The Paducah evening sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1906-1929, 1906-12-20
Philosophy of Subject Discus
ed In Article ~
Matter Of Clothes Rather Than In.
herent Horror of Little
Criminals.
SAVAGE WOMEN NOT AFRAID

why are women afraid OF nicer
somebody asked in a letter to the Sun
not long ago.
The question is worthy of an
answer. II has generally been taken
for granted that women were afraid
of mice because they were afraid
of mice, in true woman fashion. AS
matter of fact this question, sound
ing so simple and almost frivolous,
has phases which are we'll worth in
curing into, says the New York Sun.
The man who asked "Why are wo-
men afraid of mice?" suggested a
hereditary feud as the cause of the
antipathy; that perhaps some time.
long ago, the woman injured the
mouse or the mouse the woman. Il
Is possible that here may be traced
vague Renaissance of the weird
legend of the three blind mice that
all ran after the farmers wife, who.
in her turn cut of their tails with a
carving knife.
did You ever hear such a thing in
your life?" says the rhyme. No, in
deed! Never! and this account Is con
sidered by some to be the slyest of
satires.
The folks who answered the "WhyI
are women afraid Of mice?" question
scout the notion OF heredity. They
nonsense explanation that the
common-sense explanation that the
houses we'll known tendency to skip
in It's panic to her petticoats for re-
fuge is reason enough for nervous
woman's horror of the creature. Said
they:
watch derisive man when, as
sometimes happens, mouse runs upl
his trouser leg. He grabs the mouse.
yells 'Fire!' and has as fine case of
nerves as any woman OF them ALL"
II probably wasn't a man so en-l
lightened that was guilty Of that
amazing smile. "Her feet beneath
her petticoat like little mice stole In
and out"
. But enough OF the superficial as
pect of the subject II Is in the
search for the origin of these mortal
antipathies of womankind, spiders. !
snakes and mice, that quaint and I'M
expected discoveries will be made
Dress and heredity not only have
much to do with them, but will be
found to be the beginning and end
OF the whole matter. Pervading 1t
through and through, however, is the
subtle ether of symbolism which wo-
mans soul retains long after man has
stepped his in materlalism.
In the old Hindu and Greek legends
the mouse represents the darkness of
night and sin. An old German super
stition has II that the souls of the
dead assume the form Of mice and
every appartion OF mice was thought
to presage a funeral. II
Among Christian peoples the snake
represents not only sin, but the
father of evil himself, while the
spider has been symbolic in all times
of the cold remorselessness OF fate
But, besides these vague occult ter
rors which they inspire, these three
creatures have the closest associa-
tons with dress.
The snake gave the apple Of knowl-
edge to the woman to eat, and the
first desire of the human race was
for CLOTHES. But a mere covering of III
leaves or skins of beasts ceased in a
few thousand years to satisfy the abo-
riginal woman, and as the result of
observing the spider. how she spun
her thread and wove her web, the
primitive spindle was evolved. II
And then the poor thing, by so
much sacrifice and labor, had no
sooner got her beautiful petticoats
than she found herself alone in an
masculine world Per-
haps, after all the wickedness of the
serpent and the remorselessness OF
the spider are less terrifying to a
being in petticoats than the horrid
of the mouse. Il
Explorers OF savage Africa tell us
that the native huts are swarming
with mice, that they run gayly over
the floors, walls, roofs and the bodies
Of the sleeping natives. Similarly
spiders and snakes are numerous in
tropical countries, but you never hear
Of an African savage lady who sol
much as squeaked at the sight or
Touch of any of these creatures, or
found them even repulsive. Instead.
she kills the snake with stick, the
spider with her thumb and the mouse
with her foot, and. barring the spider
hey become a welcome addition tol
he family dinner. l.
The female savage hasn't many
nerves, II is true. but she has fewer