Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1912-01-06

itiative in love, and marriages Will be
happier when women do the courting,"
says Mr.. Cooke.
Mr.. Cooke is dead right. Women
should at least have an equal share in
the love making. There is no other
thing on earth so cruel as the fact
that women are not free to choose their
mates, and nothing else is such a
stumbling block i'm the way of human
happiness as the idiotic convention that
makes them stand helplessly by and take
what they can get in the way of hus-
band, instead of going out and hunting
up what they want
Just think how grotesquely absurd is
the situation in which women are placed.
From the time she is born a girl baby
is taught to look forward to marriage.
1t is the end and aim of her existence,
everything from her meal ticket to the
welfare Of her immortal soul depends
upon her getting the right sort Of hus-
band, and yet when the momentous hour
arrives when she must settle her fate,
Mrs. Grundy ties her hands and gags
her!
All the power that women have in
matrimony is the veto power. They
can refuse TO marry the men they don't
want to marry, but they are not per
United to pop the question to the men
they would like to marry. They have no
voice in choosing the man with whom
they must spend their lives. They can
not pick out the fathers Of their chill
dren, 1t is the monstrous injustice OF
civilization, because It is founded on
nothing but an imbeclle prejudice
I honestly believe that nothing would
do SO much TO stop divorce as for women
to exercise the right OF popping the ques-
tion. To begin with, women have more
intuition in matters Of the affection than
men have; they devote more thought to
consideration of the subject, and as a
whole they would make wiser selec-
ton Of mates than men do. Women know
instinctively what men are suited to them
temperamentally, and when they marry
men who are not Congenial IT Is gener-
ally because It IS the last call 10 the
dining car for them.
Men marry in two ways. They be-
come enamoured over a pretty face or
else marry on the grab-bag principle.
A man makes up his mind some fine
day to get married, and he proposes TO
the nearest and handiest woman, without
ever investigating about the lady's in
telligence, taste or disposition.
But If a woman had the privilege OF
picking and choosing her life partner she
would turn over everything on the bar
gain counter and apply every test 90 dnd
out whether The husband she was getting
was all wool and yard wide, and guar
anteed not 70 shrink nor run in the wash
OF matrimCuy.
The main reason, however, that do
nestle peace and felicity would be aug
mented by women having the right 20
choose their husbands is t,sat tho happy
vile IS a good VIE an. CON. Elct, .na.
You hear nothing OF matrlmouy being a
failure in those homes where the vile
thinks that she has Got the prize package
in The lottery OF wedlock.
AS long as q woman .s mady I'm love
with her husband no labor that she docs
for him rs hard no sacrifice us bitter
Nor does II make the slightest difference
what sort OF a man he is. she nsyc.
sees him except surrounded by the halo
her fancy CoujuTes up and 10 her he ls a
hero Of romance, riIry prince before
whom she spends her lie in husstuliy
burning incense
There isn't the smallest doubt that tho
majority OF disgruatlcd wives-the hen
peeked, uagging, eXtrayaganL whining
wives that affIict so many good men
are the direct result II the system Of
courtshlD that prevents a woman from
taking any active part In love-maklng
These women all had to take the man