Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1852-05-03
From Gleason's Pictorial.
A COUNTRY WIFE.
BY GEO. CANNING HILL.

3 y
The Miss Calkins-or, as they were
sometimes wont to coll themselves, the
Misses Calkins-were Two young ladies,
who never omitted 10 congratulate them>
selves that they t.liyed in town." This
tnors particularly, in contradisiinction TO
anything that ever came from, or went 10
the country. The Old Bailey could not
csitainly be a worse place. in their fancy,
than wns the expanse of territory that
stretched beyond the walls Of, their pent.up
streets. Nothing, they religiously believed,
ever came TO much in the country; and
nobody ever suas anything. who happened
to live out of town. .:zsY.EEzz
They were not even endowed young
ladies, the two Misses Calkins, either in
point Of comeliness or gentle breeding -
They were lankish, muddy complexioned,
md had little grace 10 spare in their man.
ners. Their social situation, too, was some-
what peculiar, and might possibly have
been altogether responsible for the unset.
tied and decidedly consistent character of
their demeanor - They affected refined
society, and kept the cheapest. Yet in do.
ing as they did, they offered just patronage
enough to the latter class, 10 assure them
that they were capable of vastly superior
social achievements. ssstsfs g. ~ tsss...
They shuddered to think that Miss Bar
stow-the lady who's had just arrived from
New York, with IN inherited fortune
should chance to see rustic cousin mount
their steps; and could have gladly laid hold
ofhis very respectable ears, and with main
strength drawn him into the hall, if by
that means, their modification nigh. have
been spared them. They never dared 10
speak OF an. acquaintance in the country to
Mr.. II Heidenseik, the wholesale merchant,
who had twoeor three times called, for fear
the horrid syllables might jar on his deli
cate ear And ye. this fastidiousness did
not betray itself in anything else. They
had only laid their ban on the land that
wasn't duly taxed by municipal corpora
tion. 1t hardly amattered wha. a man was,
after proving thai he was at least mediocre,
provided only he lived, moved and had his
being s'in town. AZ green grocer, in town,
was lar before . gentleman from the coun-
And so they deluded themselves. They
thought country life mus. be SO much
mixed up with stables, and horses, and cat.
tie, and ploughs; yet they lived almost di.
rectly opposiie,a livery stable themselves,
and thought nothing Of the inconYerlience
Esuch a neighberhood would certainly offer
|. 10 well.bred and at all sensible country peo.
pie. Everything in the country was so
very uulgar-they never thought Of the
word without unconsciously turning up
their noses. And between vainly creepy
ing after society in town and cutting il
dend in thelcountry, the two sisters Calkins
made pretty miserable life Of il. They
could neither raise themselves TO high
bench, nor settle themselves comfortably
down in n low lone. And, always in a
fermen. les, people should wrongfully ins
telpret their social opinions, or mistake IN
respect 10 their social position, they we're
at heart looked down upon BY one class,
and hated by the other.
For oil this, however, Mr.. Caleb Calk.
ms was quite another sort Of person. He
laughed at his sisters, when they did not
lyex him; and when they were unfortunate
Ienought TO do that, he was ungallant enough
to retort upon them his own and other pep.
ple's opinions Of their fas,idious notions.
Mr.. Caleb Calkins rarely split hairs with