(Smith/Post)
At the time that my grandmother’s The Every-Day Cook-Book was published in 1892 by “Miss E. Neil,” another woman writer was already a popular and widely-published author. Her name was “Mrs. E. T. Corbett.” A copy of one of her poems, written out in long-hand, was folded and tucked between pages 38 and 39 of the cookbook.
At first, I planned to write about the lost “art” of penmanship, so well-demonstrated with the beautifully hand-written artifact found within the book, but there seemed to be more of a story in the poem itself. So, forget my research on the history of fine penmanship. Farewell, antique cursive handwriting. Hello, old-fashioned elocution, extensive memorization, and long-forgotten women authors who, quite literally, provided their “ten-cents-worth” to the American popular culture of the mid-nineteenth century.
Although this antique, handwritten version of The Inventor’s Wife was likely meant to demonstrate the “handsome hand” of the person copying the poem, it should be noted that the poem itself was already a familiar selection for memorized recitation by the late-1800s. And, once you read it, you’ll understand why.
But, before you do, here’s a little background on the poem’s creator:
Mrs. Elizabeth T. Corbett, author of The Inventor’s Wife, was born in 1830 in New York City. At a time in American history when women were increasingly contributing by-lines in popular print, Mrs. Corbett was publishing her work as poems, plays and stories, including children’s books such as Three Wise Old Women, still in print.
Humorous poems like The Inventor’s Wife soon became staples for recitation and copying out in longhand in order to read and share in classrooms, on stage or to parlor room audiences long before the advent of home radios or televisions.
Corbett’s published pieces can be found in anthologies cheek-by-jowl with the work of other writers of the day such as Mark Twain, Bret Harte, Henry Ward Beecher, as well as the ever-popular Joe Jot, Jr. and Anon. One such anthology, the 1882 edition of Beadle’s Dime Readings and Recitations defines itself as “a very choice collection of the most ‘taking’ things for the Stage, Platform and School. Humorous, Vernacular, Pathetic, Eloquent and Forensic.”
From the archived selections of Mrs. Corbett’s published work that I’ve uncovered, I’d say she was a well-rounded writer who ticked many of Beadle’s boxes for popular humor, poignancy, and drama by employing familiar, homey dialects that her readers enjoyed and audiences loved to hear, examples of which are evident in the handwritten copy shown above. [Note: for our ‘woke’ friends who will be reading Mrs. Corbett’s 150-year-old poem, please know that “vernacular spelling” is a valid, time-honored literary device used to provide insight into regional accents, not make judgment on the characters. Just sayin'.]
And with that I present Mrs. Elizabeth T. Corbett’s poem: The Inventor’s Wife
(Back in my high school days I competed in Forensics -public speech recitations- and would have enjoyed performing "The Inventor's Wife"!)
