Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1864-04-01

A STORY oI WIVES.

AsToRY rol WIVES.
"Why don't you sver clean your boots b.
fore you come into the house p said Ellen
Jaynes to her husband. ~ had just nicely
arranged the room, and settled down to my
sewing as you came in :; now there it is all
to do over again. Just look at the dirt
from one end Of the room to the other, and l
suppose it is the same thing in the hail.
Dear! dear an % discouraged and tired out
with brushingw -. ia
"And 30 am discouraged and tired out
with such . continual fret-fretting every
time come into the house. Don't you ever
get tired of sco!ding?' was the provoking
response Of the gentleman.
II do get tired Of speaking to you about
things which make such deal Of trouble.
and vet YOU never seem to mind them at all"
"Speaking in the manner you do will not
have that effect of that you may be assured"
"You are just 80 provoking % that; you
never seem to care how much ! go through
Here the tears began to flow.
"What cdnfounded scene about few
tracks on the carpet |" calculated the incor-
rigible Mr.. Jaynes with vigorous emphasis.
S'Its not that alone. You know very well
l
continually. You never seem to care how
hard YOU make me work. It is the same in
everything and, Charles, why won'tfyou try
o be little more particularly Why need you
make SO much work, when am trying so
hard to keep things in good orderw The
shower was fast besoming . food. Mrs.
Jaynes produced her handkerchief and began
affesh. "Oh dear, the trial of living with
| hav hao
so much better for me If had never met
your ttF
But Charles had departed, shutting the
ter half to have her cry out by herself. And
crv she did for time with all her might,
fully convinced that she was the most miser-
able, unlucky, and unappreciatsd of all house
keepers then she began to think what is the
use of al this : nobody cares ABOUT my tears
i am only Masking myself sick for nothing
So she bathed her eyes, brushed her carpet
and resumed her sewing. But she was not
in an amiable mood-not by any means re.
tpentant nor forgiving, certainly not cheerful
i'll am sorry to say, not even peaceful; but
very much inclined to let her grievances be
made manifest. Accordingly they were hard.
" seated at the dinner table before she com.
menced:
"Did you see Parker about that wardrobe
this morning, as I requested p
mo, hadn't the time," was the encouraging
response, -
tend to my wishes. $500 You would have found
time you had chosen. If you cared straw
for your wife, you would attend to her wishes
little. Well, did you 60 to the stove stor'
to see about having the stove cleaned? 1t il
almost impossible 70 bake in it, a. have Of
ten told you" = aaA -a' 7-
mo, did not' ~. 49, SO
"For mercy's sake, Mr., Jaynes, will yo'
81 can't say anything else wsntedr'
n s'No."
"Yet I asked you to be sure and recollec
it the last thing this morning. Was Their
ever such q careless man before l neve
saw anything like it," -t>a,l
: Mr.. jsynes continued his dinner in apps
rent unconcern, and his wife elapsed int
, silence. Just as he was leaving the dining
, room, she started new theme.
"Charles, Mrs. Dutton has been in thi
r morning. She says they are going to tn
? White Mountains next week. Why canno
, you take me off for little journey? shout
like the change; I think it will do me good.
"Take you a journey, after the complimen
tary things you have said to me this morning
| I shall be very likely to- do 50 A pleasan
trip 1 should have"
"That win do for an excuse. You never
take me anywhere. There's the Dutton'
have been away every summer, and Mrs., Dr|
ton says that her husband would not think Q
keeping her at home all summer. She wa
surprised when told her that had neve
: been away from home week at . time sine
was married"
"Very likely"-in tone of irony, and Nj
7 Jaynes left the room.
II Now Ellen Jaynes was not disappointed il
the least at the result Of her application. II
fact she did not expect her husband to gran
her rsqust, and it is doubtful whether sh
: would have gone had he given his consent
E for she we'll knew their means would not 81
! low such expensive indulgences, and Ellel
was prudent, economical wife ;.but she wan
: ted to show her husband what other mel
u did for their wives and what he did not do.
Ellen Jaynes was woman Of good princi
pies and good feelings, though she had quit
an irritable, nervous temperament In tn
good old times, such were called ''cross,
now it is genteelly nervous" Well, Ellel
Jaynes was very nervous she had also
, great regard for trihes, and very little powe
to adapt herself to circumstances She had
too, vivid Imagination, and having but 4
limited opportunity ofstudyirg her husband!
character before marriage, she had invested
him with all possible excellence; though she
had man to reverence, lean upon, look ur
to in al things. Of course she was bitterly
disappointed. ss IS
Charles Jaynes was man of good natural
abilities, and could render himself very enter
| tanning when he chose, but had few Of those
domestic qualities which make up the model
! husband. He was not tidy in his habits, was
often thoughtless and inconsiderate, and rather
selfshly fond of his own ease. Such char.
acter was the very antipode Of Ellen, who was
possessed Of much energy of character, and
very industrious withal. Az have said, she
was bitterly disappointed; and, though she
loved Charles, lamented her mistake in mar
rying him, with many secret tears she
would probably have been quite Is miserable
with any other husband. unless she had goY-
erned her own temper as it was she had en-
deavored to perform the duties devolYing upon
I - - r,iS-.>A.-he.- .e cftav, troubled by
the delinquencies Of her husband. They irfi.
tated her she would find fault and complain,
which did not improve matters. Such q
course never does. So theyears rolled on,
and things grew worse and worse The hus.
bands love grew cold, and he became more
and more inattentlve, while the cares of his
wife kept Increasing, aud in like ratio, 81 her
fretting and fault finding. A deplorable state