Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1867-05-11
How to Keep a Wife.

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1t is pretty evident that We, men mean,
edit most of the papers, and moreover
are very conscious of our needs and
shortcomings, and | am ashamed to say
we have not much Improved upon the
morals of the great ancestor who immor-
talized himself by laying The blame of-his
transgression upon the women. You may
have heard of the Turkish dignitary who
when any disturbance took place, always
cried, "Who is she p" As women are a
fair half of the human race, of course they
have their share ofinfucnce, and cannot
be entirely unnoticed, but evidently wo
man is the weaker vessel and has to take
what we give her, including r sponsibility
not to say abuse.
So every now and then we stumble up
on an article advice to Wives Duties
of Wives How to keep Husband and
SO on all much in the same strain. But
no man ever seems to consider that he
need instruction how to keep wife /
fiatter myself that from my experience
and observation, / understand that sub
ject-and Ihave a few hints to offer. 'Thc
words ot'thc wise aie as goads'
You will be told, forinstance, something
like this, "that the wife is to continue the
wooing the girl SO successfully commenc-
ed" ThisSwa news to me- If my wife
had wooed me, she would have won me.
he true woman is wOoed and won, and
is the sought, not the seeker. Of course
she is not Indifferent to the impression
she makes on men, especially on those
who are agreeable to her, but if she goes
beyond the point of being agreeable aud
attractive, she goes beyond the true wo-
manly point: And if woman have been
the wooer, she must continue out of her
sphere, and, labor to keep the affection
she has won.
But if man have sought any woman
and drawn her from the warm shelter of
home and family, to cheer and bless his
home, he has something to do beside to
enjoy his home, and leave it when he
chooses. 1t is great, and in some re-
spccts, a painful change oto her. All old
ties are broken up she is transplanted,
and does not at once t;fke root, and must
have many lonely hours while her hus-
band is abroad and among men. There
fore these are mutual duties. and he Should
come home not .only to be cheered and
made happy, but to cheer ard make hap
py. The same arts which he used to win,
he should also exercise to keep.
True, there are not the same dangers
on one side as on the other. A woman
seldom leaves her home and forsakes her
duties. She cannot, while man can dc
as he pleases; therefore her happiness is
more openly at stake. But when you
look down into the heart, perhaps you
will find as many disappointed, saddened
women as men. / have seen the lines OF
care and sadness drawn upou some faces
| for which / could discover no earthly rea
son but this keen disappointment. All
was fair enough before the world, but the
true love was gone.
Probably nobody ever married that
was not in a degree disappointed, because
most men, and perhaps some women
think they marry an angel, but finding
no wings, and many mortal traits and
some imperfections, it is not what they
expected! But reason and common sense
and right principles will cure all this, es
pecially if we have trifle of self knowl
edge, and are conscious that we ourselves
are not energetic. We all need mutual
love, confidence, forbearance, trust, and
these will grow up into better and purel
spirit than the first. There is something
very beautiful in ?" loves young dream, .
but dreams, however beautiful, don't last
This I know full well.
There is one point have to come to-
which is rather descent, but can't helI
it; it is Lart of the practical question
spoke OF faith. c Now dont think mer
trust their wives enough, and especially
in money matters l have watched the
thing good deal, and have seen mer
trust their life, honor, houses, children, te
a woman, when they would not trust hel
with money In that point she is kept
child to the end OF her days. There are
many exceptions, but as a rule, think
it is 80.
And the papers are fnll-you know ao'
conduct them-full OF woman's extraya
gance and recklessness and profusion.-