The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1873-09-26
To Young Married Women.


Before = young woman utters the
momentous .'Ees," she should ask her.
self two questions. Does she love and
respect the man who proposes to become
her husband? ? If this question is an
swered i'm the affirmative, she should
then ask herself if she is willing to ac-
eept the position in life which he can
offer. As a rule young men are poor.
Almost without exception the rich men
of this city were poor when they at
tanned their majority. If a man waits
to get rich before he marTies, some
woman is deprived for that period
of time of q husband. The man mar
ries, say, Mt middle age, n young wOm-
an, but the young woman he would
have married at twenty-five is either
hopeless old maid or hopeless without
being even maiden. We assume,
therefore, that the young man who
proposes is in moderate circumstances.
/ For convenience, we viii suppose that
he has an income of one hundred and
twenty-five dollars per month, depend
! ing on his own services in some capacity.
Ii may be wise or foolish to marry on
this sum, according as the couple are
wise or foolish. With this income it is
possible for Il couple to live comfortably
and still save a few hundred every year,
or it is possible for them to run little
into debt. a majority of young men
who desire to marry feel the response
bility of the step, and if left to them
selves, would live within their means.
The world expects them TO support their
! families, and to fail il to be in meas
ure dishonored. The young wife,
probably, has little idea of the difficulty
of getting money. She knows, possibly,
that it took a good deal of cOaXing to
make her father "cOme Outn as often as
desired, but she attributed this inclina-
| tion more to Obstinacy or avarice than
to any difficulty in procuring il. To
wheedle it out of him was her only
! trouble, and she had not given thought
to the labor by which it was obtained.
| The husband now takes the fathers
place. 1t does not occur to her, per-
haps, that it is not perfectly right for
her to live in as good style rs any Of her
/ friends. She does her husband the
honor to believe him as smart as any
of her friends. She does her husband
the honor to believe him as smart as
any other womanis husband, and if he
is as smart, he certainly can make as
much money. Through thoughtless-
ness, therefore, and through Ignorance
of the thousand changes Of business, the
wife often urges her husband to ex-
penditures beyond their means. She
does not mean to cripple him or to be &
drag upon him, but she acts upon the
principle that if he will consent to incul
certain expenses he will find some way
to meet them. On the husbands part
pride and affection require him to sup
! port his wife as well as any other man''
, l. al NF-nnIn OrlaHIN
forego this ruinOus rivalry, and live il
a style corresponding to his means /
: his wife would be content. He lacks
however, the courage and manliness t
DENY luxuries which he can possibly
procure. So he goes on, from year t
year living up to and Il little beyond
his income, dimly conscious that create
|, , expenses are inevitable, and that sick
, ness and misfortune come TO almos
, every fortune sooner or later. Show Il
the besetting sin of our women. Com
fort is everywhere sacrificed to style.
fine house and handsome furniture ar,
kept for the worlds inspection. \ ser
want or two must be paid out of n linn
tied income, because it is vulgar for +;
lady to do her own hOuse-wOrk. Ou
, middle classes live as if they were rich
! The pride of women is to break dOwI
? the DISTINCTIONS InaJ Jle possession o
wealth naturally creates. y finer anC
more worthy pride would inspire then
: to observe distinctions they are no
| responsible for, and which entail NJ
disgrace. We admire a woman who
, says openly, 1--WE cannot afford thi'
thing" These words uttered, the battle
3 is won. Half of the expenditures which
| make married life burdensome, are sac
? rifices to a false and ignoble vanity. In
stead of feeling Inundated at plaine
style of living than a rich man in
= dulges in, 4 poor mans wife SHOULD
: glory in it. Who are the women of Ou
, city that are subject to scandal? No
j those who live within the known mean
: of their husbands. The devilish whis
4 per does not follow them when they ap
Z pear on the street-their virtue
demonstrated in their daily life. Blu
the thoughtless woman whose rich an,
{ varied toilets cost half her husbands in
e come, is always regarded with sus
picion, no matter how correct and cir
cumspect her life may be.