The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-30
He STRUCK HIS WIFE
BUT 1T WAS WHILE TEACHING
HER TO BOX
The Kindness of New York Husband
to His Wife Was Unappreciated-He
Gave Her Lessons in Boxing and
Showed Her the Solar PIexus Blow.

A very pathetic case came up in
New York court the other day, which
shows how often the best intentioned
men are misunderstood and maligned.
A wife hauled her husband to court on
the charge of having struck her, and
the judge asked the culprit how it hap
pened that he SO far forgot his duty.
He replied that the entire matter was
misrepresentation on the part of his
wife, and he proceeded to explain to
the court that he had been showing
her how to box, thinking that the man
ly art of self defense might be useful
to a woman in these days, and that
while engaged in instructing his spouse
how to use her fists he had struck her
a solar plexus blow and she had been
unprofessional enough to have him ar
rested. Surely there is very little to
be said for a woman so ungrateful as
this Of course every man will say,
''How like a womani" Instead of I'M
Outstanding that she must take what
came to her while being instructed in
the useful art of boxing, this woman
was so little of sport, and had so
small a comprehension of what it
means to be a good fellow, that she ac-
tually thought her husband intended to
strike her.
Now we leave it to the readers of
this page whether or not there is much
hope for women, as long as they do
the sort of thing herein described. In
the first place we must take into con-
sideration how exceedingly kind it was
of the husband in question to offer to
give lessons to his wife; it is evidence
of a more than usually good disposition
on the part of a great big busy man to
take the time and trouble to teach his
wife anything. Then, after he has con-
scented to do it, and was working hard
to evidence to her the beauties of diff
ferent blows necessitated by an agile
opponent, for her to take advantage OF
his kindness shows an unenV1able dis
position, to say the least What his
better half should have done was to so
profit by his instruction that when he
gave her an example of the latest thing
in solar plexus art, to have returned
with a pretty left handler that would
have sent Mr.. Husband to the right
about face If she had done that this
tale would never have been told. The
husband would not have allowed the
public to know that he had been bested
by his wife, and pupil of his at that.
Instead of that this neophyte in boxing
probably cried, and undoubtedly called
in the police.
OF course, in another age we might
expect such conduct as this, but in
time when women are strenuous wear
large gloves and still larger shoes. play
in athletic contests and fear no foe in
shining armor, it is surprising to lind
this sample of an old eve say old In
the sense of opposite of new woman In
q progressive age. 1t pains us to say
these things on a woman'S page, where
we are constantly endeavoring to put
the best foot foremost, and trying to let
our light shine before men. But we
have every reason to believe the story
is true, and it is a horrible example
of the unprofessionaliSm of women.
That's the trouble with women, and no
wonder men say they cannot take
joke. That solar plexus blow was
joke, the husband was a humorist and
his wife took it seriously. There is the
whole story. husband must have his
little joke once in a while, and the
wife who does not laugh at her hus-
bands jokes only half knows her bust
ness. To be tied to a hunorist may
make life anything but joke at times,
but the wise woman so conditioned will
retire to solitude when she desires to
relax her features. When with her
funny husband she should smile con-
4 stantly Much might be written upon
this subject but this is neither the time
nor place, added to which this sheet
of paper is giving out, and we must
pause.
Let the woman who desires to learn
boxing take what comes and give tit
for tat.