The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-10-28
STRANGER THAN FICTION.
AUTHENTICATED STORY OF A SIN
GUAR WOMAN'S LIFE.
FOrty-three Hes=s Ia Mems Clothes.
Catherine COOmbes, III-treated by
Her Husband, Earned Her Living
a Painter For Over Twenty
Years Her Niece Was Her 'Nife."

Years Her Niece Was Her ''Wife."
From the London Telegraph.
The very brief account which has al
Coombes, who for the past forty-three
years has dressed and worked as man,
gives but the barest outline of, a career
that will surely take rank with the two
or three historic examples of those of the
sex who have served in the army and
navy without their secret becoming
known. But the story, even in it's bald
est form, was remarkable enough to be
interesting to any woman. and it was in
the hope of cleaning some further partic-
ulars from the lips of the heroine herself
that wended my way re-
Gently to the West Ham workhouse. in
which the erstwhile Charlie Wilson"
has been unfortunately reduced to seek
a temporary shelter. The matron, to
whom, of course, had to explain the OBJ
ject of my quest, was only too ready to
assist it. for, as she alphabetically re-
marked, the more that could be known
of the case the better would be the
chance of securing some practical assist
ance for a woman who has fought her
own battle unaided, in her own way,
through life; and she kindly said she would
bring Mrs. Coombes to her own room,
where she could talk more freely than
in the woman's day wards.
Dressed in the simple uniform of the
West Ham Union of blue linen, with white
apron, and cap upon her short iron-gray
hair, Mrs. Coombes entered briskly and
alertly, and would certainly not have been
set down as over IS. She is by no means
tall, and in her masculine garb must have
appeared both short and slight. Her
voice sounded unusually deep for a wo>
man, but, as she explained in subsequent
conversation, she had cultivated its low
est registers till she had come to use them
habitually; and she also expresses her.
self with a terseness and vigor not quite
enthusiastically feminine. . She was not
disposed, at first, to speak fully of her
life, saying, modestly, that to some il
might not seem d very edifying one; but
by degrees, and with the help of lead
ing question or two, she unfolded her ex-
traordnary history, and as she talked IL
became evident that she had enjoyed con-
siderable educational advantages. To her
possession, in fact, of these is due the
unhappy beginning of her life. AS she
Somersetshire, of comfortably I, circum-
stanced parents. who sent her to the Chel-
tenham Ladies' College, which. half a
century ago held, as it does to-day, a
leading place among girls schools, and
while there she was far better taught
than were the majority of girls at that
time. 1t has been stated that her husband
was a curate. but that Is not the case.
He was a schoolmaster. and a cousin OF
her own, considerably her senior. Think
ing that her knowledge would be of as.
sistance to him in teaching, he pressed
for a very early marriage, which proved
a disastrously unhappy one, until his eff
forts to live upon her parents and his per-
sonai violence to her compelled her not
only to leave him, but to take steps to pre-
vent his ever finding her again.
Then it was that the problem of exist
ence presented itself to her in Its plainest
form. There was not the openings for
women" fve-and-forty years ago that
there are to-day. and, to put it in her own
words she saw that the choice lay be-
tween a mans clothes and labor and des-
titutlon. She elected the former, and but
for an accident would probably have car
ried her secret to her deathbed. She sue
ceeded in effecting an outward transfer
nation in humble lodgings at Birming-
ham coffee house Her next step was to
find work. and she started as learner in
the house painting trade at As. a week.
Her aptitude soon showed itself, and after
three weeks this modest remuneration
was raised, until in few months she was
able to earn "a living wage" In the ear
lier days of her career she worked a great
deal in Yorkshire, and bore her part in the
internal decorations of many Of the finest
mansions of the landed and titled people
there. l interrupted her narrative to ask
if she had never felt afraid in these times
sv,,. -, ooh
that would betray her to her mates"
and her answer showed how well
she turned the power of observation to ac-
count. 81 knew l must never lapse into
carelessness," she said, land how little it
would take to give me away, from very
small episode We had had our luncheon
while we were decorating a fine house.
and the gardener, thinking 10 give us a
treat, brought In a basket of choice APP
pies He was In hurry, however, and to
those at the further end of the hall he
threw the apples sand a young boy, sitting
down, who, l suppose, had been in the hab-
it of wearing an apron at his work, eX-
tended his knees apart to make a lap IN
which to catch the fruit There was am
old Yorksh hire foreman close beside him,
who at once laughed at the boy and said
'Yon lads learnt how t. wenches play I
had played cricket, so knew how to catch
mine but 1 did not forget the lesson.
Charley Wilson" went twice to Paris on
special jobs for his" employers, and had
an exceedingly good offer on one occasion
to go to America.
Perhaps the most remarkable fact of
this womans business capabilities was
her employment for over thirteen years
by the Peninsular and Oriental Company.
1t is that. with the exception of the last
two or three ships built, there is not
vessel in that stately fleet which cannot
show her handiwork. She had a large
share in the redecoration of the saloon of
the Rome after the big alterations that
were made in her huh for her improve
ment The ornamentation of the music
saloons of the Victoria, the Oceana, and
the Arcadia, which are especially elabor-
ate and rich, was almost entirely carried
out by her in enameling and this, 1t should
be added. is rather a distinct branch of
the painters craft, for, as she says, "a
ships painter may paint a house, but
a mere house painter can't paint ship"
During her engagement with the firm who
did this work for the company, and sub
sequently when the Peninsular and Orr
entail Company did its own painting, she
enjoyed a particularly good character for
her punctuality In arriving at her work
in the morning.
but how did you bring yourself to talk