Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1900-05-11
A TRUE STORY



her. She was a wan woman, with
dark sad eyes and white hair, placed
smooth over q brow that denoted in
tllect. "When married iruukard
L reached the acme of misery. l was
young, and, oh, so happy! mar.
ried the man l loved and who pro
fessed TO love me. He was q drunk.
ard and / knew It-knew 1T but did
not understand it
There is not a young girl that does
not understand it, unless she has q
drunkard in her family. then per
haps she knows how deeply the iron
enters the soul of a woman wnen she
loves and is allied to a drunkard.
Whether father. husband, brother,
son. or girls believe me when 1 tell
you that to marry a drunkard, is the
crown of all misery. have gone
through the deep waters and know
l have gained that fearful knowledge
at tile expense of happiness, sanity,
almost life itself.
Do you wonder my hair is white?
1t turned white in night ''bleached
by sorrow as Marie Antoiuette said
of her hair. am not 40 years old
yet, but the SHOWS of 20 rest upon
my head and my heart. All, l can
not begin TO count the winters rest
ing there" she said with unutterablc
patnos in her voice. My husband
was a professional. His calling
took him from home, frequently at
night, and when he returned he re-
turned drunk. Gradually he gave
away to temptations in the day, until
he was rarely sober.
had two lovely little girls and a
boy. My husband had been drink
ing deeply. L had not seen him for
two days. One night L was seated
beside my sick boy; two little girls
were in bed in the next rooms, while
beyond was another room into which
| heard my husband go, as he enter
ed the house, do not know why, but
feeling of terror suddenly took pos
session of me, and felt that my lit
tie girls were in danger. 1 arose and
went 10 the room. The door was
locked. / knocked on it franticslly,
but no answer came, / seemed TO be
endowed with supcr-human strength
and throwing myself with all my
force against the door, the lock gave
way and the door flew open. Oh,
the sight the terrible sight Dele
rum tremens You have never seen
it girls. God grant III never may.
My husband stood beside the bed.
his eyes glaring with insanity and
in his hand large knife. "Take
them away" he screamed "The
terrible things! They are crawling
all over me! Take them away And
he fourished the knife in the air.
"Regardless of danger l rushed to
the bed and my heart seemed sud
denly to cease beating. There lay
my children, covered with their life
blood, slain by their own father l
was literally dumb in the presence OF
this terrible sorrow. l scarcely heed
ed the maniac at my side-the man
who had wrought me all this woe
Then uttered a loud scream and
ny wailings filed the air The ser
wants heard me and fastened to the
room and when my husband saw
them he suddenly drew the knife
across his own throat. | knew moth
ing more. / WIS borne senseless
from the room that contained m,
slaughtered child;en and the bod,
of my husband. The next day my
hair was white and my mind SO shat
tered that knew no one."
1.-TWO years was a mental wreck
then / recovered from the shock anC
absorbed myself in the care OF m,
boy, but the SIN of the father wal
visited upon the child and 81,
months ago my boy of Is was placed
in dru .kards grave and returned
unto my desolate home q childles.
woman-one on whom the hand o.
God had rested heavily. Girls, i,
is you / wish to rescue from tina,
fate that overlook me Do not bias,
your lives as / blasted mine. Dc
not be drawn into the madness Of
marrying drunkard You love him
80 much the worse for you, TO- mar
ried to him the greater will be your
misery because of your love You
will marry him then reform him SC
you say. ALI A woman sadly ov
errates her strength when she under
takes to do this.
You are no match for the giant
demon, ''Drink When he posse ses
a mans body and soul. What il
your strength beside his gigantic
rec? He will crush you too. II
is to save you, girls, from the sor
rows that wrecked my happiness that
have unfolded my history to yov
l am stranger in this great city.
am merely passing through it; and
| have a message to bear to every
girl in America never marry &
drunkard.
| M0IIJu RrNT0N