Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-02-02
CHAPTER XIV.


Jonathan Is the cousin german Of John
Bull, but yet not 80 German as ono might
imagine, for, II Germany supplies America
with two or threo hundred thousand immi-
grants yearly, these Germans do not German
izo America; on tho contrary, they them.
selves become Americanizcd, thanks to that
faculty Of assimilation which they. y.Ipossess IN
such o high degree
Ono strong proof Of this Is the way In
which women are treated from ono end Of
tho United States TO tho other. And hero
may say that In this matter Jonathan sets
John Bull an example which tho Inter would
do well to profit by.
Whilst English justice gives merely ono or
two months imprisonment ito tho man who
is found guilty Of having almost kicked his
wife to death, an American town Is In arms
mt the mere rumor Of man having NAL.
treated woman.
Sometimes tho chnstisemcnt takes q comic
form There arc fow distractions In the lit
Ito American towns, and native humor lnds
an outlet in strange fashions A mnn who
Ill treats his wife, or forsakes her for another
woman, Is often tarred and featbercd. The
operation Is curious and satisfies tho ven
gcance Of tho populace, while procuring them
an hours amusement
Tho delinquent is led, sometimes to tho
sound Of music, to q retired spot There he
is stripped to the skin and coated over with
tar from bead to foot This done, he Is
rolled ii feathers, which OF course stick to
him and give him tho appearance Of an i'm
mcnse ugly duckling. To givo a finishing to
tho operation, his clothes are sometimes car
ried of, and the mob wish him good luck.
This chastisement Is often applied to
woman whose conduct Is known to be i'm
moral In such cases I need not say II Is tho
women who operate on tho culprit They
want their husbands and sons to DO able to
get about without danger, and they tako
upon themselves the task Of keeping the moral
atmosphere Of tho neighborhood healthy.
The idea appears primitive, but morality
thrives by 1t.
The suscsptihilties Of American women ero
sometimes very easily wounded.
A paper having announced mnns death
under the heading: "John X. gone to bet
ter homo," tho widow brought an action Of
libel against tho editor.
\, The further west one goes the more appar.
cnt becomes the power Of tho women; tho
further west one goes tho rarer does woman
get Is this the rcasonl
To every American hotel there Is ladies'
entrance, This Is to prevent contamination
from the possible contact OF man. When it
rains or SHOWS an awning Is thrown out over
the pavement but ! dare say permanent
triumphal arch win ultimately be demanded
by the ladies'
Here Is littlo story which would supply
very good subject to tho novelist or the
dramatist.
Idaho territory lies very far west indeed,
and there Is all alarming scarcity Of women
there This has been curiously illustrated Of
late in the town OF Wagon Wheel
Recently two young ladies Travelled to that
remote region to attend to their dying
brother. The poor fellow did not long re-
quire their services, and Immediately after his
death the sisters prepared to return home.
Before, however. they could get away, nearly
tho whole population Of tho town-headed by
tho mayor and other high ofIlcials-wors
making matrimonial overtures 10 them Feel.
! ing ran very high during five or six anxious
4 days, and the mayors chances, despite his
mature years, ruled the betting at six to one
At the end OF the week both young ladies had
capitulatod, and were duly engaged. Tho
mayor WIS, however. cut out by handsome
young miner The wedding day was fixed,
moned upon the scena Hero troubles began
She duly arrived, but was hotly indignant
with her daughters for tho scant respect
which they had manifested toward their
brothers. memory by such indecent
haste to wed. The girls explained that
they had literally been besieged, and had
yielded TO the oyerw helming force Of circum-
stances. As usual, explanations increased
tho o!fense, and the mother vowed that
neither OF them should DO married out there
Mt all-that in fact, the engagements were
"of, T" and that they must be OF too The
cup of felicity was thus rudely dashed from
the lips of the two accepted men, and they
made haste TO tell their sorrows to tho town.
An Indignation meeting was held, and the
mayor appointed a committee to wait
upon the irate matron in order to ask
her TO reconsider her resolution. The
mayor, with rare maSnanimity, consider
ing tho cruel blow his own hopes had
Just received, placed himself at the
head Of the deputation and in tho name Of
patriotism implored the good lady to gran,
the petition, which he ardently urged She
however, stood firmly on her parental rights
and declared that she would not leave the
town without her two daughters Then tn,
genius Of the mayor shone forth like the sun
and proved equal to the occasion He blandl,
proposed acompromise Why need she leave
at alll He drew her attention-of course il
most delicate terms-to the fact that she wa.
fair, plump, and fifty odd, and that similar
language might be taken Us descriptive o
himself There and then be offered her hi
hand and heart, and the young ladies tint
father and protector.
That settled the matter, and three mar
riages took place with a great flourish o.
trumpets at Wagon Wheel
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