Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1890-01-02
MRS. sHARp's SORROW.
sne Tci,s of Her Long, Happy Ii


sne Tci.s of Her Long, Happy Life
wits the convicted Man.
Only twice d,s;ug recent years, says The
Ma. York World, has favor been shown TO
prisoner =, ludlow street jail to the extent
Of allowing G mans VIE 70 share his imprlson.
ment. Both OF these exceptions were Ia Do.
table cases. The fret was when gay, hsna.
some, fashionable Mrs. Ferdinard Ward re.
msined with her husband to nurse hii.
through the Illness which overlook him there,
The second case Is that at present before our
eyes-the frail, loving old wife of Jacob Sharp
sharing his confinement.
To one upon whom such burden has never
come, the presence Of Mrs. Sharp In the coun-
~ jail with her convicted husband seems only
most natural and easy thing, but It is prov
Ing TO her burden almost greater than she
can bear. Mrs. sharp remains beside her hus.
band every highland all nlght-sittlng by
bis bedside, eagerly anticipating his every
wish.
'God gave me my dear husband" she says
to all who try to comfort her. land he has
Given us great happiness together trust
Him.
Mrs Sharp Is Q delicate woman. digniied
and charming for one who must certainly be
nearly 20 years old. When a woman and .
stranger sent in card on Wednesday morn
Ing word came back at once: MRS. Sharp
1oes not remember the name, but she will be
glad to receive you" And when the visitor
entered the cheerful breskfast-room that looks
put upon the courtyard in the center Of the
jail Mrs. Sharp stood with hand outstretchcd
TO woman she never saw before.
what can do for you, my childr she
Iaid.
There was no smile on the delicate, pale
lace, and the voice was weak and almost bro
ken, but the look as we'll as the tone was that
)f gentle woman whose frat thought even
in her trouble, and that she could "bc OF use"
10 someone elese. The unconventional speech
made the conversation that would SO easily
have been strained natural aud free. Mrs.
sharp very soon spoke OF her dear husband"
IS she always calls him, in the tenderest and
most unaffected way. At the same time she
poke feellngly Of the burden that they have
been carrying together and which has seemed
20 unnecessarily severe. They are killing us
both," she said psssionately. "We are old
people now, and every stroke tells upon u.s."
Mrs. Sharp speaks of herself in this way, as IL
she were very near the end OF the days she
might expect to be granted her, but one sec
ng her for the first time would think OF her as
being ''old." Indeed, a man who has seen
her number Of times about the jail spoke OF
her as being about ~ or 80 years Of age. Her
hair Is quite gray now, and Is worn In soft
waves about her face Her eyes are gray and
:lear, real womanly eyes. Her nose Is straight
and fine, and the whole type of the face is, as
near as II NAV be expressed, that which is al
LnIA 80
England lady," Not the strong, determined
New England woman's face, but the quiet re-
lined, somewhat pensiyc cOuntenancc that fol-
,ows years Of repression, thoughtfuluess and
.are. In height Mrs Sharp is about five feet
Two or three, and IN figure neither generous
T sight In short, taking all in al, the wife
IF this man, whose name Is on every tongue, Is
Just the woman whom his disgrace most cruel
.ly hurts, but whose love will outlast 1t all.
Dgnifed, sympathetic, loving and Christian
woman, II is small wonder that the bond be.
tween them should be SO close. How close
his bond has been Mrs Sharps own words
tell best. Speaking of their happy life to.
gether, she said:
I'VE have been so happy, my dear husband
and l. He has been everything TO me that a
woman could ask or desire. My every wish,
my slightest fancy, 1t has always been his
forward 90 to next year Fifty years We
should have been married the 23d Of next
March.
"'Should have BEEN Mrs. Sharpr
Eyes, yes, should have becnr 1t Is killing
my dear husband before my eyes, this terrible
trouble, and know II anything should hap
pen to him should soon 20, too. We have
been happy too long for one to be content
without the other now"
"But surely, you do not feel so seriously
alarmed about Mr.. Sharp's condition. He Is
not worsef'
Not worse perhaps in one way, but he Is so
weak. No one but myself and his physicians
know how weak. He has been so brave about
Il, SO almost foolish brave. 1t has seemed
sometimes to me as II be did not realize what
t meant; he has been so strict about allowing
anything to be done that could possibly be
construed into desire for effect. He has not
allowed me to 20 to the courtroom for fear
partly Of the effect 1t would have on me and
partly for fear II would seem like trying 10
create sympathy. He has sat bolt upright in
bis seat for hours when he was positively unfit
10 be out of his bed, and he has been rs cherry
and as helpful to Inc as he could be. Not even
10 me has he complained Of the unnecessary
things that have been done to make the dis
grace more deep and Infamous"
Even while she talked Mrs. Sharp kept glanc-
Ing anXiously at the room wherein her husband
vas yainly trying to get little rest As she
finished speaking the trim young woman, who
had been laying the table, motioned to her,
~
Il It were relief to her to speak and speak
freely.
"Oh, II they only knew him as know him."
she continued. ~ have been his wife for
nearly fifty years and have been his confiden-
tial friend as well, but l have never known
him even to think OF doing anything that was
not honorable. Even In the most trivial things
he has believed that what he has said he would
DO, he must do, and that he would not say he
Eould do anything that was not right. He has
been honor itself, He has practiced always
what he preached, and he has tried to bring up
ais children to believe and act as he does"
Before 90, Mrs. Sharp" said the visitor,
WARMLY, "Is there ANYTHING that or anyone
.lse could do for youi'
So "Nothing-nothing, thank you for coming,
II has been q comfort to me. They have been
very considerable and kind to US here, but 1t Is
horrible substitute for our home. No; there
ire only two helps for my husband and myself
cow. One is the lifting Of this terrible black
cloud and the other is-death for us both"