Telegram-herald., 1889-09-23
WIVES OF GREAT MEN
Many Public Figures Owe Success
% Marriage.
Hz@aEk.sls C4s~s-~ ~lfes sf the rresi.
dsaa1s-6Fest asa a. = Bale are aae-
PLY AaFrisd = ases- GArdsld,
H&S~.. llsssi4lds Losss. H..



more and more q TIA successful nee Il
lns Tines. snd learns more and mere
aoout tEslE 14lly hvss. ths stronger De-
scnlss his sonsictio1s that ths men %
waoa fortuns smiles have Ekelr wives
a. often ~ LAalk a. the fzJes AArriass
= certainly a0t failure agaonz states
1sn- doubt Il Il - . failure. OF any-
~Aers nsAr failure. with Ehs Enen ~hO
achieve success Ii any deid Of human
sudsaEor. Though Il - sasy % deducs
from The divorce statistics Ehas, taxing
the country through. one Glarrlage IA a
dozen ends W sepaEarlCn, tue fair infer
euce from this being taat for every 81
gorce tlsre Ars four or ave other matrl-
Dcnial nlisrts. giving The startling tolai
Of 50 per cenL u failures. 40 such ruls
applies 10 the successful nen - class.
Tho mzn WLo achieves political or
other success Ia these DAYS d9es - ID tho
lace OF hercs competition. II BE- would
reach the summit. a senAtorship. . seat
10 tie cabinet. Or on rle supreuIs bench.
OE hlzh Place among the u.smDe.s u
the housz " representatives, aIs hfs
u4lss 5e a record of successes. A single
failure, one mistake, Is often fata- The
race s 70 the strong, the victory 10 the
enduring. aud hence the nan who makes
q mistake 10 that most Important o. al
undertakings. that most ssrlOus Of al
contracts. na-riuiony, generally finds
himself ourrun b his more fortunate
fellows. hJtie philosophy like this
makes IL easy 10 understand the fact
which Is Impressed on the mind Of every
pecs0a who vel Knows many succes ssful
men.
SO place In this country Is equal 70
Washington for study of the influence OF
Nlges upon the fortunes Of ambitious
men. and lt is a genuine pleasure 70
write down the fact that the wife seems
stronger ani more potential the closer
Der work IS scanned With surprisingly
fc~ exceptions the great public men of
today are happily and successfully mar
ri~d. NOT only happily, which means
love and peace in the household. bat
successfllily. In the sense that they have
life partners worthy Of them. partners
who ara Intellectual as well IS moral
-
% mind the famous men who owe much.
very much, 10 their wives, whose wives
have helped make them, the number OF
sucn Is snon seen - Do strikingly large.
some of these may DO properly named
here.
There are exceptions to the rule, OF
,our~e, men OF power and genius. who
fhor,aofvoa tboftrI
weighted down by partnership with wo-
men not their equals. with women who
have Httle character. small intellects, de-
lfciens emotion and bad instincts. None
sof these viii I mention by name, because
ilt would 10 highly improper 10 do so;
Bat could point the pen toward a num-
Aer Of successful men who deserve all
the more credit for their accomplish
tnents from the fact that their marriages,
though not productive Of positive unhap-
piness. have resulted in failure in the
broader sense.
Another fact which the student Of
sociology will do we'll TO consider Is that
a surprisingly small number Of success
ful men aro bachelors. | cannot call to
mind ia congress dozen men who never
married. though. OF course. there may
be more than that, and there are also a
number Os widOwers. IL appears TO be
pretty weil understood in this country
that bachel0rhoOd is a positive handicap
% the ambitious man. particularly il he
Is a politician. The people look upon a
bachelors life "a a thing incomplete.
lacking. suspicious. Bachelors now in
congress say they could be more EASILY
reelected. could. with less expense and
effort. hold their own at home. had
they wives to help them. II it is
true that wife Of the right sort
Is help to n statesman at home, IL is
dCubiv true OF his efforts at the capital.
Here the good wife-the gifted. intui-
tive. Intellectual wife--is jewel. There
ars many prominent public men who
have wives that shine IN society. make
friends for them, help them hold the
friends they have. there arc many. too.
whose wives help them think. The man
with no wife at al Is at great disad an
taxe. the man who does not marry JOINS
those other unf0rtunates. the misfts. IN
giving comfort 70 pessinist who hold
that marriage is n failure. Samuel j.
Uijen would have been a mora
popular man had he married: 50
would James Buchanfn. and though
Grover Cleveland was elected president
when bachelor. snd defeated after be
r.ulrg benedict. no one VIII deny
chat las marriage o. handsome Frances
Folsom gained him new popularity and
brought bim closer 60 the people.
uavv Burns. whose house. the frs:
hu.r in Washington. still stands jass
smith - ,he White House. once said a
rerv suggestive and rather imperfineni
ching to George " Washington The "a
tlier ~ las country had been trying q
bay Burns land 90 build the Federal
Ci-r upon. tut Burns vas obdUrate and
irriiahles and the negotiations were al
tirnss conducted in bad h1mor. Finally
che Old Scotchman exclaimed. What
would vou have amounted -. George
WsshinEfon. II it hadnt been for the
" dow Custis7' The suggesriveness oi
this remark viii be apparent when enc
remembers tlat " sshngtons marrif-s
was certainly the best stroke q good
lncs thnt ccult have come 80 him ~ the
time r. is really serious question Z
Washington would have bsccme A great
man tut Tor this fortunate maTria5a.
Eis wife brouQhs him wealth. oet1ered
h.s =,cisl position. gave nim opporso.
a'rr and throughout life VAS hss heip'
rree+ ard a. user The wives ~ the pres
fr---t- .,-ssf. 80 -.-.-,s-f--r-s rara rarr
vwttr partners = great men. Abigail