The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-06-18
WIDOWS In FRANCE
Customs WHICH MAKE THEIR LOT
ANYTHING GUT PLEASANT.

Their Property Rights Are Almost Nil
Their Chances For Social Recosnitio,
Contingent Upon the Possession of 9
Daughter or = Second Marriage.
The Paris widow is surprise. I can
not tell exactly what had expected, hui
Tor some reason or other the thought OF
French widows always called up vague
recoliections of the bereaved young person
In "A Trip to Chinatown" 1 humbly
beg the pardon Of the real Paris widow.
She is much more like the oriental wives
who die on the funeral pyres of their hus-
bands, and she is often almost as secluded
as if she were buried alive
Naturally this does not refer TO 9Th,
people,, as the French call the WORKING
classes When the small grocery man
dies his widow, who has sat at the desk
and been cashier and bookkeeper during
his lifetime, sits there still, and every.
thing goes on as before except that there
Is WE" put before the name to show
that Widow (Veuve) Maurice, e" or what
ever her name may be, is at the head of
the business. There is no ATTEMPT made,
as there often is in America to give the
impression that affairs are In the hands Of
man. The women are too shrewd and
experienced as shopkeepers to need any
such pretense.
With the women of society it is differ
emit 1t Is not easy for stranger to make
observations in this field and above all in
the direction of widows. The easiest way
10 gain information is to cultivate some
widow who has seen better days and get
her 10 reveal the secrets of her sad estate
This Is not difficult. Widows with money
are the prey of designing relatives and
interruptions guardians so that there are
always plenty of them who have been re-
duced TO keeping hoarders, which, after
the pawnshop, is their sole resource.
In France if a husband dies without
will, leaving widow, but no children.
all his property, even though 1t may have
been held in common during his lifetime,
goes to his family. His widow has moth.
ing. If he dies without a will, leaving q
widow and children, all the property goes
to the children. The widow may live on
the income with her children, provided
She can arrange it with their guardian,
Tut if he IS so inclined he can forbid her
receiving cent from her children and
compel her to earn Der own living. 1t il
terrible isn't it?'
1t was bright, attractive little French
woman of 40 who told me this She has
been widow ten years, and although
her husband left her a fortune of $780,
900. and although she bad her own dot Of |
Si2, 600, she is now keeping boarders for /
the princely sum Of So a week. Her broth
er-in-law, in whose bank her entire for. !
tune was placed, failed at judicious iR-
terval after her husbands death, and /
Nine I. found herself with young son
to educate without income and without |
resources except a small country house |
This she sold and put her 1a-year-old boy !
IN college. By the advice of prominent /!
lawyers she set about trying TO recover 4
her dot, which is supposed to be the in |
alienable property of married woman |
She failed, and In the meantime had sold |
or pawned most of her jewelry and furni-
ture.
Do I ever wish I had daughter?''
said Mime. Il. when / asked her the cues
ton. "Oh, no. 1 can never be too thank
full that have none. Without money she
could not hope to marry well, and her life
would be ruined. With a son it is differ
ent. His career is entirely changed, but
it does not make such a hopeless thing OF
his life If l had money? Oh, yes Then
would wish for a daughter, because that
would make it possible for me to go out
occasionally and mingle with the world"
But if you had money, couldn't you
do thate''
And then Nine T. explained to me
state of affairs which was appalling from
an American point of view. a French
widow becomes lost to sight and quickly
forgotten by society. She cannot go TO
or balls or dinners or muscales
or anything in which the heart of woman
delights. This law OF the conventional
titles does not apply to the period of mourn
ing only. 1t Is a perpetual lock and key
on any spirit of effervescence or natural
desire to be something besides housekeep.
ing hermit II, however, she has been
blessed with a daughter and enough mon
ey TO make presantable appearance in
society, she can take her daughter out
when that young lady is old enough. a
son is not a sufficient excuse for this en-
trance into society. Therefore blessed be
the daughters OF widows.
But under no circumstances can she 80 |
into society before she takes her daughter
with her. If she has intimate friends, she
may dine with them, but ii must be strict .
" en- famille. Ii these friends are of a |
turn of mind, they will oc-
invite some man To dine at the
same time, and IN this way the widow 1 ,
has an opportunity to speak to her fellow
men.
when these friends invited You to dine
With them and asked some man to meet
Tou, was it with tina idea of giving you
IN opportunity 10 find another husbandg"
Yes, " admitted Nine 7. They knew {
hat my life was practically closed if did
lot marry again, and they wanted to give {
ne the chance"
And If you found acquaintances you |
liked, why could you not invite them TO |
line with you, and let them bring their {
friends, and 50 enlarge your circle, all in /
very quiet wayy' ,
Because / couldn't. Because again, ?
was widow. ii had invited any gen :
lemen, or if they had come to see me, the q
oncierSe would have complained Of me. /,
There are two classes of human beings 9
n France who have no.libcrty. They are | :
Dung girls and widows, and of the two
he former are much the happier because I
heir seofusion does ccme To an end, since | :.
hey are almost sure to marry. The wild. y
" is liberated hy the same method, bus +
he road is more difficult enc. Paris :
or. New York Sun. :