd as to have my Neighbor Nelly wearing her great-grandmother’s coal-scuttle bonnet!  The last idea struck me as so odd, that I drew a little picture of Neighbor Nelly in this guise when I got home, and here it is.  How do you like it?

We thought we would go to market first.  So we walked slowly down Fourth Avenue, and crossed over to the market where the Seventh Regiment armory is, opposite the Cooper Institute.

“My cousin is a Seventh Regimenter!” said Jimmy as we climbed up the iron steps; “he often let us look on at his company drills last winter, and afterward Nelly and I drilled in our yard.  The big boy who comes to see the old ladies next door, looked over the fence and laughed at us, but we didn’t care; and we mean to fight for our country like everything when we are bigger; that is, I mean to, and Nelly would like to, but she’s only a girl, you know.”

“Only a girl!” repeated Nelly, tossing her long curls; “girls are a great deal of use, too; I mended all his stockings and all papa’s this week think of that, neighbor Oldbird!”

“That was really splendid!” said I; and just then we entered the market.

The very first thing we met was a horrid big dog, that belonged to some butcher; and, bless me! how he began to show his great rows of teeth, and growl at Gipsey!  Nelly gave a little scream, and tried to hide behind me; Jimmy valiantly flew at the big dog with my walking stick; and poor little Gipsey nearly stood on the end of his tail with fright, and squealed dismally.  What a fuss we were all in, to be sure!  So at last, to quiet the disputants, I caught Gipsey up, and put him in my coat pocket, where he sat, looking out at the top, very much comforted.

Then we turned to the right, and went by the brightest and prettiest stall in the whole market.  It was kept by a Frenchman, who, in his own language, would be called a “charcutier;” but Jimmy and Nell shouted out together “Oh, there’s the pig man!” as loud as ever they could, and then stopped, blushing very much, because they were afraid the pork merchant heard them.  I expect he did; for he looked very funny when we came close, and smoothing down his snowy apron with his fat hands, said “Bonjour, mademoiselle!” and laughed good humoredly.  There was a great “head cheese” on the pig man’s marble counter, moulded in the shape of a boar’s head.  The tusks were made of white carrots, the eyes of red jelly, and the sides of the dish it was on were beautifully ornamented with white roses, cut out of turnips, and parsley foliage.  Then there were ever so many pork pies, with the most elegant wreaths of flowers on the top crust, comical little hams already cooked, and fat dumplings of sucking pigs, as pink as baby himself!

When we had looked about us a little, we concluded to buy a pork pie of the pig man; and while that was being nicely packed up in paper, out popped Gipsey from my pocket, and stood triumphant on the counter, in the midst of the little pigs and savory pastries.  I don’t know what forays he would not have made upon them, if he had not been captured by the pig man, Jimmy, and me; but he did contrive to jump right into the very middle of another pork-pie! and then we had to pay for that, too; and wipe the gravy off Gipsey’s feet and the ends of his tail and nose, and button him up tight in the market basket for half an hour, as a punishment for his naughtiness.  As to the pie we had bought, Jimmy carried that, and Gipsey cut up so many antics inside the basket, that he nearly wriggled it out of my hand altogether.

After that we went on, and found, dear me! such a comfortable old market woman, who sold us a nice little chicken, and some fresh vegetables, and gave the children each a great handful of cherries; but we had to tell her to send them home, with our pie, because Gipsey had the basket in possession.

Then we walked into the street again, and when we had let Gipsey out of prison, concluded to leave the basket at my baker’s, and take a walk in Broadway.  Dear, dear me! what quantities of shop windows there were to stare into, and how we flattened our three noses, and spread our six hands all over every one of them, while we admired the splendid picture books, the stores of sugar plums, or the wonders of toys they contained!  While we were occupied in this way, a little girl, poorly dressed, and lugging a large bundle of work in both arms, came along, and stopping beside us at the window of the most splendid toy shop, stood looking wistfully in.

Neighbor Nelly straightway twitched my hand, and whispered, “Oh look, Neighbor Oldbird! what a poor little girl!  I don’t suppose she ever saw a doll before in her life.  How she must wish she had one!”

“Suppose we ask her?” I said.

“Will you ask?” she answered; “I don’t like to.”

“Nonsense! ask her yourself; she won’t eat you, or Gipsey either;” for Gipsey was sidling away between my feet, as if he were alarmed too; the saucy scamp!

Thereupon Nelly moved closer to the poor girl, and said, in a kind, little, timid voice, “Do you like dolls?”

“Yes, very much!” said the child, with a surprised look.

“Oh, so do I!” cried Nelly, rapturously.  “I have lots of them at home; let me see, there’s Jenny, and Willie, and old black Nanny, and ” she stopped short, seeing the other look wistfully at her, and then said, “Oh, I forgot! you have none, perhaps; would you like to have one?”

“Oh yes, miss!” said the child; “not so much for myself, though, as my little sister; she is sick, and can’t do anything, poor Clara! but I work, and help my mother!” she added, proudly.

“What does your mother do?” asked Jimmy.

“She makes shirts for the army; and I do all the button holes.”

“I can’t make a button hole,” said Nelly, regretfully.

Here I proposed we should walk into the shop, and after we had looked all we wanted to at the pretty things, and the children, with screams of delight, had ridden in turn on a “spring rocking horse,” that sent them flying half way to the top of the glass cases behind the counter, I gave Jimmy and Nelly each two shillings, and told them to buy whatever the little girl would like best.  The poor little thing’s eyes sparkled with happiness when Nelly bought her the composition doll she chose out of a heap that were piled in a great basket, gorgeously dressed in pink mosquito netting, as I thought, but which Nelly informed me was a “tarletane;” and Jimmy laid out his money on a tiny bowl and pitcher of sprigged china ware, and an astonished china baby sitting in a bath, and looking as if it had turned on the hot water, and couldn’t turn it off again.

Then we trundled Gipsey about a little in a wicker wagon we found, and put him in the patent baby-jumper to take an airing; and at last, when we had teased him till he barked like one of the toy poodles on the shelves, we took ourselves off, and sent the poor child on her way rejoicing.

But it was getting late, and time to trot home, before His Majesty the Sun roasted us all like so many eggs.  Our street is always shady and cool, it seems to me, and we were glad enough to find ourselves once more on its pavement.  I invited Nelly and Jimmy and Gipsey all to take lunch with me, and didn’t we have fun!  We ate the pork pie, and stuffed Gipsey with lumps of sugar, and discovered a pot of raspberry jam in the closet, and ornamented ourselves with red rims round our mouths, digging it out; and sliced, and buttered, and disposed of almost half a loaf of French bread, and hardly stopped laughing, chattering, and barking a single minute.

And then, after all this was over, my little neighbors bid me good-by, and Gipsey barked at me and poked his cold nose into my hand, which meant “Good-by and thank you,” all the same, and the three went home as merry as crickets.

I could not see much of my little neighbors before they went away the next Tuesday, but I was invited to take tea at N the very last evening; and then, what should I find out but that Nelly’s mamma was the daughter of an old friend of mine whom I had not seen for years!  So we felt quite like relations right away.  Just as tea was over, lo and behold! there was a tremendous hullaballoo on the back piazza, and when we poked our heads out of the window to see what the matter was, there was Gipsey high and dry on the back of Miss Bluejay’s fat poodle having squeezed through the railing which separated the two piazzas with the squirrel, which had come to the rescue of his friend, hanging on to his tail! and all three setting up a squeal of remonstrance.  Gipsey’s plight was so extremely well deserved, that we wouldn’t go to his rescue; but at last, with a tremendous twist, he snatched away his cork-screw tail, and ran to hide himself and his injured feelings under the sofa in the front room.  How we laughed at him! and how Nelly tried to make him come out and be lump-sugared into good humor, but he wouldn’t; so, to make up, we coaxed the fat poodle, which had been staring in at the performance and sniffing satisfaction, to sit up and beg for us until we gave him the lump of sugar.  Then Mrs. Lawson sat down to the piano, and began playing a funny little hornpipe tune that sounded just like a banjo; and, to our astonishment, the fat poodle developed another accomplishment; for, getting on his hind legs, he gravely hopped up and down on the piazza, keeping time to the music, until we nearly died of laughter.

You may fancy, after all these comical doings, that we managed to spend a merry evening, and when I at last bid my neighbors good night, it was no longer with the feeling that I was a lonely old bachelor.

I did find the street pretty lonely though, after they had gone, next day, with two great big trunks strapped on behind the carriage, a middling sized trunk hoisted up in front, and several small carpet bags, and tiny tawny bundles and baskets in every place where room could be found.  I fancy Gipsey was in one of the baskets, by the way it bounced and wriggled about in Neighbor Nelly’s lap; but I don’t know; I only saw it from my window, whence I waved an adieu to them as they rolled away.

A few days after they had gone, I thought I would amuse myself, in their absence, by trying to find out if any of the other neighbors knew anything about my neighbor, Nelly.  I succeeded in learning what two of them knew, and they shall tell it for themselves in the stories that follow, and which I have written out.  And now, if any other dear little children have been pleased with me, in what I have told of my walks and talks with Neighbor Nelly, just let them come to N, and meet the hearty greeting and loving welcome of the

Oldbachelor!