Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1896-12-17

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continuation, love is naturally subject
of perennial interest. The majority of
men, particularly when young, are very
curious to know the masculine kind OF
GLASS that women are most apt to fancy,
to be fond Of, to lose their hearts to.
Women are interested in the question,
too, for they are as little acquainted
with it as men are.
1t is indubitably true that men do
not know women, but is 1t not equally
true that women do not know them
| selvesP Both sexes have theories galore
about the matter. They may have col
lected many facts, but they have never
been able to arrive at anything like
general truth and never will Nature
keeps her own secrets inviolable.
Nevertheless men, unless merely mat
ter of fact, like TO speculate on the sub
ject-wonlan is invariably attractive in
one way or another-and their specula-
tions have resulted in numberless infer
ences more or less logical, though never
one of the inferences is that women are
predisposed to the clergy, to physicians,
to the military, to artists, authors, ao-
tors, independent of their individuality.
There is some foundation for this. But
is 1t not another way Of saying that they
incline to men Of mind and mark; to
men who are admired, talked about,
Ha%toro1s xrha oro 1ir,0IaI rv,k @~-,~- . L.
common herd; who appeal to their ro-
mantle sense, to their worship of distinc-
tion; who seem, like the princes Of the
fairy tales, that women are ever ready
TO identify with the realities Of this pro-
sale world? Women are certainly prone
to be drawn to men that are trusted,
that are made oonfidants, that are much
esteemed by and awaken interest in
their fellows
1t is not SO much with them what the
man really is as what they take him for.
Given man Of very ordinary quality,
with proper preconceptions on their part,
and they will soon transform him into
hero. Their power of idealization is
as immeasurable as it is mysterious.
For this reason all theories, all con-
illusions, all analyses, all facts even,
fail in the case Of women She may
have two suitors, one possessed of every
thing which, it might be supposed,
would captivate her imagination and
secure her heart. The other suitor may
be the incarnation Of commonplace, not
a spark Of wit, not suggestion of win
ningness But who can say she may not
accept the fellow Of everyday wear, that
she may not strive for him, not even
coquetting with his richly endowed RI
val? Such instances are too common to
excite notice. We may whistle to the
wind, we may long for star, we may
try to restrain the tide, but we never
predict if we have had any experience
On what manner of man a woman's love
may light.
If Miranda had not become enamored
Of Ferdinand, it might have been Cali
ban. Love, its poetization aside, is a
question of propinquity, and marriage
depends on the price Of provisions. But
when woman has free choice of vari-
ous lovers we are weak enough to won
der why she does not see with our eyes,
albeit reason compels us to admit that
she must use her own. We are all well
aware of the plain facts Of which the
divine passion, so called, is composed.
But still, when il comes our turn, we
are conjured out Of our common sense
and eagerly accept all the extravsgances
and follies that the passion inspires.
Every added year that man lives he
should marvel less and less at the e1-
traordinary matches women often make,
apart from pecuniary considerations.
But he really ymarvels more and more,
for he tries to account for women, and
they are totally unaccountable. Obserya-
tion teaches this as well as history. We
frequently meet a man so disagreeable
in every respect that we are amazed to
learn that he is married. We are con-
founded, on introduction to his wife, TO
find that she is undeniably charming in
person, mind and manners. How could
she have done it? The answer is our
recollection that, in many instances,
woman love is but paraphrase Of the
famous French fable Beauty and the
Beast"
Milonia Casonia SO adored Caligula,
a perfect monster of cruelty, the most
demoniac of all the Roman emperors.
that she declared she could not live
without him. He had threatened her
with torture to compel her TO divulge
how she had made him love her. When
his unparalleled crimes caused his as
sassination, she refused to leave his
bloody corpse and implored death at the
hands Of his assassins, who slew her
with her infant daughter.
Robespierre, who instituted the reign
of terror, who deluged Paris with blood,
who was savagery incarnate. had moth
ing in mind or body to commend him.
But his mistress worshiped him, the
cold, timid, selfish, gloomy, merciless,
forbidding man, the sea green incor-
ruptible, living in a small, dingy apart
ment on an income Of few francs
day. Eleonore Duplay, to whom he
was engaged, consecrated herself to
him, and her three sisters were devoted
to his comfort and his interests. Mime.
de ChaIabre, rich and noble, hun
gered for a single glance from those
haggard, squirting eyes He was idol
ized by many line women. who regarded
him apparently as a lay priest.
For Marat, one of the hideous trium
virate of the sev0lution, its most san
culinary fanatic, undorsized. ugly, hor-
ribly diseased, Albertine deserted her
husband to live with her repulsive para
mour in filthy cellars, cleaving to him
to the last
Verify the kind Of man that woman
loves is beyond divining. Love is, while
il lasts, stark madness II must rave it.
self out. It differs with individuals. but
is at bottom essentially the same. The