Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1876-11-10
From the Philadelphia Sunday Times
MRS. SPRIGGINS AND. THE BUTCH
ERS,

]
some trouble. This time it is with tn
butchers.
If Mrs. Spriggins were a person of edu
cation, and endowed with natural talents
! believe she would be a blue stocking
Yes, as sure as taxes, she would write TO
the newspapers, and speak at women
rights meetings. As it Is, she is decided.
strong minded, and has her nose into al
the issues Of the day. She is forever right
ing somebody's wrongs, while her children
and l suffer the grossest neglect.
The trouble about the butchers began il
this way: A young married lady, for whom
Mrs. SprigginS expresses the highest re
gard, on the day before the butchers pa
ride, was in market buying mutton, wheI
the butcher accosted her with,
Mrs. Bell, you know the butchers pa
rade comes off tomorrow. | am going tC
be in it. l want you to come and bring me
bouquet"
''Sirr" said Mrs. Bell, assuming an air Of
offended dignity. ''DO you know to whom
you are speaking? You are almost an en-
tire stranger to me, and my husband will
not permit you to address such Language
To me.
The butcher was not frightened by this
reply. He went on chopping mutton as if
nothing had happened. The lady return
ed home. but instead of complaining to her
husband. as she should have done, she re-
solved to buy her meat thereafter at the
provision store, and discuss her wrongs
with few female friends, cf whom, unfor-
tunately, Mrs. Spriggins is one.
As soon as Mrs. Spriggins heard of this
outrage on her friend, Mrs. Bell, she took
a deep interest in it. The confounded
fool, instead of minding her own business,
what did she do but send out invitations to
all her friends to meet in our parlor, and
hold a conference about the matter.
On the day appointed, Mrs. Spriggins in
sisted on my staying at home from work to
mind the Daby, and the other young ones,
as she said her whole mind had been occu-
pied by the meeting, and she could give no
attention to children.
Anthony" she said as her guests began
to assemble in the parlor, ''you keep the
children out in the kitchen, and, mind you,
don't YOU let them make any noise. don't
want to be disturbed until the meeting is
over. am to be President, and notliag
must worry me. If the baby should get
hungry, have made some cruel, and you
can feed the child until we get through"
So saying, the good woman left me and
rejoined her friends in the parlor. The
communicating door was open, and had
the privilege-of listening, if l choose, but
was forbid entering into any of the delib-
erations.
There were ten ladies present, besides
Mrs. Spriggins. As the oldest one of the
party, and the lady of the house, the duty
was deyolved upon her of opening the meet
ing. She arose in a very impressive man
ner, and, in fact, rather astOnished me by
her eiOquence.
Ladies, she said, ''this meeting has
been called to avenge the insults of the
stronger seX-I mean the men! The partic-
ular enemy this afternoon is butchers! I
hate the butchers. Why, we women can't
go to market without getting insulted by
them. don't mean myself. None of them
eyer insult me, or try to make love. I'd
like to see EN-! I'd slap them in the mouth,
that's what I'd do. But there are Younger
and weaker women here, whom they do in
suit. There is Mrs. Bell Didn't butcher
want her to come to the butchers parade,
and bring him bouquet? Didn't be, Mrs.
BeIl?''
Eyes, ma'am, said Mrs. Bell, with tears
in her eyes.
''There! who says / am a iarr' shouted
Mrs. Spriggins, in triumphant tone
''Why, know of one case where a lady left
her umbrella by mistake at a butcher
stall, and when she called the next day he
wanted either kiss or a quarter of dol
lar before he would return it. .
''0h, amt that scandalousp shouted all
the ladies in chorus.
81 know of another butcher" continued
Mrs. Spriggins, in high key, ''who makes
it his boast that he can make any woman
love him, who buys mutton at his STALL
Oh, the heather! I'll mutton him if he ever
comes any of his gymnastics around me!'
''Ain't it awful" cried the ladies.
''It's about time, !" continued Mrs. Sprig-
gins, ''that we put stop to this thing. |
know how to regulate the men. My hus-
band, when he got married, thought he
was going to be boss. l soon showed him
his mistake. 1t only needs stiff upper
lip to get along with the men. The whole
pack of them are towards at heart"
By this time the baby had got hungry,
and in my attempt to make it eat Cruel, it
become obstreperous. and split the liquid
all over my pantalOons.
''Mrs. Spriggins, l said, peeping into
the room where the ladies were, ''won't you
come here a moment? l can do nothing
with the child. He has split the cruel all
over my pants.2
''Drat the manp exclaimed Mrs. Sprig-
gins, fiercely, she can never do anything
right. Didn't tell you not to worry me
antil this meeting was over? You may just
get along the best you can with the child.
You'll make me forget all l was talking
about"
Then there arose a general cry against
me, and several of the ladies said ought
to be hung. Mrs. Spriggins resumed her
saying:
'l'm not exactly parliamentarian, but
guess 1 know what is right and proper in
such meeting as this. l move that we
pass series of resolutions on this matter,
and after we pass them, that we go down
10 the market in a body, find the butchers,
and see this thing out. l don't believe in
words without acts. If anybody gives me
sass, always give them back as good as
hey send. That is the kind of grasshOp-
Der l am"
''BIrs. Spriggins, inquired lady timid-
lY, 'hadn't we better appoint committee
Of three to draft these resolutions?
''Not by long shot, said Mrs. SPrIg-
gins. ''This meeting was called by me,
held in my parlor, to the wear and tear OF
my furniture, and I claim the right of hav-
ing the biggest say in it. Either1 get up
5he resolutions myself, or the thing Is
over"
As nobody cared about having quarrel
with Mrs. Spriggins, her suggestions re-
,eived unanimous approval. She told
Mrs. Bell to take pencil and paper and
write down what she would dictate. Here
S copy of the resolutions, as they appear
n a gilt frame in our bed room:
l. Resolved, That we women, in convention
assembled, having heard of the infamous in
;ults offered to- one Of our sex by butcher,
10 hereby
II. Resolued, That heneeforth we will hate
butchers, both as body and individually;
md be it
III. ResOEUed, That hereafter we buy our
meat only at provision stores, not caring to
'isk our persons to the insults of butchers
Who sell mutton in the market. And fur
be it
". ResolUed, That we visit the butchers in
| body, and demand an explanation of this
lffair,
V. Resolved, That thinking 1t proper to
nave male escort on this mission, that the
presence of man will strike terror into the
,nemy, we select Anthony Spriggins as the
person; therefore be it
vi ResolUed, That the said Anthony Sprig
rims Is hereby notified to get himself ready
or duty Immediately.
There was no getting out of the scrape.
was in for it. One of the ladies was chos-
N to mind the children until we returned,
md was ordered to put on my hat and