The Indianapolis journal., 1896-07-05
NOTED WOMAN'S TRIALS
INCIDENTS IN THE FRUITFUL LIFE
OF HARRIET BEECHER STOWE.
Forced to support Family of Six
tracts from Numerous Letters.

Several biogra phies of the late Harriet
Beecher Stowe have been written. but the
one compiled by her son from letters and
journals is probably OF greatest interest.
Alton Brown. a contributor to the New
York Star Ca newspaper that passed out
OF existence several years ago), in review
ing the sons book, said:
One takes up the book with curiosity 1t
contains portraits of the various members
bof the family. pictures OF the old home
stead and other Beecher residences. The
WOfk Is not quite as thrilling as a romance.
but IL contains much interesting matter
and IL is crammed with facts and figures.
Let us see what we can find in it that re-
vealS more or less Of the character and
culture of the chief parsonage
Born in 1870 the little Harriet lost her
nother at the age OF four. and was trained
in the way she should go by her vigorous
aunt Harriet, woman OF Anglican SYM
pathies, who taught her that little girls
Yes. Yes ma'am. rlT and ..Ne' ma'am sGy ang sng
never tear their clothes. also TO sew, knit
go TO church on Sunday and come home
| liSent and intelligent little girl, learned to
/ read at FIVE. and committed TO memory
twenty-seven hymns and two cha apters in
| the Bible. We find her occasionally in the
| garrett Here she hunted through old bar
rels of sermons. and by chance at the
| bottom of one OF these receptacles. found
''The Arabian Nights and her fortune
was made. She had discovered a wellspring
/ OF JOY all her own says the bographer.
4 OOlnellIneS Snc entered ner rather 8 library
and stood in solemn awe. spelling over in
| black letters such titles as Bells Ser
mons, Topladv on Predestination. "Bos-
| tons Fourfold State of Man" Laws Sc
rious Call etc. but Cotton Mather's
| Magnolia" full Of real New England sto-
ries: was a mine of wealth to her.
| At the age of twelve she comes out az
= prodigy can the immortality of the soul
be proved from the light of nature?" is the
question 10 tb the so chd % to her aud
And then and there such a sermon was
| preached upon this sublime theme that the
| gratified father declared il was the proud
est moment Of his life. The sun of the
| Gospel" the little girl declares in this dis
| course. has dispelled the darkness that
/ has rested on objects beyond the tomb"
| Her child life ends here She was sent TO
| boarding school the next year.
HER SCHOOL DAYS.
The school in Hartford to which she was
sent kept by her sister Catherine
| Harriet found the girls reading Virgil. and
taking her place among them she straight
| way translated Ovid and began an original
classic drama. in which Cleon, a noble
| Greek residing at the court of Nero. comes
to a knowledge of Christianity. In listen
| ing TO a sermon one Sabbath the words
Come. then. trust your soul 10 this faith
full friend Jesus" moved her so much that.
returning home. her soul was illumined."
| she writes and that night she
announced her conversion thus:
Il have given myself to Jesus
She had some trouble with the doc
/ tors before she was taken into the church.
| You realize. 1 trust. the deceitfulness of
your heart. and that in punishment for your
| sins God might justly leave you TO make
| yourself as miserable you have made
| yourself sinful?''
'Ye-e-e-s. sir stammered the young con-
| vert.
Here is something charming from one of
| her letters written at this time II is not
only charming; II is vital. for il contains
/ the capital point to be noted by all who
would understand the "wellspring" of her
| life. the handspring of her character
| Horoe non numero nisi serenoe.' have
| come to firm resolution to count no hours
| but unclouded ones. / try TO cultivate a
| spirit of kindness toward everybody In
| stead of shrinking into corner to observe
| how other people behave. / hold out my
| hand right and left. form acquaintances
The greater part cannot move me
| deeply. but those that I love-that / love
! Oh. how much that word means. =
| Well. there is a heaven-a heaven. a world
| of love; and love- after all. is the life blood
| the existence. the all In all of the mind" :"
This is the key to her whole life" SAYS
Cabin and the Ministers Tooing'' could
never have been written except by one to
| whom love was the life blood of existence -
| The Beecher girls. Catherine and Harriet.
| started school in Cincinnati. I'VE mean
10 turn over the West" she writes. by
| means of model schools in this. its chief
| city" We find her now hearing a little
| class of girls recite and telling them a
| fairy story, which she spun out at it went
along. She suffers from ill-health
Thought. intense. emotional thought. has
| been nv disease" she writes. She reads
| "Corinne" and writes of Nine. de Stael in a
paragraph which shows the difference be-
| tween French character and American
| character. between European feeling and
Puritan feeling. in q most striking way:
But. in America feelings. vehement and
:. : deep. morbid and impassioned by
| the constant habits of self-government
| Cd hoy b,1rD
| inward till they burn the very soul. leaving
| only dust and ashes The intensity
subject has withered and exhausted it.
All that is enthusiastic. all that is
impassioned in admiration of nature. of
| writing. of character devotion
affection. | have felt with vehement
and absorbing intensity-felt till my mind
| is exhausted and seems shrinking into
deadness.'
HER EMOTIONS AT NIAGARA
We see here gathered the dark and pow
erful clouds of color with which the future
author is to paint such scenes as Eliza
crossing on the ice. the death of Eva the
| fiogging of Uncle Tom and that narrowed
| mother in The Minister'S Wooing" Har-
riet Beecher must at this time. if we judge
by her portrait have been a lovely girl
with a most wonderfully emotional mouth.
She visits Niagara i'm 1884. II seemed to her
like 1.-The great white throne with a rain
! bow around it," 1t is loveier than IL is
great; il is like the mind that made it
great but so veiled in beauty that we gaze
| without terror. 1 felt as if i could have
gone over with the water: it would be so
beautiful death-there would be no fear in
| it, L felt the rock tremble under me with
a sort OF JOY. 1 was SO maddened that
could have gone too. If il had gone"
She - married TO Prof. Calvin r. Stowe.
a widower. in 1S;5 Though this overwhelm-
ing crisis has come. and Harriet Beecher
changes to nobody knows VINO" she says
she feels nothing at all" Was her heart
in "Corinne' and in Niagara? Marriage is
wornan's whole existence if she is but a
woman, but Mrs. Stowe was a great artist
as well.
Prof. Calvin L. Stowe takes an interest
In popular education. Mrs. Stowe shortly
becomes a mother. Twin daughters are
born. Professor Stowe goes to Europe and
returns. Mrs. Stowe gives birth to third
child and now writes domestic letters about
sweeping and busting. and dressing the ha :
and pork The baby wakes. the mother
soliloduizeS: Now. ! must not forget 10
tell Mr. Stowe about the starch and dried
apples. l wonder if Nina has soap enough
there were two bars left Saturday" She
tries to make gingerbread and be literary
at the same time. and cooking. writing.
nursing and laughing go on together We
hear also of slavery riots and of the help
ing of fugitive slave in this chapter.
There is a famine in Cincinnati. Pork is
: cents n pound and -four 81 barrel An
other is born in 1S40 The mother Strus-
giles. trying 10 do literary work. The days
are DARK and dreary. Typhoid fever RACES
Her brother. George Bescher. dies.