Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1873-11-19

4
ing, understood music, was considera.
BILE of an artist, good deal of
woman, and with the proper forbear-
ance, and the exercise of a decent
amount of tact, would have been the
best wife in the world ESQ she thought.
During the days of courtship, and the
first few months of married life, she
was the subject of unlimited petting.
Her will was her husbands law; but,
after the birth of the baby, and the
added responsibility of housekeeping,
everything changed. Mr.. Penney did
not. could not, take into consideration
thai these cares had also made differ
ence in her; that she had changed also;
she could not feel-wlves never can
that there was anything amiss with her
that the cloud on her brow and the
nervousness OF her manner radlated a
magnetism Enthusiastically repellant.
Had Mrs. Penney remained healthily
sunny, bakers bread would undoubt-
edly have satisfied Mr.. Penney. De-
prived of the JOY he needed, and had
been accustomed to, he turned, man
fashion, to finding fault with what,
under other circumstances, he never
|
s'You are not we'll this morning,
Mrs. Penney" said the kind voice of
the seamstress, as the lady nervously
brought out the material she wished
made up.
emo, I am not very WE'LL" she re-
piled, apparently more to herself than
to her companion; "but don't mind
SO much about that, I mean [ could
bear i'll health very well, if I didn't
nave other things to trouble me-"
The pale face of the dress maker
lighted up wonderfully, as she met the
tired eyes of her companion.
"My dear Mrs Penney" said she
with sudden inspiration, Twill you al
low me- to express my thought2 Per-
baps it may be of service to you. I
have had very hard life. and only by
personal experience have [ ever learned
anything; experience of the richest and
most agonizing description.
CT wish you would tell me some
thing" replied Mrs. Penney, with a
culver of the sensitive lip. 81 am
doing the best [ can, and yet, Mrs.
Harris, am failing utterly in accom-
plishing that which is dearest to my
heart-the happiness of my husband,
and the comfort of my home.
''You think you are doing the best
you can," continued the seamstress !;
here you are mistaken.
"But, Mrs Harris, " interrupted the
lady, with an offended air.
wait one moment, and ] will ex-
plain-prove the truth of my statement
by your own words You acknowledged,
a moment ago, that you were not we'll,
but that this fret was of small import
ance compared with other things.
Now, l maintain that health is the
groundwork of all happiness, the be-
ginning and end of all progress. With
out health you can no more be a COM
panion for your husband, and wise
mother to your child, than your hus-
band could be a good business man
without it. This, then, is the first
thing to be considered. Your nerves
are rasped, your child is more of a
burden than JOY, your pretty house
an unpleasant responsibility, your hus-
band seems inconsideTate and unappre-
ciative; and the demon that has
brought about this complete metamor-
phosis lies entirely in yourself-your
present lack of healthy foundation"
"But John doesn't seem to sympa.
thize with me in these cares" broke in
Mrs, Penney. Il tell him in the morn
ing how troublesome the baby has
been, all he ever says is, Is that so,
sis I've heard mother say that chill
dren are very apt to be cross at that
age. You'd better lie down when the
baby does to-day, and get good
snooze. ~
Exactly" said the seamstress.
{" Do you ever act upon this advice :"
sNo, how can I? All the time I have
to sew and attend to things is when the
baby is asleep
''Better let things go without atten-
ton until the little one is less trouble"
"And then John would find fault
with the disorder"
81 do not think so. Your nervous
condition makes a nervous atmosphere
that your husband feels as soon as he
enters it. The real difficulty he does
not realize any more than yourself.
The elements are discordant He is
Immediately thrown out of equilibrium,
and in trying to restore himself he
takes hold Of the wrong string, and the
result is domestic chaos. Woman
must make the home. There is no way
of getting round that fact Your hus-
band makes his place of business
makes the money for you to adorn the
nest with, which he has q right to ex-
pect comfortable when he flies to it at
night"
"But is husband to have no re-
sponsibility in home matters?''
"You would not think Of finding
fault with your husband because nature
had not endowed him with the means
of providing his baby with the first
food it needs"
Mrs. Penny laughed.
"That seems very ridiculous, does it
not ? and yet it is no more SO than the
hundred and one things women demand
of their husbands, that they are equally
unable to give. Woman is the natural
nurse of the man as we'll as of the man
child? By nurse, in the first instance,
1 mean the comforter and inspirer.
Without health you can be neither.