The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1906-07-18
Three Old Maids
and a Widow
By c n LEWIS
BY c. b, LEWIS
Copyright, 1905, by NJ, NJ. cunniugi am

There are few towns uf Loo popu-
iation that can boast uf t..iee old maids
and II widow living on the same street,
but that was the case with Clifton.
Miss Ninton was an old maid because
she never had met with man good
enough for her Miss Hopkins was an
old maid because the young man she
would have married at eighteen was
sawed in two III saWmili and she had
vowed TO be true To his memory, Miss
Warner was an old maid because she
was determined to marry none but Il
minister. and all the ministers who
came We're already provided for. The
Widow Carter was widow because
part OF u house had fallen ON her htls
band
The old maids and the widow were
oil visiting ternls--ia fact, they rather
liked each other. Where there are no
male candidates for matrimony con
cerned old maids aud widows can sit
down together ON the same yeranda
without quaffeling. After the widow
had solemnly assured the old maids
that nothing on the face OF this earth
could induce her To be false to the
memory OF her crushed, the quartet
loved each other even more.
one day one OF the merchants in the
take his place. II he had been mar
ried man the dove Of peace would have
continued to hover over Rose street,
but as he was single, only thirty and
a catch" the dove saw hot time
ahead
he widow let no grass grow under
her feet iii calling at the store and in
cidehtdily mentioning her name ana OF.
dering four pounds of sugar all at
once. She was one of the -Four Hun
dred OF the town and on the part Of
the other 800 she babe Mr. Strong wei.
come 10 their midst. When he had
thanked her she ordered two nutmegs
and paper OF starch IN addition to
the sugar 10 let him understand that
She wasn't Obliged TO pinch pennies,
and then departed
An hour later her reprehensible con.
duct was known To the three old maids.
ami up went three pairs OF hands six
eyes We're turned upward in horror and
three mouths opened 10 exclaim in che.
rus How shockingn'
Then, during the next two days. each
or the old maids made an excuse to
call at the store and follow the pro
gramme carried out by the widow
Each thought She was sly and slick
but they found each other out. and
from that moment the bond Of friend
ship snapped asunder like an old
clothesline left out in the storms Of u
year.
When women make war on each 9th
er they don't use fence rails to pound
each other on the head. In most cases
they go right on treating each other as
nicely as they can to their faces, but
using ddggers and the darkness to as
sassinate. The three old maids and the
widow gathered together as Of yOre,
but the dagger was used whenever
there was the least show
Mr. Strong proved II social success.
The widow gave a little dinner and
brought him out, but the old maids
really monopolized him for the even
Ing. Then Miss Warner gave an exhi-
bition OF her own paintings, which con
sisted of CIV apparently thirty -six
feet long al II u river running up
stream instead of down, and the wild
ow held Mr.. Srrong's attention for an
hour while she talked about her crush.
ed and departed
1t the end OF six weeks the man who
ran the sawmill and had a mortgage
on the mill dam figured 1t out to his
wife.
There are three old maids to one
widow, but II the widow gets left she'll
be the first one ever heard Of"
Even the small boys around town no
ticed how girly the old maids were be
coming They giggled, they uttered
cute little screams when they turned
corner and found themselves face to
face with u COW, they Uttered when
they asked for gum drops at the gro
Gerry AS for the widow, she set her
jaw and walked into the store two or
three times week to ask the mer-
chant II he thought the Seventy sey-
enth National bank Of Boston was per
fectiy sound and to sigh with relief
when he assured her OF his confidence
in the Institution Sly reports were
soon afioat that Mr. Strong was paying
his attentions to this or that one Of the
four Then the other three would reply
as one:
We'll, may be he Is, but what on
earth he can see IN her is more than |
can make out. She grows more home
~ and dowdified every day. OF course
Im telling you this la confidence and,
OF course. 1t won't go further"
One fatal evening tragedy after trag-
edy happened, and the light went out
OF several happy households Mr.
Strong boarded with a faAiily living
Lalr mile from the store. He wanted
the walk. He had to cross the bridge
cred with woods. and there wasn't
house between his boarding place and
the town.
The three old maids and the widow
had had their eyes on this road from
the first. They had soon begun walk
ing for exercise. They didn't walk at
the hours the merchant might be ex-
pected, and If they encountered each
other they made all manner OF eA-
cuses, but each one understood what
the other was at aud determined to
battle her Ia the end
Mr.. Strong had been given three
months In which to declare his atten-
lions, and he hadn't declared Time
was too valuable to be wasted His
habit was to return to his store after 4
6 o'clock supper and remain there until
Z. Just before < Gel M, then, on this
awful night four h..i.4..n fsures might
have been seen stealing out Of the
town and over the bridge.
Each and every one VI them would
have paused on the bridge to listen TO
the musical plash of the river II they
hadn't seen each other. The first, sec
ond and third were obliged to 81 on to
avoid the last one. She was the idow.
She knew the value OF a bridge and
river and A musical pldsh and she de-