The Opelousas courier., 1884-05-03
r
Stories of the Noted EDITORS Wife
Am Eco entric Woman,

AA
W. A. Croffut, in one of his gossipy
New York letters, says: | have met a
lady this week who was Intimately &C
quaintad with the Greeley household for
twenty years.
sMrs. Greeley, she says, chad not the
knack of making a home. She was al
ways clean but never neat-never neat In
appearance, I mean-because she was al
ways washing something and always dis
heveled. | have seen her take her chill
dren without a garment on them out
into the street and pump water on them
to wash them. When | was there one
day the servant washed out an apron OF
her own and hung it out to dry. Mrs.
Greeley jumpedup I, seized carving-knife,
rushed out and cut the piece out of
the line containing the apron, and flung
it to the girl, saying, How dare you hang
your apron on the same line with my
baby's clothes?' There was neatness for
you!
"Yet when they lived on Nineteenth
street she kept three goats in the house
for the children to play with, and when
I let one of my servants go there to live
she came running back to me next day,
saying, 4 won't live there, misses, never!'
| asked what was the matter. Sure, |
have no bed at all, but must just bunk
down on the pile of hay they got for the
goats!'
"Mr. Greeley asked me one Sunday to
come around in the morning and go to
Chapin's with him. / went, and when I
got there there was a fracas going on IN
a. -az4s1,1o H. a-I hso rysfo and tho
children and the goats were all mixed up
together.
"'The question is, said Mr.. Greeley,
whether the goats shall go up Broadway
with us. Mother insists that I shan't go
to church unless I go at the head of a
procession of children and goats. That
seems more like a secular following !
believe we got off at last without them,
though Mrs. Greeley said, ''its only your
cussed pride"
"Mrs. Greeley had an antipathy for
kid gloves-she would never put them
on. I remember a bout she had with
Margaret Fuller on this subject. We all
met on the street, and instead of saying
good morning. or some such human
salutation, Mrs. Greeley touched Mar
| GdTGt y ldHu VIII d llltlC eluAACA3 ohN
said, Skin of a beast! skin of a beast!
Why, what do you wear2' inquired the
astonished maiden from Maine. Silk,
said Mrs. Greeley, reaching out her hand
Margaret just touched it and shuddered,
CRYING, "Entrails of a worm! entrails OF
a wormp
81 was once in a stage with Mrs.
Greeley going up Madison avenue, when
she suddenly pulled the strap, whisked a
tin pail out from under her shawl, and,
reaching it out to the Rev. DR.. Brett, in
the other end of the bus, to whom we
had just bowed, said, You get out,
please, and run to that bakery on the
corner and get me two cents worth Of
yeastt" Mr.. Brett laughed, but he good.
naturally got out, went to the shop ano
brought back the coveted bread-exhlla
rator, the driver waiting meantime, hi
serenity broken only by a smile.
"When Mr.. Brett returned, he handed
the little pail to Mrs. Greeley, with th'
remark that bread was evidently kneaded
to which she replied, sH-ml-old joke
'tShe was very eccentric Mrs. Creole,
was. He once told me that the day be
fore, while going down to Staten Islane
on the ferry-boat, she walked calmly "a
to a passenger who was smoking. snatchet
the cigar out of his mouth and flung i
overheard. I expected to be knocked
down on the spot that minute, said Gree
ley.
J "Before the birth of Raphael, thei
. oldest boy, she told me that she lived OF
raw rice altogether. She would take /
: L. A. L.a1f,l col ol1u, Il ~ IT oaI
grind it just like a mill, she said Whel
Raphael was taken with his last illness
a severe form of Group, DR.. Curtis, til
physician, fought 1t for days, and finall
got it to yield. Now, he will probabl
i've he said to Mrs. Greeley, if you kea
, him from taking cold. If he catche
i cold he dies. Keep him warm, keep tn
air from him, try no experiments. An
little exposure would be fatal In tw
days the mother sent for him again, an
on arriving he found the child al
choked up with a cold. What's the mai
ter with him?' he asked. My GOD
. what have you done2 Taken off
q warm wooden shirt and subst
. tuted a thin cotton onel The child wi
!. die. What did you send for me fol
why uIan you SeHu loF al uuueItdAel
Raphael died that night. She lame tie
{ him deeply. She didn't mean to hui
. him, of course, but her frenzy for clean
illness was stronger than almost any othe
9 feeling.
. "she once gave me some advice as I
how to bring up my children. Let
? see,' said ], how many children hay
your 4 have two, she said. And no
e many have you hadp Nine she ar
s swered. Then thank you,' / said, hi
! if it is all the same / think I'll bring u
: my children my way. oh, very well
she exclaimed, i didn't raise childre
for this world, but for the next
.She always called her husban
!. Greeley whether speaking to him OF
y him. He was afraid of her, but once
q o while he would peep out. / remembt
+ once we were assembled at Greeley's sa
! urday evening, Mr.. Ripley, Margar
Fuller, DR.. Curtis, / and half a doze
: others, discussing the p~racticability
associated homes. We talked of turnin
i the Gramercy Park hotel into such a on
1T won't do, said Mrs. Greeley, ever
body will be falling in love with Mr.
naming me. We'll, map said NJ
, Greeley, you'll offset that!'"
I'll a %@E