The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1872-02-17

NABBY,s HUSBAND.
From the Ba2Ar.

uncomfortable stage OF masculine CoHNa
t'ao"cc when lie becomes burden mol
""Iv 10 Inc so.callGd "patlent himself
h"t Also to those unlucky feminine rela'
ives whose duty II Is TO oIllc'"Ie IN hN
Sministering angels"
Mary, Inc servant came in.
"Plcase. Mr., lIOslCy, there's woman
down stairs who says she must see you
gb",s hecn here before since you were
S a,nI, and now she won't take no for an
s,oM, nv ~
"'t SHOW her right up, Mary" said the
sonirc alerlIy, Frightening up vislblYr
W ~" ,Sc war horse who scents the battle
o ,Ev t "T Not all the coy comforts Of his
o "r' the "SleGpy Hollowncss" Of
S S o"sv chair the pleasant pictures on
nv, ,I's v woIl tho wood fire, which, now that
,Se %intry twilight was settling down
"ror ,hc iii of gray sky left visible by the
",rtsins' heavy folds, danced and flashed
ali over the room in rosy shadows, could
ysconciIe the SQUIRE to his forced seclu.
aiHn Secretly lie pined Tor his dingy old
len Of an Office. and Chafed at the doctors
rrsirlctions which as vet forbade all
,SonSht IF business But now, the moral
Molice force represented by his wife and
DAUGHTER being luckily oil duty, there
wac nothing 10 preyent his seeing this
nrobable client as
IShow her nm, Mary" said the Squire,
checrGllly stratChtening himself, and as.
snmin1 ~ mnch of legal dignity as dress.
inT Gown and slippcrs permitted.
Mary disappeared. Presently the door
openci again. "Why, Nabby,h said the
Squire, rs ityou? How do YOU dor"
ayes, Squire, It's me-" said Nabby
dropplng down with q heavy sigh into u
chair; ''and I don't do very we'll"
Nsbby was short, squarely built wo.
man of fifty, with considerable gray In the
coarse black hair drawn stiftly and TN.
compromlsingly back under q bonnet
about five wears out of date, She had
sharp black eyes, and resolute, GO. ahead
manner. Evidently Woodworking wo.
man; vel in looking at her you could not
belp the conviction that something more
than hard work had ploughed the deep
wrinkles which ran across and across her
forehead, and threatened olilt her eve.
brows up to her hair. " q
Nabby had lived with the souire's
mother fifteen years-lFom the time when
Mrs. Hosley took her in, a ten-year old
orphan, who was, as the rood old latly
sometimes expressed 1t, more plague thai
profit," until She grew into the steady and
reliable handmaiden, who finally. with
every ones good wishes, married Young
Josiah Gould, and set up in the world fol
himself Od Mrs, Uoslev had long since
gone to her rcward,but the family still kept
Up iriendlyinterest in Nabby and her for
tunes; the Squire in particular being hel
guide, philosopher, and friend" in ali The
emergencies of life.
"Why, what's the matter now, Nabbyp'
said the Squire, good naturedly. Art
YOU sick?"
"Yes, l am, said Nabby, emphatically
with q snap Of her black ewes. "pm sick
10 death OF Josiah. | can't stan It any
longer, and I've come 10 talk with vol
about gittin' q divorce. You see he!
been a CROWN worse now for a goot
while. I've keptit to myself pretty much
because | was ashamed ont and then
ken hopin' he'd do better. I've talked
and talked TO him, and said and done eve,
rything woman could. but II seems as II
the more talked the worse he rrcw"
The Squire looked at Nabby's rather
sharp, hard face, and nerhans was hardly
50 surprised as Naihy Gynectcd thet
JOSIAH lad NOT been rel5rmciI nv the viz.
Orous talking 10" he had nndonhtellIv
received. ~
"lIe grew more and more sh;(,less and
gooIfor nothin'n Continued Nahbv dill
finally. he didn't do much hnt srt ronnI
the kitchen fire, half booZv Ifthcre's
ANYTHING / haten burst out Nahhv Vit,s
man forever settin', round tho bousr
under foot. And there / was a,takin' In
washin' and a. slayin' carly and late IN IN
kinder decent and forehanded and lin
no bettcr'n dead man o,, INV hands sr
laras helpip' ony1 VISA concerned on1 a.
told him, time and again lie WORKED
Just about enough to keen himself il
drink. lIeknew Le cnulInst nit o,w =
my money for thGt,s' -
"But | stood Il ali till about n Fortnight
aCo IA Noon ,"orI,;r' barS oil Jav
hclpin' Miss Barber clean house, and i
seemed as If every hone in nv bodv
achcd, ! was so tired. | come along home
thinkin how good my cup tea q taste,
The first thingI see, when opened the
kitchen door, WIS Old Hank Slater settin'
there IN nv rocEin'.C chair, Hemnd .Iosi"I,
were both drunk as-as hogs said
Nabby, slandering an innocent animal in
her haste for simile.
They'd tracked the mud all over nv
clean floors. The cookin'.stove was
jammed full of wood roarin' like nil pos.
sessed. wonder they hadn't burned N.
house up before | got there. And they'i
got my best teapot out 10 heat some wa
Ter, and the water'd all billed away md
the bottom came out, Butthe worst wnS
10 sec my husband a.consortin' with smell
scum Of the earth rs that miserable low.
lived Hank Slater. IEell Won squire
was mad. l just flung that kitchen door
wide open, and seq |:
nIEit mn Cctl;, l,,,,,,. ~, 49,,