New-York tribune., 1908-09-25
THE WOMAN HOUSE CAT.
Professor Thomas again Disparages
the Female Ser.

Women who condemned Professor ". 1. Thomas.
of the University of Chicago. for the things ne
said about their in his book sex ana 0oci-
ETY." Will find further cause for lndlgnauon IN A'
article In the current number OF Inc Am AN - -
Magazine" THE Adventitious Character OF "om-
en-. &c tho Irritating title of article The only
grain of comfort in thing is that he points out
causes for most of the weaknesses Of whlch ne says
woman has so many and he gives recipe Tor tna1
cornradeship between husband ana "lle WHICH !"
generally lacking now. he contends
There is a basis of truth, he says. in Pope es
hard saying that have no characters al all
Beca use their problem is not TO accommodate 'hehl
selves to the solid realities of the world OF sense
and experience but to adjust themselves 10 'he
personality of it is not surprising tnat thes
should assume Protean shapes.
wonan.s morality he considers a matter Of ex-
pediency merely, not an innate virtue at an III
fact II is not her own, but was made Tor net D!
man Purity constancy. reserve and devotion are
+he qualities in woman which please and fatter the
male and SO she has them. Her morality lis a
morality Of the person and OF bodily haolts' as
contrasted with the commercial and public moral
itv Of man" Professor Thomas even declares that
the morality of some women is merely the desire
to keep the respect of their neighbors; away from
those who know them. their restraints are relaxed
However his opinion of man is not particularly
rood From Samson and Odysseus down history
and story recognize the ease and frequency WIN
which a woman makes fool of a man" Woman
over him by her coquetry. and man is so anected
bv the charms of and offers so easy marx
for her Vaccinations as to invite exploitation
Professor Thomas agrees with Bernard Shaw that
woman does the courting. by dress. modesty
coauetry indifference she plays at once on the
protective instinct and the vanity Of man and In
fatuates him..
Club women. Professor Thomas thinks are just
Worrying themselves to purpose. The Amer
ican woman of the better classes has superior
cha is "
self TO death not over specific troubles, but be
cause of her connection with reality Iheh he
throws in kind word, admitting that the real
trouble is that women do not have serious duties.
MANY women. more intellectual and energetic
than their husbands and brothers, nave no more
serious occupation than play the house cat 1t
is a wonder that Of them do not lose their
minds
The average husband and wife, Professor Thomas
asserts have little comradeship beyond their COM
mon interest in their children. To remedy that
he thinks a woman should have some work OF
her own
What the man and woman need in this con-
nection," he says is to come into the same gen
eral world of interest or at least to let their worlds
overlap and this much common ground would oe
secured through the pursuit the part of the
woman of an art of her choosing and the
consequent development of interest in principles
apart from persons Without general ideas and
principles conversation cannot go on-l mean con
versation as distinguished from falkland should
regard an occupational interest for women as OF
value mainly in bringing men and women into the
same intellectual world"