Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1872-02-01

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MAsRrED LlrE or GRxx1 fss.-With
people. great and small. - course oi
true love does, not usually e. smooth
But. rough or smooth th& osnn ALWAYS
hath amoral. Poor Xss - has been
the most abased spsssc q seld has bad
I'm TIM. fhe1lspd yesrs. S01f1llas tenn
per, We arc told, made her scource 10
her wise husband. Socrates; but he owned
that he had married and endured her for
self-discipline. And If q man needs any
schooling Of that sort, what lady could be
n more successful connubial disciplinarian
than Xantippe? One day she scolded him
violently as she stood at her open window.
and sealed the lesson BY throwing q pail
of water on him. Just as | expected" 3"
he sweetly replied; latter the thunder
comes the shower"
The younger Pliny praises his amiable
wife in language as touching as it is sin
cerc. He says:-.'Her affection for me
has given her turn to books Her pas
sion will increase with our days; for it is
not my youth or my person. which time
gradually impairs. but my reputation and
my glory Of which she is cnamored"
Milton married after short courtship.
His wife is said to have very unconge-
nial disposition. and had no patience with
her husbands literary habits She COM
planned bitterly of his solitary house. lus-
tily fogged his nephew. and in month
after their marriage she ran away. Pos
sibly he was literary recluse, who gave
much more time to his books than to his
blushing. rollicking young country bride.
Time heals many a wound, as it healed
the trouble in this Miltonian home. The
young bride returned. and on the whole
made him a right good wife.
ter. lady almost double his age. Her
daughter describes him at this time as of
very forbidding appearance, his struc-
ture of bones being "hideously striking to
the eve, and the sears Of scrofula were
deeply visible" We may add. and awk-
ward gesture. which excited ridicule -
Fearful that she might marry him for his
family rank or reputation. he told her that
he was descended from untitled ancestors.
that he had no money, and that one of his
uncles had been hung. To lower himself
to his level. she replied that she had no
more money than himself. and although
she had not learned that any Of her rela-
,ives were hung. she knew that several Of
them deserved hanging. Mrs Porter over
looked his uncomely looks and old ways.
and said, 'rrhis is the most sensible man
tha, ever saw in my life" johnson de-
clared it to have been q love marriage on
both sides. On their way to church on
horseback, to be married. they took their
first lesson in the exercise Of mutual au-
'hority. He afterwards described it rs
follows Sir, she had read tho old ro-
mances. and 90, into her head the fantas-
teal notion that woman of spirit should
use her lover like dog. So. sir, at first
she told me that rode too fast. and she
could not keep up with me; and when
rode little slower, she passed me. and
complained that l Jagged behind. l was
not to be made the slave Of caprice and |
resolved to begin as I meant to end
therefore pushed on briskly till I was fair
ly out Of sight. The road lay between
two hedges. so was sure she could not
miss it, aad l contrived that she shouli
soon come up with me. When she did.
observed her to be in tears"
Johnson was constitutionally a very an
gular man. with sharp corners enough to
annoy the most amiable wife. Withal
they got along smoothly thereafter. And
when she died. the stern scholar refused
to be comforted the rest of his life.