Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1882-11-15
4 Hardship of Marriage.


me LIFE WORK or WHEELER SEVERE
LABOR.
Col. + w. UigginSon in tho VODlnn's
Journal, says: We arc constantly told
that the life work of wife is rs arduous
and rs absorbing as that of Der husband.
We IRE told that if she does her duty to
her family. she can have 70 time to study
metaphysics or to put Il slip of paper into
- btlIot box think it was the conserv-
alive DE-, L lward H. Clarke who declared
thai The du les of the mother of a family
required rs much toll of brain and body
as those cf the captain of ship. Grant
1t ALL grant that she works as hard as
hef hnsbnni does. If so. the Inference is
irresistible that she earns her share Of the
family income. The fact that he receives
the money md pays the bills makes him
he treasurer Of the family. that is all;
and he has M more right thpn any ut her
'rca'uroi - take airs upon himself and
talk nonsense. When he pays ont money
| to her Il is no! as a gift, but ~ earnings
In many cases the money all came rs
her dnwrv 10 begin With. n many other
cases she does her full share in the dircc
earnings of the income. As rule. am
told actresses and women who sing in
public support their families, incluIing
their hr,bunds. IN our New Eogland
'TmlnE regions the wife's work is not
oiii 's hard "a the husbands but Il con
S'dtr bic share of the direct money yet.
,ng c-m'1 upon her For Fwning in
NV En&l,nd while Welding c1mforta.
6le support, Yields bHt little in the form
oi money; and in m nv cases the greater
part Ol The actml cash receipts during the
summer months comes through the ener-
gy of the wife in taking city boarders.
In Il farmhouse near my summer abode,
a cook is hired at four dollars week,
while the boarding season lasts, and
a 'sGcond girln at three dollars and
a hrIf In another farmhouse near by,
the young wife of the farmer does all this
work herself, with the assistance of little
girl OF twelve; and she does it rs well and
for nearly as many boarders. Considering
merely the wages she ives, her work is
worth nearly II dollar day; and consd-
ering the profit she brings to the estab-
lishment, it is worth probably three times
that. Yet probably the payment is gener-
ally made through her husband as treas
urer, and whatever money she spends
would be regarded by the neighbors as
gwen lcI ny ulul. anu IL tnc ldtlQ Is
paid for by their joint accumulatons, the
neighbors would considcr-and indeed
the law would assume-that it was paid
for by him, and belonged to him.
am perfectly willing to admit that in
the majority of cases this whole matter
settles itself; but there is L large majority
OF cases where the wife is kept, during
her whole life, in n false position from
false theory of treasurership. There is
no doubt cases where Il man earns great
fortune, while his wfe's existence is that
of butterfly. These cases are rare; tax
ing one family with another, the wife
works rs hard as the husband; and the
fact that his share involves the handling
of The money does not make it his money
1t belongs to both, and what he pays over
to her is no, Il gift but matter of right.
This was present to me from my wife,"
said rich man showing an ornament.
"Bought with your money!" said friend
loosely. mol! he said, tout of her own
hard earnings. She keeps house for man
of your acquaintance!'