The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1879-05-07

what you are talking about" spoke
Mrs. Grimes.
"Indecd, then, I d.! l consider
anv woman a fool who will live
with a drunken husband. For
my part. | have not spark OF
sympathy for ike wives Of drunk
ards-I mean those who live with
:he men who beggar and abuse
them. Mere disgusting brutcs-
the very sight Of whom ought TO
turn q woman's stomach"
"You were never placed in such
q situation, and therefore are not
competent to decide how far a
woman who continues to live with
a drunken husband is or is not to
blame. For my part, l am in
clined to think that, in most
cases, to live with a husband un-
der these circumstances is the
least of two e7ils.''
This was said by Mrs. Pitts.
II think you are right there, "
resumed Mr.. Peters. "A woman
feels toward her own husband, the
father Of her children, and the
man who in life's spring-time won
her best and purest affections,
very differently from what she
does toward another man. She
knows all his good qualities, and
remembers how tenderly he has
loved her, and how he would still
love her but for the mad infatua-
ton from which he feels it i'm
possible to break away. The
hope that he will reform never
leaves her. When she looks at
her children. even though abused
and neglected, she cannot but
hope for their father, and this
hope keeps her up
ANY woman is a fool to feed
herself up with such fancies,
There is only one true remedy,
and that is separation. That's
what Id do, aud every woman of
sense ought to: do. Don't tell me
about hope Of reforming. It's all
nonsense. You wouldn't catch
me breaking my heart after that
fashion for any man. Not p
said Mrs. Peters.
The more Mrs. Grimes, and
Mrs. Pitts, and others present,
argued their side Of the question,
the more pertinaciously did she
maintain the position she had
assumed, until Mr.. Peters could
not help feeling somewhat vexcd
and some little hurt. He being
her husband, was the only one
who could possibly hold the rela-
ton toward whom all her indig-
nation was directed, under the
imagined possibility of his becom-
ing a tippler.
After a while the subject was
dropped, and at the close of the
evening the friends separated,
and went to their homes.
It was, perhaps, two months
from the period at which this con-
versation occurred, that Mr.. Pc
ters left bis home early in the
evening to attend political meet
ing, politics at the time running
high, and hard elder flowing as
free as water. He was in the
habit Of attending such meetings,
and Of fpartaking ofhis portion Of
the cider, and at times something
stronger but as be was a sober
man, too, Of strong good sense
and firm principle, the thought
of his ever partakiog too freely
never crossed the mind Of his
wife.
Regular in his habits, he was
rarely out after ten o'clock on
any occasion. But this time, ten
came, and eleven, but he was still
away. This was a circumstance
50 unusual, that his wife could not
help feeling degree ofuneasiDess.
She went to the door and listened
for him, after the clock struck elev-
en-, and stood there for some time,
expecting every moment to hear
the sound of his footsteps in the
distance. But she waited in vain,
and at last re.entered the house
with a troubled feeling.
At last the clock struck twelve,
and almost at the same time she
heard her husband at the door,