The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-07-17
Women Who Rose Above wa,
oelles who Made 1t Possible for the Beaux to
Ihrong the Battlefield.

u SHo ASo4 III 'He universal verdi
% was that Emily schaumberg, Of Phi,
:, aoeiphia, was tho suprcmely lovely 4,
oarnation OF womanhood. an opintc
o which was later confirmed nv Eur.
n pean taste. when she lived abroad .
d Mrs. Hughes-Hallett. She. like MI,
y ould In Richmond. was rated as befn
i something ideal In human loyelfnes
o ana only the battlefelds can tell no
many lovers both OF them had who,
neitner ever saw. the fame or Likeness
oi tnelr features making unknow
: cavaliers OF soldiers, who lonsed &c
Q them In tented dreams.
M, charming woman. who knee
washington from the time of the Fill
> moro administration, became the yv.f
Oh Roger A. Pryor. who wore the era,
: fought the aght and at Its close foun
J MS fortunes. like those of. his cor
: rades in arms, ruined.
MRS. Pryor in her "Reminiscences
! OF Peace and War" has presented on.
OF the most impressive pictures OF tn,
manner In which those elegant South
ern women, who SO long controlled
capital society. faced tho terrib1,
ravages which the war visited uno,
their homes.
u am sure" Mrs. Pryor remarks
that no soldier enlisted under viz.
ginias banner could possibly bo more
determined than the young womer
OF the State. They were unoompro.
missing
You promised mo my answer to-
night" said hne fellow who had not
yet enlisted to his sweetheart.
Well, you can't have It, Ben. nm
VI you have fought the Yankees.' said
pretty Helen.
What heart will have for nght-
ing II you give me no promise?
III not be engaged to any man
until he has fought the Yankees, said
Helen firmly. You distinguish your
SELF In this war and then see what I'll
nave to say to you
Ihts was the stand they took In
Richmond ana Petersburg. Engage,
Inents were postponed until they could
Pnd OF what mettle their lover was.
But suppose don't como back
at all suggested Ben.
Oh. then, Ill acknowledge the en-.
sagement and be good to your mother
and wear mourning all the same, pro.
weed your wounds are all in 'front.'"
Mrs. Pryor endured her ordeal with
her children at Cottage Farm. which
her orother-tn-law had put at her
disposal. three miles from Petersburg.
IN the rear of General Lees army.
with brood of little ones to feed.
some faithful negro dependents to
provide for and her husband General
Pryor. a prisoner in the North, she
ana her entire household were starv-
Ing, when she bethought herself of a |
trunk of finery she brought all the |
way from Washington.
she ripped the laces from the even |
ing gowns and made it into collars |
ana an undsrsleeyes. Sent to Richmond,
tne collars and the sleeves found |
eager purchasers among the ladies' of /
Inc Confederate court"
She cut UP everything that was In
the trunk. From an interlining of
gray flannel In her husbands dress
coat she made gray gloves. which
Yielded her hundreds of dollars, Con-
Tolerate money. There remained
thirteen small pieces of flannel after
her glove factory stopped for lack
OF material. Pieced together. they
made g. pair of drawers for the young
est boy.
Mrs. Pryor's first purchase out OF
aer earnings was barrel of -four.
an IDEA OF what the paper money she
vas receiving amounted 10 in its re.
alton to the almost complete dearth
u supplies can be gained from the de-
all that her barrel of -four cost her
$500. The Confederate soldiers In
40 amy dlOuIu Cottage farm were ]
literally starving, but they often gave
he needy family of General Pryor
'art of their own pitiful ratIons. It
vas hard work making the poor fell
ows take back their food-almost as
ard as the continual desperate effort ,
o find food without accepting that {
Xtreme of charity. 4
Lived on her Laces. I
After Mrs. Pryor had converted all 1
iDf n mi 10
nd had sold all her silk gowns, her Z
pera cloak and her point lace hand r
ercMefs, she devoted herself to b
inning the edges Of the artificial b
overs and separating the long
reaths and garlands for hats and =
rsage bouquSts. The children and r
liza. one of the servants, delighted .
helping, but another negress, Aunt n
my. protested to Mrs, Pryor SOL .
nnly: 9
/" Honey she said, as Mrs. Pryor re. - a
lis the incident, don't you think, In g,
csc times OF trouble. you might do r.
tier than tempt them DO. Young - -
mbs In Richmond to worship the -
!den calf and bow down to mann -
On? We pray not to be led into ~ :,
nptation, and you sholy is leadin 81
n into vanity T,
: Maybe so, Aunt jimmy. but I must ~
i all can. We have to be clothed, et
u know, war or no war; Ut
Yes. my chile, that's so, but we're ar
d to consider the lilies, Gawd AL &c
ghty tells us we must clothe our w
YES in the garment of righteous tn
IS, and He or
Now. You Just go long an leave Tn
mistis to her work., interrupted pl
"a. in great wrath. How would
i look with nothin' on but q gar is
mt of righteousness?'" an
lrs. Pryor fought it out, like Grant, IF
ng her own lines, but within the by
es of the Confederacy, until there do
re no more Conrederacy and no gu
re lines. Then the long and cruel lee
uggle came to her and her husband DIV
rebuild the vanished fortuf1es out lit
as 1t came to so MANY lal
usands OF other bellies of the South
to such of their men as had sur so
ed the worse than decmation OF pa.
war. me
he privatIons which Mrs. Pryor ily
lerwent in the country were more 2
n Baralleled by the women who FOR
% in Southern cities. What pro- ans
nd depths of want were reached by rr.
Sc pretty girls whose spirits rose dea
erior to the terrors OF war, who Ap1
t their lovers to the battlefields /"
etrothed, is evidenced by letter Joh
quotes from friend who saw Yea
etr,,r,'la thrnuph In Ricb -.