Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1880-06-11
A DEVOTED WIFE.
A TOuchiug story or q Noble and
AHeetiOuate slciIlan woman.

AneettOuato sictlian W0tnans
Occasionally We hear Of men 90 wick.
cd and abandoned that they have lost
faith in woman and no longer believe
that the accident Of sex entities her TO
immense and invariabls respect. These
are the depraved wretches who hint
that woman 10 sometimes frivolous and
tickle, that she does not in all circum-
stances tell the truth, and that she
loves the bonnet which perishes with
the using more than all the treasures
Of wisdom. II there really is any man
so utterly bad as TO entertain these
views, let. him read the touching story
of the devotion Of brave Sisilian wife
to her unfortunate husbsrrS.
About a moath ago, signor Carlo
Malehehih!, rich proprietor, residing
In Palermo, was captured by brigands.
He had gone few miles outside of the
city walls TO inspect an olive grove
which he had some thoughts Of buying,
and having fallen into an ambush, was
carried by his captors intO the noun
] taips and held for ransom. Signor
Malenchini had been married rather
less than year, and his wife was not
only one Of the most beautiful women
Of Palermo, but she was, at a moderate
estimate, three times as good as she was
beautiful. She loved her husband de-
voutly; and no matter how late he
might be detained at the Office or the
lodge, or how often he was obliged to
attend dinners given by the New Eng
land Society or the Evangelical Alliance,
or other respectable bodies, she always
sat up for him, and give him smiling
welcome.
She never firted and, in fact, never
did any thing to which the sternest cri-
tic could take exception, and opinion
unanimously pronounced her model
wife. When this young, beautiful, and
tender creature received a letter from
the brigand chief demanding ransom
Of $4,000 for her husband, her suffer
ing may be imagined. The brigands
gave her week in which to raise and
forward to them the ransom, and an
nounced that at the end of the week,
in case of the nOn-arrival of the money
they would begin to mutilate her hus
band. They promised to cut off his
ears on Monday, his nose on Tuesday,
and his lips on Wednesday. On Thurs
day they undertook to put out his eyes,
and on Friday to finish the job by cut.
ting off his head. Most women, on re-
csiving such an atrocious letter would
have had fit of Mysteries at once, but
the Signora Melenchini was incapable
of such weakness, and, without a min
ute's delay, she began to raise the sum
necessary to secure her husbands
safety.
The sale of all his personal effects
brought only $4,000, and it became
necessary for her to appeal to the char
ity OF her friends and the public. For
more than week that noble woman
spent the whole day in visiting every
man in Palermo who was supposed to
have any ready money. She rehearsed
a thousand times the story of her hus-
bands goodness and his misfortune.
She averred she would die II anything
happened to him, and if she could not
raise the necessary ransom, she would
60 herself to the brigands and demand
to uhare her husbands fate. This deli
cate woman climbed, on an average,
seventy three flights ofstairs daily, and
presented her case 10 hundred and
twenty or thirty different persons
every day. No book agent ever rival
ed her in the extent OF her labors, and
her unselfsh recklessness OF shoe leath
er has never been surpassed.
Palermo is not rich city, and IS, 900
seemed to the Palermitans an enormous
sum. Few men were able TO Withstand
the noble wifs's entreaties and tears,
and almost every one to whom she ap-
pealed gave her something, ii it was
only franc. The money. however,
came in slowly, and when the week of
grace came to an end, Signora Malen-
chini had collected only little over
$4,000. Promptly on Monday the city
express wagon bought the ears Of Sig.
nor Mslenchini to his Mortified wife's
door. The miserable woman was al
most in despair, but she took the ears
with her and exhibited them to the
persons on whom she called-nOt, Of
course, for publication, but as an evil
dence Of good faith. Thus stimulated,
the charity of Palermo revived, and
the good wits secured in a. single day
nearly $500. The brigands kept their
barbarous promise.
Day after day fresh samples of the
unhappy Melenchini arrived in Paler
mo, and were duly delivered to the
agonized wife. Day after day she
dragged her weary limbs from house to
house, begging for money to save at
least her husbands life. At a late
hour on Thursday evening she obtained ,
her last dollar, and went to her desc
late home with the full sum of $40, 900
in her pocket. She was, indeed, too
late to save the majority of her hus-
bands organs. His ears, nose, lips
and eyes were gone, but there was yet
time for the loving wife TO save his
b cad and to bring him back to her de-
voted arms. Bat she was wise as well
as loving, and she made up her mind
that it was wrong to encourage brig
andage. She said to her mother, who
had shared her anxieties in collecting
the ransom us my husband in his
present state worth $4,000?
Had not better refuse to take him
IN the ground that he is so extensively
damaged? With the money now in my
possession l can get handsome trous
seau and Q whole husband. Is not
This my plain duty?" Her mother I'M
besitatiugly said it was, and signora
after notifying the brigands
hat on the whole she mus. decline to
accept the remnant of husband still in
heir possession, ordered mass 10 be