![\"advice\"](\"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/watkinson\/files\/2016\/12\/advice.jpg\")
<\/a>One of the pieces in the Charles P. Wells collection that I enjoyed finding is a copybook, owned by Susanna Olmsted. The poem, written by Esther Lewis<\/a>, seems to have been written out by Susanna\u2019s friend, E.Benton, presumably prior to Susanna\u2019s marriage.<\/p>\nThe first page reads:<\/p>\n
Advice to a Lady lately Married<\/strong><\/p>\n Dear Peggy since the single State \/ You’ve left & chose yourself a Mate \/ Since metamorphos’d to a Wife \/ And Bliss or Woe’s insur’d for Life<\/p>\n A friendly Muse the way would show \/ To gain the Bliss & miss the Woe. \/ But first of all I must suppose \/ You,ve with mature reflection chose \/<\/p>\n And this premis’d I think you may \/ Here find to married Bliss the way. \/ Small is the province of a Wife \/ And narrow is her Sphere in Life \/<\/p>\n Within that Sphere to move aright \/ Should be her principal Delight. \/ To guide the House with prudent ease \/ And properly to spend & spare \/<\/p>\n To make her Husband bless the Day \/ He gave his Liberty away.<\/p>\n
![\"susanna\"](\"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/watkinson\/files\/2016\/12\/susanna-188x300.jpg\")
<\/a>The final page is where we find out the book was owned by Susanna. I spent several hours trying to connect Susanna Olmsted with the Wells family, but wasn\u2019t able to do so. I may keep trying! There were few enough families in Hartford when this was written (1775), that I\u2019m sure we have a connection in a \u2018Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon\u2019 sort of way. This is my final post about the collection. I have arranged it all, and the finding aid is in progress. I hope you will visit the Watkinson and use the collection. Thank you for reading!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"