Evening star., 1900-07-14
OTHER WOMENS HUSBANDS
SOMETIMES HELP con-
TENTMENTr ALONG.
And Reconcile q Wife With Her Own
Matrimonial Part.
nerS IA. IN
Written for The Evening Star.

The greatest waste Of sympathy in the
world is undoubtedly that pity expended
by the public upon the woman who is not
| married as happily as society considers she
should be. Women are pharisees when it
comes to their own domestic grievances
pharisees thanking Providence In their
hearts that Whatever may come to them
they are at least spared the notifications
that fall to the lot of certain other women
they know.
If you doubt this assertion take your
sewing and make round of visits in the
neighborhood, as did one morning recent
ly. Mrs. Jones of the tricky husband was
the first one 1 called upon Her home was
luxuriously and artistically furnished: it
had the air of material comforts; Mrs.
Jones greeted me In a gorgeouSly embroid-
cred kimona. She Is a worldly woman. and
although the things she has found out
through some lawsuit In which her husband
was proved a rascal have furrowed hard
lines Of cyncism and distrust in her face,
there beams above and beyond this
preston one of material comfort and
abounding self-satisfaction.
1 admired the kimona. She smiled with
gratified vanity. "Yes, think it beauty.
Tom bought 1t for me on his last trip from
Japan
1 think just here Mrs. Jones saw in my
eyes speculation as to what sort of an un-
derhand business venture had taken Tom
to that countr'' for she said, with quick
flash of comprehension: Il declare, Tom Is
the best fellow in the world to his family
so generous, SO considerate. He loves me
to have handsomer clothes than any other
woman, and for bills, he never fusses
about them. Did I tell you he has just
given Mabel a diamond necklace?''
NO" 1 replied
well. he did. You know, she has her
coming-out party this winter and she was
crazy for one; diamond necklaces are SO
swell for debutaptes.'
''It Is lovely" 1 said, "for her to have
such a generous father"
Yes" agreed Mrs Jones complacently,
81 tell you a woman can stand a lot Of
shortcomings in man. She has to put up
at least with some dreadful fault when she
marres, but l think l could endure any,
thing better than selfishness and stinginess.
If a man is open-handed and generous to
his family, other things can be forgiven
They will be human, you know"
Her hard lips gave cold, comprehensive
her glittering rings with smile of cheerful
complacency. why" she went on there
are some things a woman just can't endure
Look at Mary Smith next door Now, If 1
had a husband like Fred Smith, I'd have de-
serted him long ago. He is what people
call high-toned in a way, but don't cali 1t
honorable for man to live like the lilies
of the field. to dress inamaculate:y. and
spend every bit of the little income he has
on his blessed self, leaving a wife to strug-
81, hi'b skimp out an existence any way
s.. an for herself and a lot of children.
That's not my idea of honor"
Nor mine, either 1 agreed. And then,
after bit of mere chat, betook myself
had to say about 1t. I found her darning
beside a basket of stockings that must have
seemed as hopeless as the sea did to the
vessel with the sieve. She smiled and of
fered me cordial greeting. Her face was
worn and pinched, her gown out at elbows;
the room was bare and comfortless
Il have just been over to Mrs. Jones'"
l said. She wore a gorgeous kimona Tom
brought her from Japan'
Mrs. Smiths lips curled into a smile of
amused derision. How can a woman ac-
asked. impatient disgust in her voice
Why, how can she live with him? OF
course, she knows we all know she knows
why, she doesn't deserve any more respect
than he does
She seems to think he's all right" said
on. that's a pretense, confidently and
W'6n hs some degTee Of she
He has just given Mabel a diamond
necklace" 1 answered.
ell, can't have any respect for either
Mabel Mabel or her mother. Why,"-hr eyes
blazed and I knew she was in earnest."I
can understand woman's enduring a lot
In man, all women must endure some
thing more or less. but to have him an un-
mitigated sharper like Tom Jones-that
endurance is beyond me-
You You think you'd get divorce?" asked
certainly, she answered. "AL the
to man like that. Anything but that"
Her eyes fell on the basket of bulgine
stockings and her face flushed a bit. of
course she said rather haughtiy, as If 1
had spoken, "men are not perfect Some
nave been accustomed to more indulgence
than others; one has to concede in mar
rage to ones husbands peculiarities. He
may have fragrant faults, but If he is up
rlght. man to man, In his business dealings
why, that fact makes up for all foibles.
1 gasped. 1 knew it would be this way,
and yet 1t had turned out absurdly true
that the experiment gave an amused and
also guilty feeling. 1 felt as if had lived
long with both these women through their
altogether different marital experiences,
and as If l could see and understand the
lace We find 1 thought to myself, 'in the
domestic miseries of our neighbors."
My theory became rock Of adamant
when I talked with the woman whose hus-
band gambled most of the time and
never at home. day night. She spoke
with peculiar bitterness of meddling man
In the house, and Simply wouldn't stand 1t.
The woman whose husband loafed at home
and bossed said-give her anything on earth
but a gaddtng husband; that no matter
how much man fused around his own
ireside. wife felt much more comfortable
to have him there. She knew then he was
not getting in mischief somewhere else.
To cap the climax, on the very day these
conversations occurred called upon Maria,
my washerwoman, and found her with her
Pa hit 'er." said one of the black imps
by the washpot.
'Shet yo mouf. jimmy" interrupted the
woman; Then turning to me. AN s'pose
he did, she added. defensively: Some
men folks dey get ALFRED mad all ter
onct, but dat amt no sign dey gwine to
sulk 'roun' de house all de time. Epsie's
nfgger, he nebber hit her no time but he
dat grumpy all de time dat he seem lax
he gittin 'ligion. He sulk an sulk an neb-
ber give out a pleasant word. Desc chill
lun's pa, he git savigrous. but most de time
he 10kin' and maxim US all laugh. Den,
my Gawd. ye know, miss If man don't git
mad at yer an wanter kill yer now an
den hits er shure sign he ain got no sho
nuR lub fer yer" All OF which goes to
prove that the wife in hard luck cares very
little for sympathy. High or low, the un-
happily married woman can usually find
abundant solace in the shortcomings OF
husbands not her own.