The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1878-02-14
A DOMESTIC PICTURE.



IFrom scribners Monthly for February.l
In spite of all the statements to the
contrary, there are men who help take
care of their children. They are the
kindest and best husbands in the world.
They do not wish to see their wives over
burdened with care and worry, and they
intend to help them a great deal, and act
ually do. Yet it cannot be denied that
tEeir opinion concerning the value OF
their services and their wives opinion
on the same subject do not exactly COIN
eide. One of these good husbands will
help dress the children for breakfast,
and speak of it with grandly virtuous
air, while the fact is that he only washed
the face of one while his wife
washed and dressed the other three.
He helps get the children ready for
church; that is he buttons up Dicks
boots and helps Jenny put on her gloves
after he has leisurely and comfortably
dressed himself, while his wife ties
sashes, and hunts up odd gloves, and
puts on collars, and curls one cnild's hair
and washes another's hands, and in the
intervals "does up" her own hair, saves
the baby from the razor, and Jepny's
best bonnet from the baby. He stands
patiently O. in the hall as the bells be-
gin to toll, and mildly calls, cit is get
ting late, Maria" Which fact Maria
knows as well as he does, for her hands
are trembling 50 with nervousness and
haste that she can hardly put single
pin in its right place. Just as the last
stroke of the bell is sounding, they hurry
off to church, losing entirely the calm
ing influence which comes from a leis-
urely walk on fine Sunday morning.
He takes the opportunity to remark,
with just a shade of reproof in his gen
tie tones, 81 can't understand why it
takes you SO long to get ready. 1t real
ly does seem as if, with as much as do
to help you, we need not be obliged to
hurry SO at the last minute. Idon't like
to see you go ND the aisle with your face
as red as a lobster which, of course,
is very soothing to Maria's irritated
nerves.
The father cares for the baby at night
in very much the same fashion. The
mother has lifted the child into her own
bed, and hack into it's cradle again, in
the vain hope that in one place or the
other he Will go to sleep, has brought
" drinks of water, for him, rocked the
cradle and sung to its uneasy occupant
softly and sleepily for an hour, till final
ly she thinks that if she is to be in this
sen1j-aDaph55ioats state, half out of bed
and half in, the air from the open win
dow is too cool for her. She knows if
she tries to shut it herself the little ty-
rant will instantly miss her presence and
be ten times wider awake than ever, and
all the hours singing and rocking will be
labor lost. So, with much regret, she
softly asks John to get up and close the
window. He has lain remarkably still
and breathed rather heavily, and is
somewhat difficult to arouse for q
man who afterward declares he
was wide awake all the time. But,
like the good husband he is, he cheer
fully closes the window, and gets an
extra blanket for the baby, and pleas
antly asks, as be settles down into the
pillows again, "What makes the baby
SO uneasy night ?" He manifests
strange indifference to his wife's reply,
and, in fact, nothing more is heard from
him till morning, while his wife sleepily
and painfully works away for an hour
longer. But at breakfast, with what
calm complacency does he speak of the
trouble the baby made us last nj ght,
with an "us'' fairly editorial in its com
prehensiveness. The next thing he goes
into a room by himself to sleep. He
"can't stand it to have his rest broken
So but adds generously, "TIl take care
of him the next night" And SO he does
till about II O'Clock, when the baby
wakes and cries. For ten minutes he
tries faithfully to get him to sleep again,
and then ANONYMOUSLY retreats and calls
for :" mamma. From article 6y 1fIry
Blake, in Home and Society,"" Serb
7ae1' for Fe6ruary.