The Washington herald., 1908-06-21


course, his wife was a most unfortunate
choice: she was enough to ruin any man."
y can't think what he was about when
he picked up such a woman, If he meant
to make his way in the world, as it seems
he did" Samples are these of the re-
marks constantly made about wives. And
certainly there are plenty of quite insult
able wives. says Margaret Bateson, in
tho Queen.
Yet tho average fashioned mother
trains her daughters for marriage. and
in so doing feels how much wiser and
more sensible she is than her progressive
friends. But the poor lady. being gem
orally no seer, is unable to know before
hand what types Of men her girls will
marry. II she trains Goneril TO be a help
meet % a poet, il Is ten % one II the
obstinate young woman does not accept
a stock broker OF stock brokers'; Regan
brought up to give parties 70 the best
people, may marry a rancher. and Cor
della. who knows all about home dress
making. and can tell you dozen ways Of
hashing Canterbury lamb (but has no
other conversation, Cordelia-it goes
without saying-win become the insult
able spouse OF a privy councillor. There
are mothers who assure you I'm moments
Of confident boasting that their girls will
make good wives for any man; but In
saying this they are rather assuming that
their sons-in-law viii be stock articles"
And even so safe an expectation as this
may be falsifed by events.
The instances OF most fragrant insult
ability-the instances which people dis
vrrfF mil cd ra1fc nj
present the case of a husband who has
become somebody more definite or exalted
than he was at the time Of his marriage.
Many a middle-aged wife probably says
in her heart, IF I had only known that
my Timothy or Nathaniel would expect
me TO share this kind OF position with
him l should have accepted Tom or Bob
instead"
But the outside circle Of acquaintance
does not use It's imagination 50 as 20 see
backward into past situations. 1t only
sees Timothy and Nathaniel as they now
are Timothy is a bishop, and his wife
is no help 20 him. She cannot so much
as open sale of work or say a few im-
proving words 20 a mothers meeting. and
unless she is walking with the bishop, no.
body ever recognizes her IN the street
But Timothy was once a poor curate and
10 one thought Mrs. Timothy unsuitable
when an income of a hundred a year had
10 feed and clothe curate and wife and a
couple Of children.
As for Nathaniel. he is now head master
Of big boys school; and they say he
would be promoted 10 be head Of a big
ger one still were II not for Mrs Nathan
lei. who is so unsuitable. She shocks the
masters wives with her Ideas. which are
really so very advanced and she goes 10
all the plays that set one thinking painful
thoughts. II the boys try TO talk cricket
or football 20 her (Which they seldom do)
they ind she IS not a bit interested Mrs
Nathaniel is. Of course. an utterly pro-
voking person now; but she was not al
ways a disappointment
Nathaniel. when he took his degree. had
been brought up among commonplace
people The girls he had met seemed
never 20 have read anything. or If they
had, they had not noticed H. So. when
he met the future Mrs. Nathaniel and
found that ideas which interested him
had made "a deep impression upon her he
was transported. There was never any
doubt how the affair would end; and ne
was happy indeed, I'm gaining such
stimulating companion. lie was only do
ing private coaching at that time. and
her society was such refreshing change
after hours spent over text books with
dun youths. He did not say Cor. indeed.
think that he wanted her 10 be a good
housemaster's wife; If he had-well, she
might have refused him.
From which examples il may be de-
duced that the unsuitable middle-aged
wife is much more frequently met than
the unsuitable young one and this apart
from the fact that unsuitabilitv. like most
other qualities. IS rather engaging in a
young (and especially a pretty) person
Though 20 this latter statement there are
exceptions; thus. n very dressy young
curate's wife is more jarrlngly incongru-
GUS than the equally dressy mature wife
Of an archdeaCou--fOr reasons which are
quite sound But otherwise, as aforesaid.
the unsuitability Is more remarked i'm
older couples. When II is remarked, the
qualification is at once attached as a
label 20 the wife, not 10 the husband
In reality Il is the husband who has be-
come unsuitable The wife, in most cases.
has remained the same. II the husband
in early life had any fancy for becoming
a bishop, a head master, a fnancier. a
cabinet minister. or any other kind of
man who needs rather a special style of
wife. he should have considered this fancy
carefully before proposing 10 anybody.
For what a person genuinely fancies he
would care to be- that he Is very likely
10 become. or at least a passable imita-
ton or H. But the young man is apt 20
Keep his fancies dark and merely offers
himself as he Is for the moment-young
Smith, who has been rather a serious un-
dergraduate, or young Spriggins. who /
spends his evenings in debating societies |
but Is ostensibly In the office Of a shipping |
company.
How are the young ladies admired by |
these youths % have any idea that Smith /
VIII one day be the expounder Of an un- |
usual theology, and that Sprggins Will /
be candidate for the leadership of a I
political party? These possibilities are. |
so 90 speak, not upon the agenda of the /
meeting when marriage Is under discus /
sion. The bride, believing she was chosen /
Tor her special personal qualities. thinks |
she has but 10 keep those qualities and |
characteristics well developed in order To |
preserve her suitability through life But
she reckons here without the husband
AS years go by The husband changes.
ana the hard part OF the matter Is that
she Is expected to change simultaneously.
with him. IL he, having been an awk-
ward young man in society. takes later
10 the reorganization Of celebrities and
persons Of influence, or il. on the other
hand, he began by going about much and
then would fain live IN retirement the
wife is expected to change too and to
Keep step with him, otherwise she be-
comes unsuitable
And now that wives-with their politicaI
citizenship unrecognized-try in a pitiable
way To look rs though they were In poli-
tics all the same, We have the spectacle
Of a wife who Is q Primrose dame one
week and a Liberal lady president the
next cor the other way about because
her lmshlnd has changcd his mind n,, h