The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-06-09
SHE WANTED A SMILE
WOMAN WILL LEAVE HUSBAND
BECAUSE HE REFUSED 1T
Men Are Often Pleasant Enough at
Their Offices and Among Their
Friends, Reserving Their Ill Humor
for Home

A woman in Chicago wishes to sep
arate from her husband because she al
leges he never smiles. She says it is
seven years since he has smiled, and
he replies that he has so much trouble
he cannot. In this particular case the
man may be so involved and worried
that depression has become a fixed
habit, but as a rule there is not much
excuse for a man who never smiles at
home. Women are at home all day,
concerned in the care of the house and
children, with many worries of various
kinds, and they look forward to the
evening when their husbands return
from business. No matter how blue
and worried a woman may be during
the day. she can generally muster a
smile with which to greet her husband
and he should feel in duty bound to
Danish the cares of business and smile
in return.
1t is too often the case that man is
pleasant all day at his office, greeting
everyone with a smile, telling stories
and appearing as the very soul of good
nature until he returns at night to his
home. Then the smile fades and he
looks the picture of woe, is cross and
irritable and when his wife mentions
the fact of his moroseness he is very
WrOth indeed. If q man can't be natu-
raj at home, he would like to know!
Whereupon his wife will retort SarcaS-
tically that she regrets to learn that
his real self is the one that he exhibits
at home, and the smiles he keeps for
his business acquaintance are but put
on. Sarcasm between husband and
wife is unfortunate and leads to trou-
BILE. This might all be remedied by
the husband. Say what you will about
the beauty of the natural duties Of
women which pertain to the manage
ment of a household, they become
rather monotOnOuS day after day, par
ticularly if the wife is obliged to put
up with a surly husband in the even
ing. CheerfulnesS is a duty. A man
owes his wife a smile, and the Chicago
woman who wanted to leave her hus-
band because he never smiled cannot
be blamed.
Housekeeping is full of petty trials
which wear on feminine nerves and are
too small to speak of in detail
woman feels when night comes and the
children are put to bed that she is en-
titled TO a pleasant evening with her
husband either at home, at some
friends or even at the theater. If
man comes home glum, with nothing
pleasant to say and sits in gloomy 81
'lence or else goes down town, leaving
his wife at home alone, she is injured,
and no wonder. Men are very apt to
think the trials of women at home are
of no consequence compared to those
they suffer, but that is a narrow mas
culine view. If man had to contend
all day long with the small trials that
meet the average housekeeper he
would not be able to smile at all by
night
But women and especially American
women are the most adaptable in the
world. They fill gracefully so many
positions. Many a woman goes into
her own kitchen in the morning, makes
all sorts of good things to eat, is the
graceful hostess in the afternoon, or
reads a paper at her club, and by night
may be nursing a child with scarlet
fever. The mother must in her time
play many parts, and there are thou
sands of instances in which she plays
them all well. Besides the ordinary
care of the home and children, modern
women study the languages, keep up
their music in many instances, some
times make their own clothes, and
when the cook fails they can go in
the kitchen and get a good dinner.
Where is the man who can do we'll so
many things and after a fatiguing day
with all sorts Of struggles known only
to the housekeeper, appear at night
with serene smile? l cannot put my
finger just now on man who can
work against odds all day and then be
charming in the evening.
This is fast developing into a page
where we daily throw bouquets at
ourselves, but so long as it is devoted
to topics concerning women it is diff
ficult to talk about them constantly
without saying complimentary things
Some day I am going to write a col
umn about the faults of women-that
is, if can find enough to fill it. Per-
haps may receive some masculine as
siStance