Los Angeles herald., 1906-05-13
A HAPPY HOME TRUST


that women may be urged to do their
full share in the work of perfecting the
home life and that divorce courts may
eventually be abolished.
That's trust that's worth while. And
for the reason that one cause of our
national unrest and widespread dissi-
patton is the fact that so many homes
are not happy
The fault, however. lies with both
men and women. In some instances
the husbands are bad-tempered. un-
reasonable, dictatorial and wholly sell
fish, addressing their wives with less
consideration than. they would their
favorite dog or horse. In other in
stances the wives neglect the beautify-
ing of their home and refuse to do those
household duties which the very nature
of marriage demands from them. There
are perhaps as many vain, idle women
as there are selfish and brutal men.
There are too many women who want
to begin life where their fathers and
mothers left off, neglectful of the fact
that father and mother denied them
selves and violated all the union rules
for half a century before they got
competence or roof over their heads.
Too many men and women neglect
the great truth that life is what we
make it. 1t can be happy or unhappy,
under any circumstances, as we may
determine. This is absolutely true and
doesn't admit Of any argument. Pow
erty, sickness and death are relative
terms. You can be happy in the very
midst of them There is too much gush
and twaddle poured out about the hap
piness of wealth and idleness. There is,
in fact, less happiness in wealth than
in poverty, but in both cases everything
depends upon the man or the woman,
whether honest pleasure is rightfully
developed from the condition. Wealth
plays so small part in the happiness
of the world that it is hardly worthy of
consideration.
The question is: How shall we make
the most and get the best out of life?
Do you think that the man who gives
his days and nights to the getting of
gain or to indulgence in pleasures is
answering the question properly? OF
course not.
Do you think that the woman who
neglects her household affairs, takes to
literature" as study, refuses to have
and rear children, and spends her hus-
bands hard earned money in beautify-
ing and adorning her body is answering
the question? Not a bit of it.
The home life is the only life And
the only way in which to make it a
success is to do as Virginia Otis says.
bear and forbear," work plentifully
and cheerfully, go hand in hand
through the valleys and laugh at the
shadows.
Men and women were once brave
enough to do these things, and do them
well. There is a whole lot of the cow
ard in too many of our young men and
women. They want pleasure at any
cost; dress and idleness at any ex-
pense. That's the yellow streak that
once was not characteristic of the hui
man race. Love of ease is a detestable
habit, and one of the worst things
about so-called socialism is that 1t en-
courages the hope of state of per-
petual idleness, wherein money will fall
from the trees, provisions from the
ravens and clothing from the skies.
Why not let us be sensible, as of old
Why not be brave and true-brave
mentally, morally and physically? Why
not reproduce in the present and future
generation some of those Spartan vir-
tues of our fathers, mothers, grand
fathers and grandmothers who gave
their lives cheerfully for others-who
learned to make happy homes and build
ideal characters at the expense of dress
and many pleasures; who lived and
loved without selhshness, and who,
when the end came, went down to
death with the smile of the hero and
the heroine-happy to the very last !;
happy in the midst of all the poverty,
the sickness and the suffering through
which they had passed, for the sake of
others.
You know we travel along this road
only once. YES" says the gay young
woman and the reckless young man,
1--WE live but once-let us live while we
do live" Which brings back the ques-
tion-What is it to live? Happiness is
all there is in the world and happiness
cannot be produced save by true love-
a love that patiently endures and
heroically works out the purposes of
existence to their noble ends. Any
thing short of that is crime, and 1.-THE
wages of sin is DEATH"
Live while we do live"-yes, but
live with a purpose. and that purpose
the happiness and love that come only
through the ideal home.
Hence, more power to Virginia Otis
and all her kind. She has caught the
glimmering of a great truth, a truth
that shall shine more and more till the
coming Of that brighter day when
there shall be a crown Of everlasting
glory 10 those who have lived right
eously and unselhshly In Gods happy