Semi-weekly herald., 1913-07-10
DEATH OF
MRS. R.
SCDUTON

| Durango people were shocked to
learn this morning4that the beloved
wife of Mayor ScNuton had passed
away during the r4ght. Few knew
that the estimable Tlady was not in
good health. 1t lseems for the
past three weeks s4e had not been
nearly as well as u{ual but the past
two days she had shown marked i'm
provement. Yesterday she remarked
that she felt better han at any time
since the beginning of her indisposition.
She was seated in hSE room listening
to AN interesting stdfy her daughter
was reading her wheH one of the blood
vessels near her heaIt suddenly gave
way and death folnwed in few
moments. A physician was hastily
called and reached h& three minutes
before the end canned She was con-
cious that she was dying and her last
act was to hold her dhughter in low
ing embrace.
Violettie Meacham Scouton was
born in Illinois in 1869 and in the
early sixties, together Eith her father,
mother, brothers nd}sisters settled
in Linn county, Missouri, then an
almost unbroken prailA.
In the year of 1877 Abram Scouton
and his family left the bid home state
of New York and setti{d Immediately
across the county rfad from the
Meacham family, and itswas the young
bright and winsome kettle" as she
was called, who helped She elder Mrs.
Scouton to while away the long hours
and become reconciled 10 leaving the
relatives and home ties IN old "York
State.
She remained the intimate friend
and companion of Mrs. Scouton, she
not having daughter of her own at
home, for eleven years, or until 1888,
when duty called her to Park River
North Dakota, to keep house for her
widower father and unmarried broth
ers. While there, in addition to her
duties as housekeeper she taught
several terms of school and was al
\ ways reelected becapss4nf hsr eff
cheney and popularity with her pu-
pills.
In the year 1890, her brothers
having married, and her duties as
housekeeper having ended, she went
to visit her married sister in Ogden,
Utah, where she remained until the
spring of 1891, when she again re-
turned to the old Missouri neighbor-
hood and among her old time friends.
In November 1892, she was MARI I'd
to Henry r. Scouton, and with him
came to Durango the same year and
has since been a resident of our city.
Her only child, daughter, Addie, a
bright young miss of eighteen sum-
mers, grew up in our midst and gradu-
ated with high honors from our high
school, being second in large class
and for the past year has been a
student in the State University, where
her standing has been a credit to her
self and honor to the Durango schools
Mrs. Scouton was a home body in
every sensce of the word--her husband
her daughter and her home were up
permost in her mind, and she was al
ways TO be found at their pleasant
Brookside residence where her CHEEKY
smile greeted everyone, and her
presence shed light upon the happy
household. While she took a great
deal of interest in her husbands po-
litical life and was always an able
counselor to him, yet she held to the
old time doctrine that woman's place
was in her home.
And now the once happy fireside Of
Mayor Scouton is weighted down with
grief and the loving wife and mother
has gone to another happy home
leaving sorrow and sadness behind
and especially to Grandma Scouton
has the blow fallen hard, as an init
mate association Of over thirty six
years is broken by the ever present
hand Of time.