The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1901-05-13
SILENT TILL.
She VOTES.
Miss HiIIman Takes Vow and
Keeps Il for Ten Years.
ARDENT WOMAN SUFFRAGIST.
Smart and Successful farmsr-lIIrsd Man
and HighwIman Find She Is
Muscular Also.

Jacobstown. y. j., May 13.-Lucretia
Hnlmsn. "the silent woman" as she Is
known in this section. has not spoken TO
human being FOR ten years. II she is
faithful 30 her VOW she viii remain silent
until death.
Miss Hillman has taken care OF herself
for a quarter OF a century with great
success She Is now about fifty years old
ana has a mind OF her own.
she has always nFfd 10 ttTr tue1 ttTTrt
women who pay taxes should have the
privilege Of voting at the general cleo
tions In 1856 she refused 20 pay her
taxes. and il was not until she was
threatened with Jail that she handed over
the money
When she had delivered the cash and
received a receipt for it she raised her
right hand and swore that she would
work from that day TO bring about NO
man suffrage and until the right of vot-
ing had been granted 10 women she would
not speak a word 10 human kind.
Frequent attempts have been made TO
get her 10 talk. but without avail. She
has contributed money 10 the cause of
woman suffrage and feels sure that some
day she win be permitted 10 vote.
She owns ana manages one Of the best
farms in this locality. She pays es-
pccial attention 90 truck gardening and
bank at the end OF each year.
she hires men to do most of the work,
hut IL is not an unusual sight TO see
her mounted on moving machine be-
hind pair OF horses or following a cul-
tivator through a potato field
Miss Hilmsn is nearly six feet tall.
brown as a berry. has a step as firm as "A
grenadier. and when she gets hold OF
the pillow she handles II like playthng.
She knows all about horses and cows. and
she isn't 10 be fooled on any subject that
pertains 90 farming
Two years ago she employed n farm
hand OF the name OF Steve. strappng
chap about twenty-eight years old, and
one OF the best OF Miss Hillman's farm
hands one day he took too much apple
jack. When he got home h pulled
roll OF bills out OF his pocket and keeping
two for himself handed her the rest.
Where did you get this money!" ask
ed Miss Hillman by writing on a slate.
With a shrug of his shoulders Steve re-
piled that he had sold her horse. lie had
found an offer OF 500 for II, thought IL "A
good bargain and had given his employer
all but So which he kept as his commits
sion. The horse was one of the best on
the Hillman farm. and worth good deal
more than $40 to Miss Hillman.
A short distance from where Steve
stood was hogshead sawed I'm two.
nearly full or water. Gathering Steve up
in her arms Miss Hlllman carried him
over To the tub and "soused" him TIL he
begged for mercy. Then she hauled him
out. made him drive her 20 town where
she found the horse and bought II back
by giving the purchaser $50 for his bar
gain.
Miss Hillmnn always carries money
with her. One night as she was driving
home from town two men stopped her
horse. The highwaymen ordered her 10
get out of the wogan and hand over her
money. She complied.
one of the men took her purse and be-
gan TO count over its contents. lie had
hardly begun when he received blow
from Miss Hillman's fist that rolled him
i'm the dust. The other robber took To
his heels.
The fellow I'm the road undertook 10 get
up and Miss Iiillman promptly kicked
him into insensibilty, then she bound his
arms with strap. loaded him into the
wagon and drove 10 town, where she
handed him over to the authorities