a
mistake of my husband's, that made him liable to ridicule on the
charge of vulgarity! And to deny, too, that he said "_Miss_," when I
had been worried about it for more than a year! It was too bad!

After this Mr. Smith was very particular in saying, when he spoke of
a married woman to me, _Misses_. The emphasis on the second syllable
was much too strongly marked to be pleasant on my ears. I was
terribly afraid he would say "_Mistress_," thus going off into the
opposite extreme of vulgarity.

This first attempt to put my husband straight had certainly not been
a very pleasant one. He had shown, unexpectedly to me, a humour that
could by no means be called amiable; and by which I was both
grieved, and astonished. I made up my mind that I would be very
careful in future how I tried my hand at reforming him. But his
oft-repeated "he _shew_ it to me," and "_obleeged_," soon fretted me
so sorely, that I was forced to come down upon him again, which I
did at a time when I felt more than usually annoyed. I cannot
remember now precisely what I said to him, but I know that I put him
into an ill-humour, and that it was cloudy weather in the house for
a week, although the sun shone brightly enough out of doors. "_He
shew it to me_," and "_obleeged_" were, however, among the things
that had been, after that. So much was gained; although there were
times when I half suspected that I had lost more than I had gained.
But I persevered, and, every now and then, when I got "worked up"
about something, administered the rod of correction.

Gradually I could see that my husband was changing, and, as I felt,
for the worse. Scarcely a year had passed before he would get into a
pet if I said the least word to him. He couldn't bear any thing from
me. This seemed very unreasonable, and caused me not only to sigh,
but to shed many a tear over his perverseness. From the thoughtful,
ever considerate, self-sacrificing lover, he had come to be
disregardful of my wishes, careless of my comfort, and indifferent
to my society. Still I felt by no means inclined to give him up; was
by no means disposed to let him have his own way. It was clear to my
mind that I had rights as well as he had; and I possessed resolution
enough to be ready to maintain them. His self-will and indifference
to my wishes roused in me a bitter and contentious spirit; and, in
an evil hour, I determined that I would make a struggle for the
mastery. An opportunity was not long