Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-09-25
A Woman,s AIIomance.

fLVctScfoccEttgs
A year or two before | was married l
boarded one winter with very excellent
family in n Western village. The husband
and father was good man, but he had
what his wife called his "tOuchy points"
and, good and honest man though he was,
some of these ''Louchy points" were q
lifelong source of actual sorrow to his
wife, who was a good and faithful wife
and mother, tidy, thrifty and ever-watch-
full of the common Interests of the family.
She was economical to the last degree and
most Industrious. She seemed to me to
be model wife. Her husband thought
so, too, aud would have angrily resented
anyimputation to the contrary. He taught
his children to honor and love their moth
err, although failing. as it seemed to me,
in manfesting love and honor for her
himself at all times, but these times we're
only when his 'touchiest point had been
pressed upon.
One day / accidentally heard the wife
say to her eldest daughter, ''NO, dear; |
cannot ask your father for money for you
to get new nat. You know how very
touchy be is on that point. / sometimes
lie awake half the night trying to devise
some method o. scrimping or saving so
that / need not say the word money to
your father. Nothing hurts him 30 much
as to be asked for little money. | dread
to think of asking him for money for any
thing"
| was engaged to Mrs. Dane at that
time, and | made a solemn vow that she
should have a purse Of her own and that
it should never so empty if had any
thing to put in it. We have now been
ma ried six years and l have faithfully
adhered to that resolution. And there is
no ''tiXed sum" about it. Household eX-
penses vary at different seasons of the
year and under various circumstances.
Ten dollars Will, perhaps, cover all The
expenses one week, and the next may be
a canning" or company" week and
several extra dollars VIII be required. In
any case, l resent the idea that my wife
is a mere pensioner on my bounty; l re-
ject the Imputation that she has not COM
mon sense enough to know the value of
money and dare not be trusted with 1t. |
am not "woman's Fighter" in tn pOpu-
lar sense of the term, but | thank the
Lord that l am man enough to recognize
the fact that my wife, as my wife and the
mother OF my children. has rights, money
spendInk rights, that l have no business
interfering with. Every coed wife should
nave this right as royal marriage pre-
rOgatjve. ! regard Mrs. Dane as an equal
partner in the contract under which we
have become firm for life. We share
pronts and losses alike. There is one
money drawer to which we both have free
access. | have not the inclination nor the
right to limit my wife in Der daily ex-
penditures so long as those expenditures
are within reason. Most wives and moth
ers honestly earn all they spend. A woman
who does her duty as Wife and mother
earns more than money can pay for. 1t
must be very humiliating to a woman to
bave to humbly and tremblingly ask her
husband for the money she must have for
her actual daily expenses. Amy sensitive
wOmanlY woman must feel il something
of degradation to have to thus ask, or
even coax. for money given grudgingly
and complainingly at last.
knew of a woman who said once that
the only way she could get money from
her husband for other than her actual
household expenses, was by 'watching
her chance and slyly extracting bills
from his purse when he was asleep or his
coat was off. Imagine wife forced into
such degrading act as that! Women
are often compelled to practice mean,
niggardly, cruel economy in order to
make their expenses come within the
limit fixed by memorable husbands, who
would furlously resent any interference
with their own expenditures.
believe that this simple question Of the
wiie's allowance has wrecked the happi-
ness OF many a household. Men are 50
often blind and unteeling and unreasOn-
able in this matter. And Of course there
are women who must have tight rein
kept upon them because OF their tendency
TO willful and woeful eXtrGvagance. There
is, fear, little chance for happiness in a
home having such mistress over it. But
the majority Of women can safely be trust.
ed. Let the husbands OF wives thus wOr-
thy trust them and this trust will not often
be abused.
that money is safer with women than
with men. Most women can beat man
"all to pieces" making bargain, and the
marketmen and grocets seldom get ahead
of them, whereas most men are careless
purchasers.
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