The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1911-04-23
THINGS In WOMAN
HARD TO GRASP
The Problem of Making Her
a Gift.
By DOROTHY DIX.


by Jove." said the first man, but
women are curious creatures. and the
more you study them, the less you un-
derstand them.
Now take q woman's attitude on the
gift question for instance. That is one
of the great mysteries Of feminine psy-
chology with which the mere masculine
intellect is utterly unable to cope, al
though millions Of men collide with It
every day Of the year, and DO their
humble best to solve It.
Solving the Twenty Years.
"As for myself. I've been wrestling
with 1t for twenty years, and just as
I feel that I have gotten the key to the
enigma, something happens that knocks
all Of my theories into smithereens and
I am left again cropping in the dark.
OF course. II doesn't take a man long
TO find out, after he is married. that all
sorts of annivers5 :es are sacred with
a woman. and tina her ideal of a per-
feet husband is a man who always hobs
up with a present on her birthday. and
who never forgets 10 send her a bunch
of flowers and a box of candy on the
anniversary OF the day he first saw her.
and the suspicious day when she prom
ised to be his
No man can comprehend the way or
the whereforeness of this feminine wor-
ship of anniversaries: but, having once
grasped the fact that he can make his
wife happy by pestowing upon her
posie or a trinket, a man is a poor sort
of a husband who will not take the
trouble to mark off his wifes fete DAYS
on the calendar. and appropriately OBJ
serve them.
Many Obstacles in the Way.
That sounds easy, but find that the
carrying out of the programme is beset
with unexpected complications, among
which / am dead certain TO come to
grief
L speak with feeling on the subject,
for 1 have just been through a harrow
ing experience
My wife's birthday was approaching,
ana the portentous problem of her birth
day present loomed large on the horizon.
With deep guile I listened attentively to
her conversation to see If she would not
drop some hint as to something she par
ticularly wanted. Being a good wife and
wishing 10 help me out, she discoursed
concerning dinner rings. from which 1
inferred that one of those soup plate
affairs was the desire of her heart.
To my CONSERVATION, l found out that
1t took +O good hard plunks to buy even
fairly nice one. 1 could Ill afford to
spend so much money. but I reflected
on what a good. industrious. economical
wife my Mary was, and, how often she
had worn her old suit in order that /
might have a new one and how uncom-
planning and generous she had been about
and so l dug down into my
little bank account and came across with
the price of good ring from one of the
best stores.
HowlfnE Success.
We'll. the gift was a bowling success
at first My wife got up in the night to
take another look at it. She showed II
to her family. and all the neighbors, and
was as happy over it as a kid with
red sled.
That lasted about two days.
Then she began worrying about some
hing. She wanted to know the price of
he ring, and though heaven knows I !
should have known better. let her worm
{ out of me that 1 had paid $500 for il At
''When-Wow, Bloody murder. Four
hundred dollars, The very idea. She |
had seen one just like II at a marked |
Town bargain sale of jewelry, in a de- |
oartment store, that they only asked
2N for.
-Four hundred dollars, for a ring, and |
oeople in our circumstances! We will |
and in the poorhouse sure; &C., &c, |
&c, and then a flood of tears
Il wonder if my wife would ever for /
give me, and then, suddenly. one night. |
he storm burst and broke. and l found |
tut that she had been having a perfect |
Y lovely time. crying over her ring as |
he proof positive that I loved her SO
much that ! was willing to ruin myself !
md impoverish the family just to grad |
~ her within.
She thought I had done a most idiotic
hing. but see wouldn't have had me not
10 II for the world.
Can you beat that"