The Lakeland evening telegram., 1917-01-23
Love-, Honor
And Obey
By WILLIAM CHANDLER

the most unmitigated nonsense | ever
heard Of"
when we were married l didn't no
tice that the word was In the service"
said Mrs. Webster.
How can a woman love and honor
q man unless she Is willing to obey
bis commander
II don't exactly see that"
'In some instances command Is
necessary. Suppose, for instance, l
should notice that you were permitting
too frequent attentions from one of
your old flames. ask you to desist
You pay no attention to my request
l command you to desist. Isn't that
right?"
"You might rather say, Dearest, Mr..
So-and-so's attentions to you are at
tracing attention, to your and my in
jury That would be sufficient l
would act upon your warning"
But suppose you didnt?"
"Then a command would do no
good"
HIN. 1t wouldn't, eh?"
Suppose, on the other hand, asked
you to drop some old flame of yours
and you paid no attention to my re-
quest. Would it do any good for me to
command you to drop herY
This staggered the young husband
but not for long.
"It wouldn't do any good, and prob
ably 1t wouldn't do any good for me to
command you, but SM right to COM
mand is on my sidNl There must be
one head to evetytt6fG There is a
head to all government Marriage in
wolves government Government, to be
effective, cannot be with the weaker
1t must be with the stronger-party.
Man is stronger than woman; therefore
he Is the natural governor"
when man and a woman love
each other, what's the need Of govern
ment?"
How about the children?"
'The children3 Oh, the mother natu-
rally governs the children"
"Oh, she does? You may as well un-
derstand now as later that If we have
boy shall nor permit you to make a
milksop Of him by coddling him. as
some mothers do of their boys"
"And you may as well understand
that you shall not give him the harsh
treatment Joe Tucker gives little Ben"
81 shall teach our son one thing-obe-
dience'
obedience to both of us?"
Certainly"
Suppose you tell him to do one thing
and tell him to do another?"
aha. There you have proved my
case. 1t will be your duty to yield to
me In the matter-in other words. to
obey me. How can our child expect to
obey me unless you set him the exam
pie? It's my opinion that these divines,
instead Of taking the word obey out
OF the marriage service, should make
1t stronger. 1t should be printed in
capitals and with dozen exclamation
points,"
IF l were to marry you again
would insist on the word obey being
left out"
Then you wouldn't marry me-"
And we wouldn't have any son for
you to abuse"
"You mean you would make Miss
Nancy of him."
I'm sorry l married you at ALL
now see In you what have never seen
before, the disposition of tyrant."
And see in you what promises to
be rebellious wife,"
Every well. If we can't get on to-
gether We'll have to separate"
That was the end Of the fracas, for
she 1ounced out of the room, leaving
her husband gaping after her.
Il wish those confounded minister's"
! he said to himself, had left the mar
riage service alone. What difference
does 1t make whether the word obey
is In 1t or out Of 1t? Maud didn't con-
slider it of any Importance till these di-
vines brought it up"
He was miserable for an hour. and
his wife was In the same condition.
Then he gave excellent evidence as to
who was master. His wife being the
weaker party, 1t was his part to offer
the olive branch TO her, not she to him.
He went TO her, kissed her and said:
Sweetheart, it seems to me that YOU
and l quarreling about the manage
ment of boy who may never be born
is like fighting for the sky for a pas
ture"
1T was all my fault" she sobbed.
IF we ever have boy / shall expect
his father to take the lead in manag-
ing him, of course
One day three years later Alr. Web
ster was In the library with his son
Billy. Billy deliberately took a tum-
bier from a table and smashed it on
the floor.
Billy" said his father, IF you do
that again l shall punish you Sc
verely."
The boy defiantly took up a glass
pitcher and repeated the smashing
process.
His father was about to take him
over his knee for a spanking when
there was a swish of skirts on the