The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1906-05-26
Home Circle
MINISTER'S WIVES.

does a mans domestic relations SO sc
riOuSly affect his success. The ply
stefan may be thrice welded widow
er in QueSj Of a fourth twin soul, O
an exemplary benedict, and not lose
patient as a result of these conditions
The lawyers life lies wholly within
the walls of his office and the court
room. The merchants command Gus
tom according to the excellence 81
their wares and their clever way OF
putting them on the market. A tai
lOr who gives a perfect tit may eve
be so ignorant or disagreeable he is
sure of patronage. Even poor inlet
tered Rachael Jackson could not keeI
her husband out Of the white house,
nor could fascinating Francis Cleve-
land keep hers in, yet a ministers
wife can mar his usefulness, even t(
the utter destruction Thereof. The
people have the whip-hand wher
the pastor is a married man, for LET
him be eve so high strung he will
bear much criticism, even to fault find.
ing. before he will upset the wagon
that carries his wife and babies.
Many times the wife feels confident
that it is her own inability to please
that leads to the trouble, and she
feels compelled to either neglect her
family or fail in meeting the various
demands whose fultiillment alone can
bring to her popularity. Do what she
may, let her be 4 saint, Seraph or dip
Omat, she cannot sustain him in in
his position when the wind of church.
ly favor veerS.
A minister has little trouble in Sc
curing a wife. for as a rule ministers
are well educated, well hammered and
we'll dressed, and their success in win
ming the fair sex is too patent to be
argued, and how little the unSuSpect-
ng victim realizes the grave RESPONSE
bilitieS which come with this alliance.
The young minister may be ever SO
popular WITH his parish before mar
riage. bur soon aS he inStallS his
new wit, a~ 4 ,tIeSS Of the manSe the
compile .g. fairs is changed. His
gentle ttrt. cuIy be nothing more
than Il lmd shadow stealing at his
heels, yet this shadow changes the
perspective. If she asserts her rights
and persists in looking well to her
household she is dubbed useless in the
church, and if on the other hand she
devoteS her time and talents to the
work Of the church she is blamed for
neglecting her family. Her home
are discussed and handled by
unclean hands and the sacred pre-
cincts of the minister's tireSide are in
vaded by the cruel busy bodies, which
infeSt all GRADES and conditions of
life. To fit a woman of mortal mould
to the needs aud fancies of a church is
beyond the ability of an archangel.
The IDEA seems to be that a model
minister must have a model wife, and
in too many cases the wife is includ-
ed in the engagement which hires him,
and such a contract is surely iniqui-
tOuS. What a private church member
can do consistently with her duty to
her husband and children she is
bound to undertake and nothing more.
That she is or is not accomplished,
should not affect her husbands in1u-
ence no more than if he were a lay
communicate in the church to which
she belongs. The rule which makes
the popularity won by her virtues in
effectual to SuccOr him in the hour of
need, should work both ways or not
If oil Tho mnnrpfnl inn that
he for whom she would sacrifice ease
and life itself, would after all have
done better for himself and the Mas
ter had he never married her, has bro
Ken many d loving heart and brave
spirit.
Right here let Us enter a plea for
niniSterS'S children which some
claim are the worst children in exist
ence. Many seem to forget that the
birth right of these children is no
'reer from the taint Of sin than is
hat Of other children. and Il those
Who are ever ready to point out i'm
in the character Of minis
,er'S children would read the history
If the human family, they will find
hat the perfect children die before
hey are old enough to become contain
rated by contact with the common
progeny Of the race. As u rule Min
children are largely deprived
f the society and guidance Of Their
ather, while he is occupied in look
g after other peoples children and
furnishing spiritual food to the church,
nd when at home he is obliged to
i've his time and thought to the prep
of his sermons, if he is worthy
t the name Of minister. AS quiet IS
requisite to study these poor chill
rem are often deprived Of their rights
nd their little sports are SpDi.ed be
noise is a part of these sports
o next to minister's wives we pity
minister's children, and wonder there
re not more bad ones.
MEMORIAL DAY.
Each recurring May is a reminder of
he dark DAYS of the sixties. i'hp