In his wife he
found, at the same time, a true helpmate and soul-mate. She
supported, cheered, and strengthened him on his way through life,
giving him "the clear contentment of a heart at ease." In his
diary he speaks of his marriage as "a source of honour and
happiness far exceeding all the rest." After twentyeight years'
experience, he spoke of it as "an event which, more than any
other, had contributed to his earthly happiness and healthy state
of mind.... The union (said he) has in nowise changed, except
only in the depth and strength of its character." And for six-
and-forty years did the union continue unbroken; the love of the
old man remaining as fresh, as earnest, as heart-whole, as in the
days of his impetuous youth. In this case, marriage was as--
"A golden chain let down from heaven,
Whose links are bright and even;
That falls like sleep on lovers, and combines
The soft and sweetest minds
In equal knots."
Besides being a helper, woman is emphatically a consoler. Her
sympathy is unfailing. She soothes, cheers, and comforts. Never
was this more true than in the case of the wife of Tom Hood, whose
tender devotion to him, during a life that was a prolonged
illness, is one of the most affecting things in biography. A
woman of excellent good sense, she appreciated her husband's
genius, and, by encouragement and sympathy, cheered and heartened
him to renewed effort in many a weary struggle for life.
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