El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-01-03
Wife and the Bank Book
The Bank Book Is Best to stand By
If Woman Insists On Spending
All the Money.
BY Dorothy Dix


E hear a great deal about the
W horror of divorce, but nobody
w says a word about the horror
of life being ruined by a vicious or
foolish husband or wife
What virtue or what sense is there
in a woman submitting to be dragged
down and down through long years
Of misery by drunken husband2
What good is accomplished by a man
suffering his whole existence to be
made a hell on earth by wOman's
shrewish temper and tongue2
One Case in Point.
A splendid young fellow of my &C
quaintance is hOnOrably anxious to get
on in the world He is poor boy, but
ne is capable and industrious and
thrifty, and will some day be a rich
man if he is not held back from sue
cess by his wife. Ever since this boy
began work he has made 1t rule to
save something out of his wages every
week. At first he could only spare ten
cents a week to go into the savings
bank. Then it became quarter. Then
so cents and then 81. Then several
dollars.
All was going well when ne mar
ried a few months ago. He picked out
for wife, as such men have the knaCk
of doing, a pretty, frivolous, Wasteful
extravagant girl, who belongs TO a
family that is perpetually in debt to
I.
gave her was ample to maintain them
comfortably in their station of life.
But the girl was furious because she
didn't get it all to spend. She
couldn't be made to see why any
money should be put in the nasty old
bank, when there were so many things
one could buy in the stores
Stood by His Bank Book.
Fortunately the lad had enough
sense and backbone to stand by his
bank book, and let the selfish little
creature go, but he is grieving mis-
heart out for her, and wants to know
what he shall do.
If he takes my advice, he will let her
alone and let her stay where she is IN
til she begs to be taken back, and be-
fore he does it, he will put the rever-
ence for a bank account into her soul,
so that she will be as anxious to save
as he is. And if she doesn't come back
on those conditions, ne will offer
thanks to Heaven that he was merci-
fully delivered from her before she
bankrupted him.
There is no reason why any man
should let an eXtravagant woman ruin
his life. and if he has the courage Of
a fly, he won't do it.
FOredoOmed to Poverty.
A man married to this kind of a
woman is fOredOOmed to poverty all
his days. He is tied to his counter,
to his bookkeeper's desk, to his route
dS drummer because ne IS always
just one lap ahead of the wolf at the
door, and he dares not give up the
position that he has on the chance of
lettering himself.
The difference between freedom and
slavery, the difference between a happy
and Independent old age and a miser-
able, dependent one, is the possession
Of money. The man who doesn't save
when he is young is bound to be pau
per when he is old.
Women know this as well as men.
and the woman who really loves her
husband is more anxious to save and
help him get on in the world than he
is to do so himself With the right
sore of a wife this problem of saving
does not arise.
A man should refuse to become the
victim Of the selfishness of a woman
who regards him only as a cash regis
ter. He should refuse to let any Wom-
an make a slave of him and condemn
him to spend his life toiling to crafty
her Whims, and if she refuses to listen
to reason and moderation, and it comes
to a choice between her and the saw
ings bank book, he is wise to choose
the savings bank book. Tt will be a
better friend to him in his old age
than she viii.