Rocky Ford enterprise., 1898-11-17

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matrimonial life that has always caus-
ed me good deal of wonder" said an
observant young unmarried woman
mot Of the new" species), who, how
ever. is not to be unmarried much
longer, says the Washington Post. rs
the-well, the slump that most men
and women take in the matter Of dress
year or two or perhaps three or four
years after they're married. ! saw my
elder brother little while ago, and his
general appearance caused me to fall
now been married for about three
years. Before he was married he was
the very pink of neatness and the mod
el Of grooming II do say SO myself.
as Is his sister. never saw a neater
man than Jim was in every respect
connected with what is nowadays
called q makeup
He wasn't dude. nor bowling
swell, nor an exquisite, or anything
like that: but he certainly was a well
got up man In every detail. He wasn't
extravagant. but everything he had in
the way of clothing was fine and he
girls didn't dare to touch any Of his
things. He'd rave over 1t II we did.
All Of our girl friends used to remark
to us that they thought Jim was such
neat boy. and We were proud Of him.
l used to esteem 1t a great honor when
Jim would invite me to take walk
with him. for he was invariably such a
neat-looking and well-dressed man
that he actually attracted attention.
We'll. Jim was up to the house this
afternoon to see us. and Jim is a
slouch. That's precisely the word for
it-slouch. No other words fits. He
has a first-rnte income from his bus
iness. and he can afford to keep him-
self up to the limit as the boys say,
but he is now just a natural-looking
slouch, nevertheless. He had on a good
suit of business clothes, but 1t was
baggy and out OF shape, and 1t needed
pressing. There wasn't sign of
crease in the trousers-and he used,
before he was married. to be 80 partic-
ular about that. His shoes were run
down at the heel-something there is
absolutely no necessity for. His derby
hat was good. but 1t needed brushing
badly. He wore u made-up tie-of all
denominations. He had two days
growth OF beard on his face and his
coat was dandruffy all over.
Jim.' said to him, you've got to
be dreadful slouch.'
"'Oh. don't bother me, sis,' he re-
piled. I've got no time to be monkey
ing around with clothes. like used to.
What's the dif, anyhow? Amt mar
ried and shelved?'
That's the idea these married folk
have about this matter of neatness In
dress-'married and shelved.' It's an
utterly erroneous idea, IL do say SO,
as hasn't yet been married and don't
know nothin' about what I'm talking
about. Now, Jim's wife has also be-
come slouch. Before she was married
to Jim she was the tidiest girl ever
met. In fact, my mother used to
throw her up to us girls in the house
as the very incarnation of neatness
She didn't dress expensively before
she was married. but tastefully, and
she always looked like a very Gibson
girl Of grooming For about year
after her marriage to Jim she remained
the same way. Then she began to
change. +" ..-EI
THE other morning I went over to
have her go down town on a shopping
expedition with me. l found her sit.
ting In rocking-chair. with an old
soiled wrapper on. and slippers run
down at the heel, and her hair done up
in kids tthose dreadful kidsD and she
eho tpv
breakfast with Jim in that rig! Well
before I'd let any husband of mine see
me that way! She dressed to accom-
pany me down town, and looked posi-
lively dowdy! The old-time neatness
was all gone. There was nothing es-
pecially about her to criticise-but she
was dowdy all over. Jim is a very
generous man, and he provides her
with all the money she can possibly
want. Yet she is dowdy. We are great
pals. and therefore l wasn't afraid to
tell her that she was hopelessly dowdy.
oh, nonsense, she replied. 'Wait'u
you've been married for few years.
Why should l want to primp I'D like
you? Am / not an old married wom-
an?-and she's only twenty-fiye!
We'll, l think this is all wrong. as |
say, and, without going into any very
elaborate details OF prediction, I want
to go on record as saying that any
man that may ever happen to marry
is going to have creases in his trousers.
even II they are made of blue Jeans.
until he is 112 years old. II he lives
that long, or else there won't be any
flatirons or ironing boards in my neigh
borhood! And If, twenty years after
we're married, when he takes me out,
he is not able to size me up and reflect
that am just about as neat, even II
am not SO well-dressed. woman as
there is within the range of his vision,
I haven't got even little bit Of the