Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1868-01-28
wilkins, Qpinion Of the Circus,


to mine, l could not avoid hearing the fol
lowing conversation
= Mrs wilkins, say won't do it, SO you
might Just as we'll stop your clattcr. | amt
going to spend money Tor circus tickets for
YOU 20 20 down and foc away your time in
wickedness and sin, you can bet l amt"
But wilkins, you knew it is perfectly
moral exhi-p
& don't know anything of the kind It's
a regular haunt Of debauchery aud vice, and
YOU shan t 20 to it while you re my wife Do
you understand that lfyou had shiliing's
worth OF deceucy YOU worsiin't want to 90
The idea of woman of your weight, and
with such Il; shape too, wanting to 20 to the
circus, I've no doubt, for the purpose of ma-
king a debut before the public. y pretty
looking figure you'd cut"
"Wikins, you know l don't want any
such"
Yes, and appearing very likely as the
- Prairie Flower" dressed up in an outra-
geous lot of turs and feathers, with your face
painted three times as much usual, and a
ring through your nose, and looking exactly
like some old Hottentot idol, and having half
the niggers in the place mistaking ycu for
some craven image, and bowing down to you
while you straddle stuffed buffalo in a cage,
and imagine you're cutting swell won't
have it. No"
Wilkins, you talk like -"
"Or else very likely having you coming
out in pink tights"
" wilkins, TIL"
"In pink tights, standing on one leg on
the back of speckIed jackass, and flying
around the ring with man in spangles after
you, trying to put his arm around you, while
+bo hnn Of ,l, IL, tIn
and tries to crack miserable one horse joke
about you to the ring master. That would
be nice, wouldn't it? You'd like it, doubt
less; but just want you to understand that
| didn't marry you with the intention Of let
ting you make an equestrian Black Crook of
yourself, If l had got married for that, |
would have married a woman whose stockings
didu' t have to be the same size all the way up"
Wilkins, I'll brcak-"
" I'd have married 4 woman who would
have had lOitier ambition than to be female
supe at Il ninth-cla circus, and who wouldn't
be going out into the greenroom every five
minutes to taste samples, and falling in love
with degraded wretch who throws fiip-flaps
for living, and coming home at ! O'Clock
in the morning smelling of sawdust aud tan,
and having the nightmare, and dreaming she
was going around the ring, aud kicking me
like the nation III her sleep.
81 declare, Mr.: Wilkins, you're perfectly
outrageous"
but you shan'tgo Ny minds made up.
You just want me to buy you tickets aud get
you in, and then the first thing you'll break
for the ring, and commence pructicing the
flying trapeze or cuTveting around on some
gandered mule or other, aud bringing dis
grace and misery on your family. But |
l refuse to be partner of your crimes. If
you go you'll have to borrow the money to 20
on. Not one cent of my cash do you get
Mind that now"
"But Mr.. wilkins"
"Oh don't 'but Mr. wilkins mo. You
needn't try to put on any sweetness with me.
I've got over thet That worked well enough
when [ was courtiug you, bat I've found you
out"
"Ain't you ashamcd--"
"I've found you out, and now I'm going to
protect my children from the influence Of your
awful example. You're running their morals
with this scandalous circus business. 1t was
only yesterday that l saw Mary Jane, in all
her girlish innocence. trying to balance her
self on one leg on the rocking horse, which
tilted and threw her head foremost against
the dining groom window, and broke five dol
lars worth of glass, and like to have killed
the innocent child just as it did this morning
when she tried to jump off the kitchen dress
er through barrel-hoop covered with paper,
which Breckinridgc Augustus held in his
hand, when she caught her dress in one of
the nails, and fell against the table, and
knocked the butcher knife down, and cut the
dogs tail of close to the hilt. And ali along
with your confounded nonsense, l say I"
"What an awful story, Mr.. Wiki"
II say | won't submit to having HoloEer-
ness Montgomery skinning the cat on the
clotheS-line, and knocking my clean shirt col
lars into the Stop bucket, so that they smell
like the almshousc for n month, while Will
liam Henry tries to swallow the carving knife
like the sword-eater, and nearly bleeds to
death on account Of cutting cash yard hong
in his tongue"
"a yard long? That's perfectly ridic-"
"Two wards long. It's absolutely infamous
for the mother Of five children to encourage
UolOferncss Montgomery to stretch himself
out between two chairs, while William Henry
and Breckenridge Augustus stand on him TO
make living pyramid, with the baby on the
top, as the Infant phenomenon" until Hol-
oferness Montgomery doubles up like pock-
et-knife, aud the whole concern comes down,
and nearly transfxes the baby on the. iron
skewer. It's unnatural conduct in a mother
and ="
You know I never did"
''I'm ashamed of you. I'm ashamed that
any woman who belongs to me should be put
ting her offspring up to educating animals,
and encouraging William Henry to try to
make the cat ride around the grass plot on
the dogs back, until the animal spit, and
growled, and scratched gullies in his hide,
and then got up first class scrimmage with
the dog, who like to bit the nozzle off of her,
and spoiled her scent for life, while HoIofor-
ness Montgomery tried to walk the slack
rope on the clothes!ine. and pulled the whole
grape arbor over on him, and cut his head
nr.ar a Won cnull 60 Ii. hrains ,,