The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-11-16
WHY WOMEN FEAR MICE.
P~hf1osOphic Symposium on This Phase
of the Eternal Feminine.

VI the EternaI Fem1n1ne.
Memphis CommerciaI-Appeal.
The Baltimore Sun, commenting on an
article in the Galveston News, In which it
Is sought to explain why women fear mice,
marvels at "the panicky fear Of a perfectly
harmless animal which is anxious to get
away and which was never known to at
tack, and the fact that only women and eff
Terminate men feel this fear"
The News consulted scientists because
the Texas newspaper, as a rule. ''goes In
strong on science. Like the theologian, the
scientist can talk volubly and learnedly
about something of which he knows moth
ing. and he Is always interesting. The first
witness called is Professor MCGEE, of the
Bureau of Ethnology at Washington, and
a gentleman of much gravity and convinc-
Ing seriousness. This savant says woman's
fear Of mice is a heritage from her monkey
ancestor. The Miss Clarissa Burdette-
Q~uadrumana of the early days was arbore-
ally inclined n sought the highest
branches of the trees. She lived on nuts
and other FOODS which the mice and rats
stole from the family board, and to escape
these predatory visitors the highest branch
of the tree was sought, and to this day
Miss Clarissa Burdette-Duomana, a lineal
descendant, jumps on a chair or other ele-
walton at the sight of these vermin, and
screams In fright where she formerly chat
tered in terror. The learned professor does
not explain why men do not fear mice.
They are heritors of the same weakness.
Another wise man, DR.. Salmon, of the
Bureau Of Animal Industry, sagely explains
that woman's fear of mice began at a later
day. when she had evoluted into a troglo-
dyte and lived in a cave. Then, as now,
she was particular about her bed, and,
while she did not buffet her pillow into
submissive softness or fill her room with
bric-a-brac and bisque figures, she provided
herself with plenty of dry leaves in which
she used TO find warmth, shelter and COM
fort during the watches of the night while
she slept, or while she lay awake waiting
for her liege lord to come home from the
club. Mice and rats, in playing wood-tag
or puSSy-wants-a-corner, would run over
these dry leaves and disturb the occupant
of the ancestral bed. Any one who has
listened TO mice jumping around on a floor
at night until he fancied a score of wooden
clog dancers were engaged in a time con-
test can imagine what the result would be
were he TO hear them running over dry
leaves. Naturally the cave-dwelling wom-
an, or the Mrs. Jerusha Troglodyte of that
day, was disposed to hunt tall timber and
get away from her tormentors, but il is
not explained why Mr.. Troglodyte is not
a Vlcum or the same experience. Perhaps
he won his immunity from this weakness
by remaining away and awake at nights,
and punctuating the passing hours by reg
ularly calculating another bottle of beer.
He may have been Editor Reaves, of the
Hardeman Free Press, but this is only
speculation, and we want scientific accur-
acy.
These two government experts are at
variance, and both cannot be right. Two
more-Prof. Otis Mason, of the Smithsonian
Institution, and DR.. Steinegar, of the Ma
tional Museum-while agreeing among
themselves, have a new theory to explain
a woman's fear of a mouse. These wise
men claim that 1t is all a matter of dress,
and that if women dressed in pantaloons,
as their husbands do, they would have a
manly indifference for mice. These gentle
men are very eminent authorities, and
what they have to say is entitled to much
respect, but they are less than convincing.
We have all seen women who wear the
breeches," and who are masculine in every
thing but sex. flee in panic or jump upon
a chair or table at the sight of a mouse.
1t is safe to say that had the British turned
loose a few mice at the time, neither Molly
Pitcher nor Joan of Arc would have re-
manned to figure in history; and had a few
rodents appeared on the scene Semiramis
would never have encouraged the Assyrian
to come down like a wolf on the fold, and
! Boadicia would never have rebelled against