St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1884-02-07
A Vermont Farmers Wife.

.bHe WHoie IlcOpie.
A Vermont Farmers Wife.
We know refined, intelligent won.
an, living among the green hills q
Vermont, whose life is typical of hund
reds in that vicinity and scores scat
tered throughout the far west She
arises at five o'clock in the morning
chops wood, draws water, makes fires
prepares the meals for five stalwart
''hired men," besides doing the family
washing, ironing, scrubbing, churning
preserving. picking, mending and
knitting. She beheads the chickens,
feeds the hens and calves, and is oc-
casiOnally called upon to accelerate the
departure of pigs to that bourne from
which no pig ever returns. Her work
is never done. She fries dOughnuts al
ten o'clock at night, and begins life on
pie the next morning. Her only dissi-
pations are prayer-meetings funerals
and huckleberrying, varied by winter
kettle-drlIms where the guests sew
carpet rags, refreshed with cider, for
feits and kisses. Her literature is lin
tied to Bunyan's Pilgrims Progress,
Josiah Aliens Wife, and the Zion's
Herald. Her music to fountain filled
with blood, dismal sounds from the
tomb and Invitations to anxious seats
Her pictures to ii plump prodigal son,
Il perpetual Samuel, furious Cain, an
amiable George Washington, Napoleon
on his death bed at St. Helena, a
weeping willow and widow in "a grave
yard of hair, and few glistening tin
types of freshly engaged couples, who
with hands clasped, hair oiled, and
imitation watch chains spread out to
"show," stare rigidly into u future the
counterpart of her own. Her brlc-a :
brac consists of wax work, daguerreO-
types, plaster dogs with green noses,
yellow baskets, aud crushed straw berry
tails. and shell box containing re-
ward of merit cards, the pathetic re-
membranes of her vanished childish
years-the only recognition of hel
goodness that the poor little woman
ever had. Her dress is calico all the
year round, for week days, and black
| alpaca for Sundays. Her windows are
covered with green paper shades, and
the parlor floor with the envy and awe
of the neighborhood, a tapestry carpet
overfiowiug with red and pink atroci-
ties i'll yellow horns of plenty.
She is IA woman after Rev. Morgan
! DiX's own heart. She stays at home
The glorious pictures of majesti,
mountains, the flashing cascades, the
leafy woods, the splendor of blue skies,
and soft white clouds, and sweet.
smelling daisy fields are not for her
except in tantalizing glimpses which
only increase the thirst of her thirsting
soul. She has no time to receive the
sense of power and peace that comes
| from those stately mountains; no time
| to revel i'll the exquisite beauty O
| those waterfall no time to lie on the
| grass and watch the softly sailing
clouds, or trace the truthful symbol:
and discover the wOndrous revelation:
that nature gives to those who love
! and understand her.
Yet this wOman's husband has made
little fortune of S30,000 from lumber
which is considered something colossal
in those regions where wants are few
and pleasures circumscribed. She has
been brought up to believe that he
was created IL superior being. So ha.
he. He is coarse, red haired, freckled
pious, penuriOus and asthmatic. lie
has had IL change of heart and ont
| change of "meetin' clothes," in whicl
he looks more hideous than he does il
his overalls. His chief satisfaction i,
to chew tobacco, talk in class-meetin!
and to get Il bargain. He never owe
Il penny and never gives one. He cal
pray and he thinks he can sing. L
takes him thirty minutes every nigh
and fifteen minutes every morning tt
tell the Lord of several mistakes in th'
universe, and to ask few mild favOrS
One is to wreak "etarnal' vengeance
on the wicked by plunging them into
everlasting fire and another is a re
quest for ''pOwer to wrastle with til,
stranger soiarning within his gates !
and notwithstanding her promptly
paid board bills, to bring her to ;
sense of her own vile nature and har
dened heart, created bad in the frs
place, only to be purified and saved 10y
the acceptance of this mans peculia
| theological beliefs. After singing, ex
horting and Wheeling, he takes t.
| snoring with an equal spirit and energ,
that makes him audible all through
the night, and the sinner within hi
gates to look for new boarding plac
next morning. 1t does not occur t.
him to use his money to make his wifi
and their lives any happier; or that h
can afford to bring Il couple of strOn;
servants into the house to perform TIL
me!.ial work of himself and his hiret
men. He means we'll. This superio
+ being does not know any better. Th
circumstances of his narrow life AM
the inheritance of narrow nature, ar
accountable for his blind ignorance.
, One day his wife returned from til
village. after selling ninety cent,
worth of eggs, produced by her owl
hens She timidly asked if she cOul
keep the proceeds. He generousl
handed her fifteen cents, and pockete,
) the rest, with the grumble, "Wimmi
folks is alters spendin'." He did no
realize the meanness of his act, bu
when we saw it, a line of TennysOn'
, seemed to spring suddenly into the al
} and enwreathe him i'll living word
that said ''half his little soul is dirt.
! But he does not know that, and neye
f will-in this life. He cannot read tn
F pitiful story stamped upon his wife
careworn face, with its habitual eX
/ preston of unconscious self-abnegatio
aud meek resignation. They neve
) have any pleasant walks, talks, joke
read any books or have friendly CON
) panionship together. He never give
A her ice-cream, anniversary presents
t unexpected praise, flowers or kisse
t When she dies she may have a tiOwt