Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1856-02-21

| at her heart that moment-colder, sharper.
than the merciless wind that forced its way
through her thin garments.
"Well, cannot help fearing that the
exposure will increase that standing cough
Of yours" remarked Anne! ."lct us walk
FAST"
They did walk fast, and in few mo-
ments reached Mrs. Darrow's miserable
dwelling. Edith C, ntrss,ed the poor wo-
mans utter helplessness and desttution,
with her own comparative health and COM
| Portable home, and blamed herself for re-
pining that al her heart craved had not
been granted. In ministering to the wants
of the distressed 'pauPer, nearly an hour
passed, and then laden with blessings, the
ladies' stepped out upon the frozen street,
and turned homeward. No longer facing
the wind, they found the cold less severe,
and Anne, as was her wont, commenced a
lively chat
"That's a nice, new hood of yours, Edith.
From Miss ank's shop, is it not!"
"No, indeed!" returned Edith smiling
"How you have complimented me, Anne
l mode it myself ana tn. uisits also. from
that old blue satin Of mine, that never fit
ted well. Do you recollect iL!"
"Certanly l do. And ycI made these
elegant garments out of it. What an c.
economist you are! Fred would call you
such notable woman! Why, only be-
cause | dyed and made over my faded
merino for Elsie, he calls me economist,
Scotch HOUSEWIFE poormau's prize, and
every other fitlering nime imaginable"
"Does he!" asked Edith, with a sweet
friendly smile, ait must be very encourag-
ing" And then, crowGng on her memory
came the innumerab.e instances, when,
after some like innocent display of house,
wifely thrift, she had looked in her hus-
bands face for smile, listened for an ap-
proving word, looked and listened IN vain.
Are these things trihes! 80
"Don't you know" continued the shrewd
and socabIe, but not very judicious Mrs.
Ba ton; "don't you know that husbands, all
the world over, are divided into two classes
those who can see nothing but good in
their individual wives, believing them far
superior to any other mans wife; and those
who appear to hold the exact contrary to
this viz that their wives seldom or never
do anything quite right, and are in fact the
most faulty and imperfect Of women. do
not mean that they publicly proclaim This,
but that it is their secret feeling. Now
my husband, am happy to say, belongs to
the former class. Whatever mistakes
may make, | am sure that the kindest con-
struction will be put upon my actions, and
the pleasure feel in doing well, is doubled
by his readiness % perceive and applaud
my we'll doing. | often wonder what would
have been my fate, had | m,rriel a cold
hearted, unappreciativa man. Rather give
me a convent life, 70 with the VOWS o! a
nun upoa me, should have hopes of final
ly overcoming that longing for human
sympathy and affection, which must make
the misery Of the unloved wife"
ais not your condemnation too sweep.
ing!" asked Filth. "SJms man, as well
as women, are reserved by nature; not
unfselng, but far from demonstrative in
their feelings Dor't you think that much
seeming indifference Oh the part of hus-
bands is owing TO this iact?'
"No-I am pretty we'll convinced that
where love exists, it will make itself mani
fest tc its object OF course, selfish and
tcapricious men, passionate and obstinate
men, will act out, their natures upon oc-
easions, but no man who truly loves his
wife. will persist long in a course which
no sees makes her unhappy. No more in
| course of indifference, than course OF
tyranny. Men differ vastly, as you say
1t is Fred's disposition to see the bright
side of every thing; therefore when he
! tells me, nfter some little act Of attention
TO his comfort, tina. am "the most thought
I full of wires; that no one else could have
done it quite SO nicely;" know it is ex-
arperation, and tell him so. But don't
love him all the better for III"
Edi:h made no answer. Had the though
in her heart been translated at that mo-
ment, it would have rea6 "Oh could |
once hear such praise from my husbands
lirs, how gladly would | lie down and dep
Poor Edith! she had grown morbid un-
der the slow process OF heart-starvation,
possessed BY restless, feverish longing
for gentle words and loving smiles" How
cheap they are-how easily given! Yet
how many a human heart pittes and sor-
rows tor that very sustenance, and dnds i,
not!
Edith's husband, Ralph Miner, was q
practical man. His ideas of religion, po-
litics. business, education, social friendships
and domestic love, were equally practical
That which could be turned to no practca
use, was of TO consequence in his estima'
ton, and the want of a recognition of this
principle, he considered the great dsiec
of his wie's early training. Edith hat
been reared in the tenderest of homes; she
was intellectual, affectionate, and highly
sensitive. Her husband saw no use in al
fection or sensSility; therefore, without
actually checking, he discouraged theiI
manifestations, and believed that he was
doing her a great service, by teach ng her
TO restrain the flow o! natural feeling, III
regarded her as too independent in mind
and too enthusiastic in expression, for {
,son,an.. and therefore avoided all converse
tiona topics of interest 10 her, believing
, that thereby more exclusive devotion Il
|, domestic would ensue.
As natural consequence of this stat
}, of things, in the passage of years, a grea
wall had grown up between the husban
!, and wife. There was no trNe sympath!