St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-04-24


tIust in him.
Every properly constructed man holds
his wife ana children in the hottest
possible affection. There IS no sacrifice
that he would not make FOR them, no
luxery that he would not deny himself
10 make them happy. But ~ this very
tOrgetfulness or self. and love for his
own. is a terrible temptation, unless
his own help him to be true ~ himself
Let Us take a ease in point:
A Is the cashier OF a bank; he comes
OF good clean. unpOiiuted stock. he IS
naturally al upright ana honest man;
and the position that he holds he has
held with honor Tor many years; he is
married, and his wife and TWO daugh-
teTS, the latter Just entering society and
son half way through Harvard. rep
resent all that makes life worth living.
His salary and the income that lie de-
rlYcs from a little property OF
his own would, with economy. have
enabled him to properly educate
his son and give 10 his daughters such
an introduction 10 the social world as
they desired. But Ars. 4 Is what IS
what is called Il socially ambitions
woman: she loves her husband, but she
knows nothing OF tie value OF money,
and Mr. \ does not believe ia troubling
his family about such things. As a nat
raj result. Mrs \. althOugh she is fully
aware that they have but $4,000 year.
does not see why they cannot live like
the BIS. who have $1,000. EunOr ana
Helen must be brought uD as Mrs. )
daughters are brought uD, and are. III
fact, treated and INDUCED by their
mother as If they were heirs eNpectant
to q large fortune. Tom must Join the
nd tNtr 4
demonstrates little at this eXlTaya-
gance, lie is eIeetually squelched by
his better half by the remark hat he
surely must want 10 make the
college life of his only son happy And
so, for while. poor \ manages 10 get
along after a fashion, gradually en-
cr0aching all the time on his little priu-
clpal. until one tine day Il panic Ia the
money world comes along, as panlcS
have very uncomfortable way OF do
ing, aud the remains OF AS property
are swept away, and he has nothing left
but his salary TO depend on.
Now comes The crisis Of this mans
life. II he were alone in the world he
would simply cut his garments accord
ing 10 his clotn, and reduce expenses;
but can be bear to make those whom lie
loves unhappy? Can he ask them TO
give up all the luXurles which now seem
To them like necessities while chance
! remains 10 him 10 retrieve himself? No,
he cannot do that. He, who has always
held speculation In holy horror,
puts mortgage on his house
and rushes headlong into Wall street.
The market is against him; every step
that he takes drags him deeper and
deeper in his own ruin. At last he IS
irretrieyaOly involved; there seems no
hope OF escape open 10 him. and then It
is that the love for his family becomes
the temptation that ends in his disgrace.
The bank has certain funds that he
could have the use of without detection.
1t he could only have the use Of this
money for a short time, and make one
final plunge in the stock market, all
may yet be well with him. He tells
himself that he has gone too far to re-
tract now, and he yields aad becomes a
dctaulteT. Once again he tries his luck
in speculation. and again he loses; and
still again he uses the banks funds Tor
his own purposes. with the same result.
Then COMES the usual sequence In such
caseS-discOYerY. dlshOnor, suicide.
An exceptional case, you say. Not a
bit of it; it IS the history OF hundreds Of
unhappy men who have been driven to
crime through no other cause than the
sinful eXtravagaTccs of their own fami-
lies. They were honest for themselves {;
they were dishonest only for others.
But such case as nave outlined sug
gcsts its own remedy, which is perfect
confidence between husband and wife
on all money matters. a wife has a
moral, if not a legal, right to know her
husbands financial condition. 1t is not
necessary for Elm to continually talk
shop to her; but he can tell her in gen
eral terms what money he has and how
much he can afford to put out Tor gen
eral family expenses. And a real
womany woman will appreciate such
confidence on husbands part and he a
source of strength. and not of weak
ness, when the family purse is cramped.