The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-10-03
gutelligeueer.
Married Daughters.

Iho wonders OF American marriage
would, if they could be truly described.
interest European people more than tho
6ude and boisterous life described by
Bret Harte. Itwould astonish French.
man for example, to know that American
fnthsrg r9af their daughters in luxury,
smile on their marriages with peRnsiees
.clelizn. and mako absolutely no provision
Of q steadfaat kind for the future Of these
daughters. The Frenchman might ask
in amazement, not Why poor husband
is accepted, but how the daughter of
luxury is to be provided for, and on what
resources her children are to lean9 He
would probably be told that the fathers
mission ended with, the rdaushter's mar
riage; he would SEGA complaeent smile
on the .father'e face as, his fdends con.
graduated him, and would slowly gather
in that this complacency had tUo fators:
II have done my duty by her, and it is
over at last"
For our part. we have ceased to pity
poor girls growing up, in scanty homes
and marrying peDriless young men.
awaits them. They must DO content
with little all their lives but all their
youth has been preparation for such
content. But daughter bred in lux
urious idleness, taught mono Of tho econ
omies chat belong to humble iifes and
then married without dover, deserves
more pity than men usually bestow upon
her. And her husband, full of enter
prise and capacity, takes up burden
whose weight love may Tighten but can.
not carry. Business failures, broken
homes, miseries, and crimes, lie behind
this curtain.
Common sense is our boasted Ameri-
can virtue; but there 10 one subject to
which we rarely apply it. If we did, we
should see in strong light this simple law
of duty it is fathers solemn duty to
secure to his daughter, as far as ,es in
his power, that state in life to which he
has bred her. If he is poor, he has no
right to give her the luxuries of wealth
mo right az between her and him. If
he 10 rich, his wealth ought to be taxed,
and his forethought more seriously taxed,
to provide for her q permanent income,
which will procure for her that degree of
luxury to which she has been accus-
toned. -..--.. --.--.
The doctrine, that the fathers duty
ends when the husbands begins, IL
fearful deusion, full of the miseries
which sometimes reveal themselves in
divorces courts. y This husband may be
more than a father in twatchfuE solci
tude; but experience warns us from
every page Of life, that hs mny utterly
fail in his duty. Nature gave the daugh-
ter father, and has appointed no hour
when his duties cease. It is fearful |
misreadins Of Scripture which finds such |
limit in Gods word.
There is no sstire 60 keen, ]! We had
eyes to see and ears to hear, as that
which is enacted when q fond father
gives the penniless youth, to whom he
also gives his daughter, q sum of money
any OF us could overlook for moment
judged by experience, failure is the rule
and success the exception. In few years
the business win breAE down, and the
young wife, with children at Ter kneee,
will realize little what it is to be pooc
and the husband, whose business has
broken under the strain of living ex-
penaes, will realize little what it is TO
marry s portionleas child of luxury
For she was really portionless. The
European system Of dover would have
invested her fortune in the most secure
WY, would have kent it religiously se.
cured to her and her children, 30 that
whatever vicissitudes attend the business
of her husband, her living would have
hhan ygacu;se. hettar and hinder vav
than the usual one would be to rear these
girls in kitchen and shop; to keep from
them the sight Of fine clothes and costly
dinneTs-to train them for the hard work
of life. We have recently looked in
upon enc of these tragedies cf our Amer
ican life-the waste Of wife's fortune by
her husband. We saw no shame in the
NAME face. Tier father trusted me with
it." he said, when questioned; but there
was absolliielv no sign that he felt one
twirge of dist or, and yet he had done
the one meanest thing man can do.
There is no excuse for those who devour
widows houses, unless it be that the men
unblus!lingly commit the greater crime
CT putting the fortunes of their wives in
peril.
Women have many just causes of CON-
plant but the eriee come Of them utter
de. not touch their proper woes, If those.
ofthem vino know the real evil should
speak, they would say: "Our fathers
rear ns ,tanderly; but they marry us
without giving us practical advice: or
means of independence, or security for
the manner OF life into which we were
born. Our husbands take our portion of
goods, and treat it in all respects ca their
own. Neither fathers nor husbands ex-
ercise any sufficient forethought for our
helplessness and tb' of our children"
We are speaking OF .le rule; there are
many honorable exceptions, snd as wa
advance in real civilization, there will be
more of these exceptions.- - lielho9iss.v =