The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-01-21


market" said his wife.
"Well, how can you expect 1 will think
of everything?" demanded Mr.. Golding
sharply, treating his wife's excuse as a
complaint against himself.
I don't blame you for it, john" said
his wife mildly. 81 know you must have
a great deal to think Of But, then, you
know it is not my fault"
II you had only reminded me of the
squash this morning, should have
thought of it," said Mr.. Golding re-
proachfully.
His wife might have answered that
there was no reason for her supposing he
would forget that particular article,
more especially as she knew he was more
than ordinarily fond of it. Many wives
would have been induced to say thus
much in extenuation, but as has already
been said Mrs. Golding was very mild,
and it was not in her disposition to "carry
the war into the enemy's country"
She accordingly was discreet enough
to say nothing. But not thus easily was
her husband to be silenced.
81 ses," he grnmbled, 'that the pota.
toes are boiled as usual. when you know
how particular am to have them baked.
1t really seems as if had only to wish a
thing to make sure that it would not be
forthcoming"
GLOW can you say SO, John?" said poor
Mrs. Golding, the tears starting to her
eyes.
swell, isn't it SOP" repeated her hus-
band, hardening himself, in spite of his
half-conviction that he was getting very
unreasonable. Haven't time and time
again told you that 1 considered baked
potatoes infinitely preferable to boiled?
Can you deny that? AS it is what with the
beef that Ihave got sick of, and the squash
that is missing, and the potatoes that are
cooked just the way don't like them, I
am not likely to make very good din
ner"
"Perhaps," said Mrs. Golding with a
spice of spirit, ''it would have been better
to make sure that there were no baked
potatoes before finding fault with me. II
you will lift that cover you will find
them"
Mr.. Golding lifted the cover, but his
ingenuity at fault finding was by no
means exhausted.
81 dare say" he grumbled that they
are cold. II there's anything that re-
quires to be warm, it is baked potato. !"
So saying he took one of the potatoes
in his hand, which so far from being cold,
proved little too hot for him to hold
comfortably in his hand.
But it is needless to pursue the copver-
sation further. 1t is but a single illus
tration of what happened far too often.
One day when her husband had been
unusually unreasonable and fault find
ing, Mrs. Golding unable to resist the
impulse, burst into tears which further
exasperated her husband, who left the
house in pet.
Before his wife had fully recovered
from her tears, a friendly neighbor enter
ed, who at once noticed that something
was the matter. Mrs. Golding, though at
first reluctant, was finally induced to re-
veal to her sympathizing visitor the
cause of her grief. Had the latter
been a mischief maker, this might have
proved unfortunate, but such was not
the case. She was women of wisdom
and experience, and possessed no small
knowledge of human nature.
81 think" she said, after pause, "that
it you will implicitly follow my direc-
tons I can put you in a way of curing
your husband Of his disposition to find
fault"
"Do you really think you camp" asked
Mrs. Golding eagerly. allow shall &c
to work?"
"In the first place." said Mrs. Bertram
I'm quite confident that the habit has
grown upon him gradually and almost
imperceptibly."
at has, indeed. When we first mar.
ried, he scarcely ever found fault with
me-"
"He is not now probably aware of the
extent to which it governs him and
would be very much surprised to be told
that he was behaving unkindly to you
But this does not alter the fact. What
he needs is a mirror in which he can see
himself"
"And how shall he be provided with
such mirror"
"You must do it. For day or two you
must assume his own habit of fault-fnd
ing. He will be surprised and disturbed
and when he asks for an explanation
you must tell him your object"
This proposition was rather a startling
one to mild Mrs. Golding, but after time
she came to see that it might be product
i've of good and after some further ad
vice and instruction from Mrs. Bertha %
she felt prepared in measure to carry
it out.
When Mr.. Golding came home it 81
CHANGED that his wife was in the from
entry.
upon my word, Mr.. Golding," she
said, with as much sharpness as hel
voice was capable of conveying; sit seems
to me you think nothing of tracking mud
= IL n l. 10 L., h.