The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-03-13
ABOUT WIDOWS.
A Chapter on Widows, their Ways and
their Varieties.
[Erom the Saturday Rericw.l.

From the Saturday Revicw.l
There a. widows and widows. There ar,
those who arc bereaved, and thosa who arr
released: those who lose their support, ant
those whose chains are broken; those who ART
sunk in desolation and those who wake III
into freedom. or the first we will not speak
Theirs is o SORROW too sacred to be publicly
handled even with sympathy; but the secont
demands no such respectful retlcenc- Ihf
widow who is no sooner released froul one
husband than she plots for another, and the
widow who leaps into liberty over the grave o
gaoIer, not lover, are fair game enough
They have always been favorite subjects FOL
authors to exercise their wits on; and whlie
Il men are what they are-laughing animals, apt
to sec the humor lying in incongruity, and
with spice of the devil to sharpen that same
laughter into satlre-they will remain favorite
subjects, tragic as the state is when widow
hood is deeper than mere outward condition.
There are many varieties OF the widow, and
oil are not beautiful. For one, there is the
widow who is bent on remarrying whether
men like it or not-that thing OF prey who goes
about the world seeking whom she may de-
| YOUR; that awfL' creature who bears down on
her victims with ylgor in her assaults that
puts to flight the popular fancy about the
weaker sex and and the distribution OF power.
No hawk poised over brood OF hedge birds, no
| shark cruising steadily toward a Shoal OF small
fry no piratical craft sailing under free flag,
and accountable to no INV save Success was
| ever more formidable to the weaker things pIlr-
sued than is tho hawk widow bent On remarry
| ing. She knows 81 much; there is NOT ma
noeuvre by which victory can be stolen that
| Sac has not mastered; and she is not afraid OF
! even the most desperate measures. When she
has once struck, he would be clever man and
q bold one who could escape, her. Generally
| left but nieagrey provided ,or III worldly goods
else her came would not be so difficult she
makes uo for her poverty here by her wealth CT
bold resources. and 10y tho courage with which
she takes her own fortunes IN hand, and, with
her own these OF her more eligible masculine
associates. She is u woman OF purpose, alld
lives for an end, and that end is remarliaSe
with the most favorable settlement pracIlcaple
on the occasion. It fate has dealt hardly by her
| though may be compasslonately by her sue
cessiye spou ses-and has landed her IN the
! widowed state twice or thrice, she is In no
wise dauuted. aud as little abashed. Sine
! merely reflts after certain time OF anchor
| age, and goes out into the open world again
! for repetition of her chance. She has no
notion of perpetuity of weeds, and though
she NAV have cleared her half century with
a marcin besides, thinks the suggestive
d.spge blossoms OF the bride infinitely more
Desirable than tie fruitless heliotrope OF the
widow. II one husSand is taken, she remom-
bers the oli proyerb, SUD rehecTs on tae l: many
IN her cholce: and. somehoT, she manages. IL
has been said that any woman can MARI! any
man If she determines to do 30, and follows on
tba line of her determination with tenacity and
common sense. The hawk " idow exem2lifiess
the truth of this saying. She determines upon
marriage, and she usually succeeds-the ques-
tion being one Of victim only, and not OF sacrl-
fce:~ One has to fall to her snare; tnere Is no
belp for it. and the whole contest Is, whlch
shall it be? which is strongest to break
her bonds7 which craftiest TO slip out
of them? which most resolute not 10 bear
them from tine beginning3 This the stragglng
sovey may settle among themselves the best
way they can. When the hawk pounce5 down
upon it's quarry, it is sauUe Qut peW! But all
cannot be saved. One has TO be caught. ana
the choice is determined partly BY chance, anu
partly by relative strength. Whom the widow
of experience and resolve bears down upon her
| nrey the result is equally certain. FloIlucr-
inr avails nothing; struggling and spiashlng
| are lust as futile; one among the crowd mas 10
como to the slaughter, like Mrs. Bonds DUCKS,
| and to assist at his own immolation. Ihe pest
| tbinr he can do is to make handsome sur
render. and toilet the world of men and broth
ers beIieye he rather likes his position than
| not.
The widow of the Waduan kind is no crea-
| ture of prey, neither shark nor hawk; at tho
worst she is buG o cooing dove, making JUST
the sweetest little noise i'll tho world, the ton-
| derest little call, to indicate her Whereabouts,
| and to show that she is lionel. and feels 1t.
She sits close. waiting to be found, and does
| not ramp aud dash about like the hawk sister
hood; neither does she pretend that she IL un-
willing to be found, still less deny that SOFT
warm nest, welllned and snugly sheltered. Is
better than onely branch. stretching out
comfortless and bare into the bleak wide world.
She too, is almost sure to get what she wants,
with the advantage of being voluntarily
chosen and not unNillngly submitted to.
This is the Kind of woman who ls al
ways mildly but thoroughly happy IN mel
married life; unless. indeed, her husbano
should be brute, which Heaven 1oreieIa; que oil
lives i'm peace and bland coDteutment While the
fa,es permit and when he dies she bdrles him
ilecently and laments him decorously; but She
thinks IL folly 10 spend her life III weeping by
the side of his cold grave, when her tears can
do no good to either OF them. Rather she
thinks it proof OF her love for him, and inc
evidence of how true was her happiness, thu,
she should elect 10 give him successor; Hel
b!cssed experience IN the past has made hel
trusirul in tho luture; and because sho has
fonnd one man faithful she thinks that all az;
Abdiels. AS rule, this type OF woman docs
Gnd men pleasant, and by her own ,.;.tnrc IN
sures domestic happiness. Sho ls always ten
darly, and never .passionatcly, III ioVS, ever
with the husband SHE has loved tho best; Sill
|
iert: her temperament is Of that serene, mc'l
light kind which does lot fitgue others MOI
wear VI, m out its possessor; without ambition, o.
the power to flag herself INTO any absorDi:ls
occaratlon, she lives only to pleas. and
pleased at home; aud if she is not q wife wear
ing her light fctters lovingly, and prouc tEa
She is lettered, she is nothing. AS some wo
7 mcn are boru mothers, and Others are Do7l
: nuns. 80 is the Wadman roman o horn VIE
ana shines in no other character or chpacity
, Brt in this she excels; and, knowing this, sh
stick, to her rote. how frcqr,cntly aocvtr III
, ntcrlocutor may he changed.
Even a hard man is moved at the slS Sht OF
pretty Young widow in tho funeral black OF he
frat grief, Sitting apart with patient smile
and eyes east neckly down. as ono not OF tn
+ world, though in it. Her loss is too recent t.
' admit OF any thought Of reparation; aud lc
, wlat man docs not think OF that time OF repara
, ton? and if she is more than usually char nlD
in person, and we'll lowered III lyurse, what ma
> does not think of himself MS the best rcpa'rc
sl,o ronld take? Then as time goes en- and st'
oiiiles GRACEFULLY into the era OF nti"ated Sric
Low beautiful is her whole manner, how tastci'
her attire rhc most exquisite co!ors OF til
. ram lan0 kind look garsh BESIDE her da1';
iinls and the uu.empcccd mn il of 'npT. .slf
10 co"r.o beside her faint HubdUel admisslou