Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1893-07-14

which ought to be eXposed?" said a Gel
tain bright little woman to New York
Sun reporter the other day.
''Of course
''Well, I'm it."
Your
Yes, I'm a whited sepulcher. I'm
a popular fallacy. I'm delusion and
d snare and false prophet"
Nonsense! What do you mean?'
''Well, 1 am supposed to be mistress
Of a fine house, with money, and SER
wants to do everything for me, am l
not? Of course l am. And you think
my life is one long, lazy, luxurious
round Of doing as 1 please? Precisely.
L knew you did. And you envy me.
And when you think of me it is with
capitals, as happy housewife? Just
lie awake nights wishing you were my
cook? All! you do not. Nor my wait
ress? No. Nor my maid? Not even
that. Well, just let me inform you
that you are deceived. 1 am not a
happy housewife. 1 don't think such
a thing exists. I'm slave. A miser
able, abused downtrodden. fettered
slave! If you want to enjoy a life that
is as free as the ocean wave, as full OF
satisfaction as it is empty Of RESPONSE
bility, become a cook or domestic ser
want Of some sort. Any day in the
year a good cook may take her Stantiai
incomes. Once enScOnced, she has her
regular work, her regular hours, with
ample compensation. She does not
have to rise early nor remain up late.
Her mind is not distracted by multi
plicity of duties. She is able to plan
her engagements weeks ahead, for she
knows when she will be free.
But, greatest Of all privileges, if the
cook wearies of the fare, or doesn't like
her mattress, or thinks she doesn't get
enough breeze in her room, she can
drop it all at q moments notice. If
she is tired of New Yorl and thinks she
will try Newport, she needs only to
make up, her mind to that effect If
Newport pals upon her she can HE
herself to the Pier; or if she pines for
religious advantages her weeks wages
will quickly transport her to Ocean
Grove. In fact, she can roam the wide
world DER and there is no one to say
her nay. She can save enough money
during the winter to take her back to
the 'ou1d country for the summer
and she doesn't leave furniture behind
for moth and rust to corrupt, nor a
house where thieves may break in and
steal. She is absolutely certain of find
ing a good home with salary at what
ever time and place the fancy or the
necessity comes.
''Now, look at me! Responsibility
hangs upon me like the Old Man Of the
Sea on Sinbad's shoulders. I must be
cook, waitress, housemaid, health in
spector, nurse, seamstress, justice of
the peace, teacher, confessor, adviser
and judge i'm my own household. That
is enough to try the resources Of any
human being. But in addition I must
decide on the wardrobes of myself, my
children and my servants, in so far as
they appear in my household affairs.
must be tortured by dreSsmakers; must
wear myself out in perfunctOry social
duties; must hear and attend to the
calls of charity; must cultivate music,
art, literature; be up ON the latest novel,
opera, exhibitions; must identify myself
with my church work, and must enter
tain people who will rend my PERSONAL
ty and my acts in tatters after they de-
scend the front steps. Suppose am
tired and want to throw off the care
Of all these duties. Can I? Hardly.
I am chained to them. The children
must be fed, clothed and trained. The
house-and that is the bugbear of half
the women living-the house must be
kept going"
'Why don't you just close 1t up and
go away?" ventured the reporter.
"Close it up! That shows that You
don't know anything about it. If
closed it up, the moths get in and eat
up the chairs and carpets; the thieves
carry off the silver and bric-a-brac;
more burglars cut up the lead pipes,
and the water floods the house; must
and dust take possession except where
they are routed by mould, and weeks
If work will not make the place habit
able again. Then, too, ff I have ser
rants who are satisfactory, dare not
ct them go lest I may never see their
ike again"