Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 1, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 September 1875 — How a Washington Young Lady Outwitted Her Father. [ARTICLE]

How a Washington Young Lady Outwitted Her Father.

“ Love laughs at locksmiths” and “ the course of true love never runs smooth” are familiar sayings, and are pretty generally accepted as adapted to most cases in which a stern parent lays an interdict upon the affections of a gentle daughter. Both of these truisms had a charming exemplification in this city last Saturday — we use the adjective advisedly, for a neater escape from what threatened to be an unpleasant piece of publicity never came under our observation. About four years since a family, consisting qf father, mother ahd daughter, arrived in this city from Philadelphia, and took up their residence on Capitol Hill, in a house purchased with the money of the maternal parent of the young lady who figures as the heroine of this narrative. The object of the change of base was to permit the head of the household to take a position in one of the departments, which he had procured through political influence. The new-comers lived very happily in their Washington home for about two years, when the shadow of death came over their house, and Hie mother was carried away to the cemetery. The daughter, Mina was her name, then a little over sixteen years of age, took charge of the internal affairs of the establishment from the day of the death of her mother, and she was acknowledged by all who knew her to be a most excellent housekeeper, as well as an accomplished lady, for she enjoyed the benefits of a good education, received at a splendid academy just outside of her native city, Philadelphia. The father, who was almost notorious for his cantankerous disposition, was more than pleased with the way his pretty daughter managed affairs, and was often heard to say to his boon companions, as he tookMsheerWith them, that as long as Mina stuck by him he would never think of a second wife, although he was by no means deficient in the qualities that would have insured him a warm reception among the fair sex if he were matrimonially inclined. But, somehow or other, Mina, like the rest of the daughters of Eve, was perverse, and was not disposed to stick by her parent. Indeed, she had been receiving the attentions of a young gentleman, a Philadelphian, whom she had known as a boy, for some time previous to the death of her mother. The father had noticed this young man, and his frequent visits to Washington, but with proverbial blindness had not divined that his daughter was the magnet that attracted him. For had he guessed that there was anything out of the way he would have put his foot down and stopped the matter at once, because the swain was the son of a much hated enemy. The sly couple probably understood as much themselves, for the intimate relations existing between them were not explained to the old gentleman until about two weeks since.

It came about in this way: The lover was anxious to bring things to a climax. He told Mina that she was now of age, and therefore entitled to judge and speak for herself. To this the diffident maiden responded that her father would ignore all such considerations, and that he would most certainly raise an awful row; and if there was anything Mina hated it was a disturbance which would involve publicity. But the importunities of the lover prevailed, and it was finally decided that the two should wait upon papa together. The scene was fearful and beggars description. All the rials of his wrath were first poured out on Mina, and at his command she sought her chamber with tears streaming from her eyes. The young lover was grit, however, and assured his prospective father-in-law that he regarded him as little better than a brute to treat his daughter as he did. And then came explosion number two, this time devoted exclusively to the lover’s unfortunate parent, who was characterized by the irate German as all that was bad.* We forgot to mention that the family is German. Such a history of meanness as was poured into the young man’s ears is rarely heard, and as the hearer did not believe the defamer of his father he concluded to administer a drubbing to him, which he commenced to do on the spot, and was only induced to alter his intention by Mina, who, terrified nearly to death by the commotion and noise of the altercation, had returned to the room in time to save her father from a deserved castigation. Of course, after this affair, the house was closed to Mina’s lover, and such was the fear in which she held her father that she made no attempt to see him before his departure for Philadelphia. However, the old man was not allowed to rest. The second day after his rencontre with his enemy he received a letter formally asking for Mina in marriage. No answer was vouchsafed this. The communication was also backed by a request from Mina, who had now become nerved up to asserting her rights. She declared that •he would marry the man of hen choice despite the wishes or commands of her father, and, furthermore, she demanded that he at once place the property which he held in trust for her in such shape that her husband might take possession of it as soon as the ceremony uniting them was over. The wrath which found expression in words on the former occasion was too great now for utterance. His daughter to defy him in this manner! Why it was enormous. And to signify his opinion of her defiance, and to punish it properly, he took her by the arm, led her to her room, thrust her in and turned the key on her.

Here she was kept in durance several days and not permitted to see anyone but the servant who brought her meals. This attache of the family was supposed to be intensely devoted to its head, but her affection for Mina outweighed her loyalty, so she had few compunctions in smuggling a letter from the prisoner, which brought the lover on the scene, ana another row ensued, after which some sort of a compromise was effected, by which the father was to be permitted time to make up his mind whether he would give his consent to the marriage. For some time previous, tp the rupture Mina’s father had contemplated changing his place of residence, on Capitol Hill, to some quarter of the city nearer the department in which he was employed. Whether the trouble induced him to finally decicb upon moving we can’t say, but suddenly he made up his mind ana hired a house on the other side of town and made preparations to rent Mina’s house, which, as stated before, he held in trust for her. He announced his intention on Thursdav last to Mina, and requested her to direct and assist the servant in getting the household furniture ready for removal. Mina assented, and all day Friday she worked industriously in doing up things. The father, when he came home in the evening, was somewhat surprised to see that so much care had been taken in packing up, and suggested that the trouble of putting things in the same shape as if they were to be shipped to Philadelphia was an expenditure of energy that would have only been undertaken by such an extremely careful housekeeper as Mina. Had he observed Mina’s face about that moment, and for a few seconds after his pertinent remark about Philadelphia, he might have guessed that Something was wrong. Fortunately, however, he perceived nothing, and the packing went on without interruption.

The next day, Saturday last, three furniture cars made their appearance on the scene, and as every detail of the moving had been left to Mina, her father being at work, she instructed the drivers how to load and vvhere to carry their goods. Before ten o’clock they were in the depot of one of the railroads leading from this city, and a shipping receipt for them was neatly folded in Mina’s pocket-book, together with a ticket for Philadelphia, to which place she went by the first train after shipping the goods, but not until she had written a note explaining everything to her father. On her arrival in- Philadelphia she was met by her lover, who had already procured a license, and in an hour afterwardAhe two were man and wife. The opt gent on.- leaving; his Walk “dik Saturday afternoon wended his way to his new place of abode, expecting of course to see confusion reigning in the house. His surprise may be imagined upon discovering that not a single article had arrived. Wondering what could be the matter, he hurried to Capitol Hill only to find that the house was as empty as the one he had left. Thinking that Mina had made a mistake, by moving into the wrong house, he resolved to hunt up the furniture-car men and ascertain from them where the things were. After considerable trouble he succeeded in finding them, and then learned that the goods had been shipped to Philadelphia. The whole thing then dawned upon him, and for a few minutes he solaced himself by swearing in a fashion that would have shamed a Turk. Yesterday when he received the letter from his daughter informing him why she had taken the step, and telling him that he might keep the house if he intended to make a fuss about it, he swore some more, but later in the day he came to the conclusion that it would be wise to smooth the thing over, and consequently most of his down-town friends now labor under the impression that Mina left with the housekeeping articles with the full knowledge and consent of her father. The Capitol Hill neighbors, however, know better, and are chuckling at the idea of little Mina outwitting her brute of a parent.—Washington Chronicle.