The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-06-16

grew upon uer anu ran through many NUM-
bers, being published as fast as written. Peo-
pie wrote 10 her and called upon her. Fred
rika Bremen was visiting America at the
time and came to see her. Whittier and
John Howard Payne visited her also, and
many others of like ilk Henry ]. Raymond
published the story in the Harper's series of
standard novels, 1t was widely copied, and
the poor tired mother had at last no need to
teach school for a living.
There is a serpent in every Eden, however,
and this L. d. E. N. had its serpent also, in
the shape Of silly story sent to the Phla-
delphia Press some time since that has NOR
titled the lady no little. The correspondent
wrote that he was standing with Mr.. Shil-
lngton at the door of that gentlemau's book
store one day when TALL gaunt dark woman
dressed in deep mourning, and wearing the
mourning in her face also, passed by. Mr..
S, asked dramatically, do you know who
that is?'' The correspondent acknowledged
his ignorance, and was told that it was Mrs.
Southworth; when the bookseller continued
by offering to tell him the history of'"Retri-
button"
About thirty-five years ago." he said "a
tall, dark woman in black used to come into
my store to read. One day she pulled a
voluminous Ms from under her cloak and
asked me to send it to the Baltimore Sun to
be published. Only think of it!'' interpo-
lated Mrs. Southworth, as she told me the
The Sun, above all others, that never pub
lished Stories and this obscure bookseller for
an adviser" He did not send it to the Sun
according to the story in the Press, but
showed it to Drs. Snodgrass and Bailey and
they three revised it, for it was crude and
ngrammatical-"and l a teacher in the
Capita, City grammar SCHOOL, said the lady
with smile of disgust, land l never had a
half dozen chapters of that story in my
hands at once. ., it was every word false.
Make that emphatic" she said when prom
ised at her request to refute the SANDER The
tall, dark, gaunt woman was about as much
off as the bad grammar, too, for Mrs. South
worth is below medium and blonde, her
light brown hair, after the fashion OF that
color, almost untouched by time, and ar
ranged in plain satiny bands, sunny blue
eyes, and a sweetly pretty face, even yet
nothing gaunt certainly.
During our conversation I thanked Mrs
Southworth for the happy ending to the
Deserted Wife" and told her if she had
ended it in tragedy it would have ended
me, for it almost killed me to read it. She
said | was near my end, then, for she began
it intending it to be tragic which, in fact, it
should have been to have been artistic, for
such a woman as Hagar should never have
survived the desertion of her husband; but
her publisher insisted on the happier termi-
nation even at the expense OF art. He said
he witnessed the play of Romeo and Juliet"
once, and when it came to the narrowing
death scene, he would have liked it far better
if they had brought stomach-pump on the
stage and saved the lovers. 1T would not
have been quite so poetical, but so much
less distressing that the play would be i'm
proved, nevertheless" he declared.
During the Garfield campaign Mrs. South
worth was deeply interested, and worked
among the ladies of Yonkers quite an enthu-
siasm, her own kindled by her friendship for
the General, as much as the political princi-
Piles involved In the midst of it all, she read
in the papers that rebel flag had been hoisted
on Prospect Cottage grounds. She tele-
graphed for the truth of it. and finding that
some poor ignorant fellow, who lived in a
house at the foot of the hill. had 1t on his
house, she telegraphed back to her family to
get the very biggest and best Union flag to
be found; adding, land let it float from the
top of my house, day and night, till after
the I'd of November" Her orders were
obeyed, and the rebels, who are as thick as
hops in her immediate vicinity, had an in
spring sight the rest of that campaign,
MOUsEIN-THECo CORNER.