Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1893-05-20
TIE WIDOW SMITH.
What n Careful study of Brookiyn's City
Directory Reveals About Her.


Directory Reveals About Her.
The Widow Smith is a most interesting
individual She Is young aud old, placid
and irritable, rich and poor, lean and fat,
tall and short, dark and light, beau tiful
and plain, blessed with many children, des-
titute OF any, a deyout church member, a
non-chnrchgoer, devoted 70 bread ma king
and unable to cook at all. She is ford Of
dress, and she takes no heed Of her clothes.
She Is gay and sad at once, sick and well,
tired and overlooking with buoyant spirits,
wise in the learning Of the ancients and
unable TO write her name She cheTishes
the most contradictory hopes, fears, Treiu-
dices, beliefs, opinions, loves, hates, ten
denotes. She has a passion for candy and
pickles, tragedy and comedy, Booths
Hamlet and Hoyt's Tin Soldier"
The Widow Smith lives In BEod klyn.
Brooklyn Is indeed the paradise OF willows
1t would be an interesting subject f3r in
vestigation why the City Of Churches
should be so fatal apparently, to married
men. Or Is IL that its quieter streets form
calm eddies In the rushing currents Of
metropolitan life unto which those ship
wrecked OF hope steer their shattered
barks for sheltered sailing on narrower
waters, or for peaceful anchorage, await
ing The final dissolutionf Brooklyn is an
immense harbor full Of such disabled yes
sells.
Some OF these barks bend new Sails tn
their masts, and make brave shift against
the winds aud tides. Brooklyn widows
are found, to drop the metaphor, earning
their bread at dressmakiug. millinery aud
minor arts and crafts OF thousand de-
S.rinftana Tha.. .l.,.. a
cry stores. they sell hardware, two of them
are undertakers and one runs "A fish mar.
ket. They peddle milk and fruit and but
ter about the streets, they preserve fruits
and experiment with home bakeries They
engage In large ventures once in d while
One OF them carried on for year. an i'm
portant dry goods business. and retired
with an ample fortune "A couple OF seasons
ago Her masculine successor, who tried
TO improve upon her methods on the sam,
site, became bankrupt with tonishinp
promptitude. 1t II widow who runs
over masculine name, well known
mems clothing store.
The Widow Smith-who though lost II
Reneralities must not be forgotten rs able
to cherish such variety OF tastes and ex
hibit such Inconsistencies of character be
cause there are i6s Of her, without count
ing the young widows Smith who liv,
at home with their parents and sd are un
known to the directory, and witho ht max
( ing reckoning either Of the Smyth, Smythe
| Smitt, Smits. Smidh, Smeitz. Smih, Smet
/ Schmitz, Semitic, Schmitt, Schmits
4 Schmit, Schmidts, Schmidt and Schmit
widows, who form of themselves "a larg'
and influential element in the community
| 1t is interesting to note the names born,
/ by the Widows Smith. Thirty OF her ar,
I known as Mary Smith, thirteen as Cath
/ crime. twelve as Elizabeth, ten ais Sarah
/ six as Eliza, FIVE each IA Ann, Annie, Mar
/ garet and Susan. There are four Bridgets
three Emilys, three Lonisas, thres Helens
three Marias and two each who are Gale,
| Abbie, Alice, Amelia, Anna, Anne, Caro-
7 line, Carrie, Ellen Emeine, Josephine
4 Julia. Martha, Minnie, Rebecca and Rose
| There Is only one Widow Adelial Adeline
l Annette, Barbara. Charlotte, Chary, Chris
I tiana, Deborah, Della, Dora, Fila. lIar
riett, Harriette. Hattie, Kate. l.lura, Let
/ tie. Lizzie, Lucretia, Lydia, Mhrgarette
| Marie, Rosanns, Selma, Jane, Sinia, So
| ply. Veronica, Susanna and Villa Smith
/ New York Recorder