Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1874-01-15

| allows one of my ENTHUSIASTICALLY
birthday, wedding day to pass, without
fastening forward with an immense bou.
quet."
"And you believe that interested mo-
tives only-?'
ooh, no, my dear, not interest alone-no
-no-an interest made up, half affection
ate, halt-CalcUlated-an unconscious cal
culation, Of which one takes no account,
but the existence of which | surmise, or
iginating IN necessity by which profit,
while 1t does not veE me in the least!"
''Ah, you are really too bad. You dis
enchant-you take the poetry out OF every
thing! One must be capable OF such SEN
timents, in order to imagine them in
others! 1t is mOnstrous!"
by no means! 1t is quite natural. Old
people are very muC1 in the way. They
must make amends somehow. make
amends by hospitality"
''Say at once that our children take our
house for an innr'
All just so; the Golden Lionn Here are
lodged and boarded certain embarrassed
children, DESTROYS to economic. Have they
spent too much upon theaters, balls, con-
certs? Let's go and pass week with
papa! Is one of the children out of
sorts? Send him or her into the country,
to papa'sn And the child is sent-and
they all come at the same time. And, as
they are received with open arms, and as
they are spared all expense, and as papa
has good quarters and good table, and
as they find there good cap0ns and good
cartridges that the egotistical father is
enchanted to share with his children,
why, they come, and return, and remain
with pleasurei"
"Ah, how disgustingi He invests every
thing with egotism, even paternal lover"
"But, suppose, on the other hand" con-
tinued NJ. Desgranges, without appearing
to have heard his wife, suppose that
had doubled Madeleine's dover, accord
ing to your wish, what would have hap
pened? That at this moment our chill
dren, considering that our ssn-in-law is
somewhat of an enthusiast, would not
pei APPS be much richer, while L should
be a great deal poorer; that L could not
receive and entertain them for so lng a
time, nor so well; and that they would
come less frequently to us, because they
would be better off at home. All, my
dear, if our children had more money
| than ourselves, our daughter would have
| discovered six weeks ago that Villeneuve-
| SaintGe0rges is too damp in the autumn,
! and would have feared for the children
! the effect of the fOgs from the river, while
our son-in-law would have declared that
| these daily trips to Paris were affecting his
health. This brings me, therefore, to my
conclusion, which dedicate to all fathers
who have marriageable daughters: Would
you keep your children? keep your
money! Would you have pleasure in your
grandchildren keep your money! For
it is thanks to the money that the father
remains the head of the family; that the
fathers house remains the domestic raj
lying point-that is to say, an honorable
and comfortable retreat for the aged for
the young, a place of refuge and ENJOY
ment; for the babies, nest, to which they
will come in search of health, and some
times for nurture more judiciOus than that
of their mothers themselves; for all, in
short, center and a sanctuary, wherein
occur things to be remembered-where
successive generations grow up and grow
old, and wherein are perpetuated tradi-
lions of respect and affection! Call my
foresight, if you will, ejaculation and per
sOnality; for my part, | call it the true
paternal love, that which consists in max
ing children happier and better! For,
note well, my dear, that my son in-law
had, | am quite willing to believe it,
everything in favor of his becoming a
pattern sOn-in-law; but without this fore
sight Of mine, his good qualities would
perhaps have remained in budding state
only. To whom doe he owe it, if they
have bloomed? Plainly, to me!-Moral OF
the fable: I shallI1 add one sou to my
daughters dowryr'