, 1873-08-03


other lands; but In tho lower middle strata she
sympathetic, 10 cordially roal, that to many Of
US sho presents high realization Of tho idos Of
| WHAT 4 WIFE SHOULD nE.
u ony In the central ranks Of population
above and below tl1oso ranks, both woallh md
poverty como into play, and introduce conditions
OF existence which diminish the tonohing Value
the bourgooiso, '1 nhieG' ' constitutes In ii ia
tho Fronoh nation, wo find tho uunIul-
tta teratoa tyro q France. t. is thero that
eral atate; and ii thoao signs aro chooring,. II
they Indicate succoBB, II thoy testify TINT Aatis-
factory ends aro roaohod, we may surely conclude
! that good oausos aro ab work aud We may con
whateyer bo its fauftH, tho systcm Ia not MI bad
and that, on tho contrary, It renders poBsiblo 4
form Of homo unity peculiar to the raeo.
It. s not BY more comparison VIII the results
question. Each people has ita own special nooda,
Its own special moans Of satisfying them. 4
groat many Of us arc Disposed to positively deny
dsetSo q @afed a is
tho Fronch middle and trading classes. is, III
reality, = merit. The subject Inns boon
% many otiq times :, disguised 'a IL from tho 5 Eng,
into tho hourly "details Of tlloir husbanls' iivos
involves moro disadyantagsB than advantagcs,
It has boon argued frequently TINT 1t loayca no
cially devolvo on women: that It divorta their
| thoughts to subjects which aro foreign to their
natureB; that It leads thom to neglect their chill
dren. But aro these objections foundod2, Arc
tho widely difforont habits under which wolivo
And, ovon II they Aro baaed on fact, do they OK
presa just and eerious criticism OF conditions Of
home lifo, which, from tho widely opposite prno-
sppsoaas wh W fansss w m fos may DO
| urged that ovory act which {ortilos tho tic be-
tween man aud vito la not only respectable in
| theory but
| DESIRABLE IN PRACTICE.
Surely true appreciation Of tho rolatiye ynluoa
Of tho difforcnt services which vito can rcntlor,
OF the different joys which sho can provoke. eau
be, be more strictly reached by the husband him
PreSeea P'fhPs 9hs Tin IL shss
T, then, ve find, as VIC distinctly do, that tho
French themselves proclaim tho merit OF tho ad-
junction Of tho wife to her huBbands labors ;
by marriage Ia regarded by them as applicable
not only to aontimontal ends, but to the practi-
cal details Of life as vol; II womon, az conBo-
quence Of this view, BIT by tho sido Of mon In
Offices ; , and ahops. instead Of leaving them to
sons directly Interested must DO better able to
decide than nc ara, but, furthermore, that such
constant presence, snoh constant sympathy Of
object aud Of thought, must tend to strengthen
tho bond between them, and must augment their
friendship. On this point, therefore, no may
admit that the French habit Is WHO one.
AB REGARDS 1NTELLEoTuAL rRoGn-ss.
marriage ordinarily loads tho French to moth
ing. The notion that wife and huabaud may
/ usefu1ly help each other on such road Beema
not to enter their heads. unless in epocinl cnaes,
whore tho requirement Of knowledge, or Its dis
tribution to others constitutos the occupation
| Of life. when once they haYo left OF schooling,
| the French cease to study; they continue what
they call thor eancation," but they give up
instruction" Tho two wordH are horo
employed ln tho sense which IL peculiar
to France-the former meaning moral and
social teachiug only, tho latter implying
sololy book-learning in its various forms. Thoy
| continue to improve themselves az mon and
they havo one) Or towards tho world at large;
| but they abandon tho attempt to add to what
they loarnod IN youth. These descriptions arc,
| Of course, geuoral, not universal; but thoir ap-
p1ication IS so usual that they need not bo as-
huch views and practices, It is natural
enough that marriage should Introduce
no now ideas Of action. 4 husband
that depends on his OF hor procIiyitiea but
scarcely ever will he think Of leading her to
read. or OF communicating to her What ho may
| know himself. In quantities Of drawing-rooma
in Franco M opon book is mover Heon; in some
jects. This docs not refor to tho higher classes,
whore, frequently, thcrc docs oxiat somo
;desire for now as . fnGts; but IT, tho want ,fd ot
creates oheorless blank which no profusion
| Of plants aud lnwora can Oil up. Some
times one observes two or three stately volumes
! in rod morocco, which evidently arc never
| looked ut, aud probably l1ave mover been read
an they do il to confirm the thought that thoir
| proprietorH look to other people, and not to
print, for fresh Impressions. But conversa-
tion whntover be it's merit, whatever be tho
clever uses mado Of it, docs not replace reading
as developer of knowledge all It docs is to
| onablo uB to use knowledge II we have it. In
this direction French married life is
| FAR 1NFEa1oR TO QUE OWN.
| Our women road; our men generally feel
learning; and without pretending that marriage
| is, With us, IN aid to study 1t is 20 certainly
whom We compare 1t to what occurs in France.
Music, on the contrary, ia more general in
folt and moro naturally utilized. There mar
riage serves M end, for it is particularly aftor
| marriage that FronchWomen attain tho skill
which distinguishes them in all the forms Of
| indoor adornment, which meanB tho daily ap-
| plicaton OF the home shapes Of art 70 this
| tho husbanda contribute good deal In
this they help their wives. But, whatever bo
the value OF such action, whatever be the addi-
tlOnhl httTactlOn u0st0W6u u4 Iuule Wy tub culH.
mon effort to add charm to It, the absenco Of
tho higher tondenotea Of intelligence implies an
| inferiority Of object which is ono Of tho weak
points Of tho entiro system. Tho sentiments
fiud full satisfaction III most French marriages
tho affections aro contented-family dutiea are
| attentively and eyon eagerly performed homo
ia decorated, 10 fur as tho purse Allows with tho
wise ambition Of rendering It moro Beductiye
but thoro il little culture Of tho intelligence, and
| tho pleasures which that culture is capabio of
nrojueug in MARRIAGE arc relatively unknown,
Even III the country reading does not aHsumo
m important place amongst tho occupations
OF tho day; there is moro Of It than in tho
| town., but not enough to justify tho statament
that it constitutes IN element Of lifo. As there.
| is less society in tho chateau and the village
than in tho contreB Of population, wives have to
look for something olse than gossip to enable
them to pass their hours. Homo cares absorb
considerable portion Of their titno -vias to the
| sick and moor, which fow women of
| tho hettor aort naelnct, cnntrihrtn to