Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1879-11-26
Death of Mrs. Dickens.

The last act of domestic tragedy was con-
cluded in London on Saturday morning by
the death of Mrs. Catharine Hogarth Dick
ems. The story of her separation from the
novelist must yet be fresh in the public recol-
lection. Thirty-seven years ago, when Mr..
Dickens made his first visit to this country,
he was accompanied by his young wife, and
in the numerous reports of his movements
and of the attentions which he received, she
was sometimes kindly mentioned. twas be-
lieved that they were extremely happy in
their domestic relations; nor was il supposed
that one who wrote so tenderly of domestic
love could fail to love tenderly to the end
SO far as the world knew the novelist and
his wife continued to live contentedly together
until 1855, when scandal came, and the sepa-
ration was announced. The old reason was
assigned of incompatibility of temper. There
was a supplementary story of the overload
ness of Mr. dickens for Miss Georgianna Ho-
garth, his wife's sister, who lived in his fami-
". This Mr.. Dickens publicly repudiated AZ
grossly false and scandalous-as a libel upon
the lady's character and his own. 1t is not
at all necessary to go into any discussion of
this matter. Mr. Dickens may have lost his
old love without the influence of new and
unlawful one. 1t is enough that it was lost.
Tncompatiblity is sad enough without the i'm
putation of infdelity.
Society on both sides of the ocean, howev-
er, has made this private and family misun-
Outstanding the subject of much discussion.
Mr.. Dickens himself thought to fit to print
his own version of the affair, the sum total of
considerable writing being that as he could
not live happily with his wife, and as she
could not live happily with him, it was better
they should live apart. This might be said
of any separation of like kind but when
husbands and wives talk about their incom-
patibiity-a word which we are sorry to say
has come into frequent use-it by no means
follows that the whole morality of the matter
has been disposed of. 1t is the duty Of those
who are married to live happily together.
For the sake of children, of good manners,
of relation the sacredness of which must
moi be lightly disregarded. marriages should
not be practically annulled, except under the
pressure of the gravest necessity. man of
irritable nerves, of peculiar tastes. of exact
ing habits, of fixed notions, may find it hard
work to live with a wife who frets him, who
crosses him, who does not understand him, or
who, perhaps, understands him too well But
all this does not by any means excuse the
sundering of ties solemnly adopted in the
presence of God and the world.
A conscientious and high-minded, or evena
merely kind-hearted husband. will seek to
make bad better, will bear and forbear, will
be gentle and ptiful, even though he may be
sorely provoked. and will sacrifice not a few
of his own preferences and partialities for the
sake of peace and to save the good name of
his household. But it is unquestionably truo
that men of genius are too often selfish, and
labor under the halucination that this world
was created and is carried on expressly for
their benefit. If Mr. Dickens was petted BY
the public, and feted and fattered, and in
early life met with an astonishing literary
success, such fortune may have exercised
damaging effect upon his own character.
There is evidence enough, even in the collec-
ton of his letters recently published, that he
was man difficult to please and particularly
fond of having his own WY. Little traits of
his character peep out which are not alto
gether lovely. He may have been man of
the highest honor and his affections were I'M
doubtedly strong; but we suspect that no one
ever lived more resolutely bent upon having
his own way, or, we may say, his own ways,
of which he had many. He must have been
positive about little as well as about great
things. Without much stretch of language,
he may De SET uOWn as eccentr1c-Qulte as
much so, we think as his friend Mr.. Lander,
who also had domestic difficulties. If we were
writing of any man smaller than the author of
''The Tale of Two Cities" we might describe
him as fussy. He had not little of the
particularly and pertinacty which the world
reasonably or unreasonably, attributes to old
maids. He speaks IN his letters very sweetly
of those who served upon his staff, during
his reading tours, but it may be violently sus
pected that they did not have good time of
| it.
| If we consider the scandal of Mr.. Dickens
married life from these points of view, it is
easy to see why his home was not a happy
one. mrs. Dickens undoubtedly was not
woman of genius; she was a plain, honest
simple Englishwoman, with her little tempers
perhaps, and may be with other infirmities of
purpose and conduct. As the wife of her
husbands youth, as the mother of his chill
dren, she was worth caring for and carefully
conciiating. If this was utterly impossible.
there is nothing more to say; but impossible
is a strong word There is at the present
time a tendency to depreciate the marriage
relation. There are new theories about it,
some of them wicked, and some of them non
sensical. Men occupying distinguished
position. whose example is therefore likely to
be important, may well pause before they add
| the authority of their names to pleas of in