The Washington herald., 1918-06-10

The question Of how much liberty
husbands and wives should allow each
other Is one that Is never debated IN
the family circle, because neither
husband nor wife has the slightest In
tention OF permitting the party Of the
other part to draw q single. fret
breath IL he or she can prevent Il.
The average married couple con.
ceive Of a home as q penal Institution
to which men and women ara SEN
fenced at the altar TO serve q life
term at hard labor. and each one be-
iieves that The or she holds D divine
commission to be the jailer Of this
prison house. and see that the other
does mot slip the fetters for even q
moments rest and relaxation.
OF course they do not put the mat
ter thus brutally to themselves. They
camouflage their domestic tyranny
under the names of love. duty. and
morality. and other high sounding al.
triIistic terms. but when you scrapt
off the paint and come down to the
real thing. you find that the IDEAL oi
the>perfect wife. or. the perfect hus-
band that practically every man and
woman cherish. is am abject slave
who hasn't enough spirit to even
make a fight for latch key.
Over the portals that lead TO the
holy estate might be written, "aban.
don all personal freedom ye who entei
here" Never more can you go ard
come as you please even for single
day. Never more will you have ever
an afternoon off as does q butler oil
cook. Never more can you have
friends OF your own choosing. or do q
single solitary thing without givint
elaborate explanation before and aftei
you do 1t.
You are married, and your dear be
loved husband or wife considers tha'
1t Is his or her sacred duty to de
prive you Of your freedom.
Don't say this isn't true because
you know ii is true. Don't say yol
don't treat your wife or husband tina
way because you do Just as far a.
you are able.
What else, except the subtle deter
mination to deprive her Of the free
dom that financial Independence gives
makes a man refuse to make his wifi
an allowance. II isn't because tht
man thinks that his wife would waste
, money IL she had II in her hand. fol
he knows her to be thrifty and eco
nomical, and able to get more ou
Of q dollar than he does. II isn't be
cause he thinks he saves anything b,
doling out the money penny by penny
to her, or having things charged or
bill, because he knows that boti
ways make for unwise spending.
It's Just because so long as his wifi
never has a dollar of her own, she
is Just as much fettered to her meal
ticket as any slave ever was lashed Il
his galley oar She can't even think
thought without reference to heI
master, or take q street car ride with
out his kind permission.
Why does a married woman who II
Of mature age and good sense and
Judgment have to ask her husband!
permission to buy a new hat or dress
or go on a weeks trip to visit he
mother? II 10 because her HUSBAND
allows her no personal freedom. anC
the queer part Of 1t is that he Is 81
accustomed to thinking OF a state o
matrimony as a state OF bondage tina
IL never occurs to the man that h
is INJECTING a cruel and inhuman hard
ship on his wife, and that she beat
her wings against the bars Of he
cage, no matter how much he hat
! gilded them.
And women are Just as loath tc
grant their husbands any liberty as
men are to give their wives any free
dom. Look at the way wives make
their husbands punch the time clock
Observe how women freeze out all OF
their husbands old friends. Notice
how suspicious wives are OF every
acquaintance their husband has
whom they have not previously O.
K'd.
If a man wants to take his Oldest
clothes and 60 off somewhere fishing
instead OF going to a fashionable sum-
mer resort, does his wife bid him &c
to 1t and have a good time and come
back rested and refreshed? She does
not, And he goes with her, cursing
and blaspheming, to. a fashionable
summer resort. II a man likes un-
conventional. Bohemian sort of peo-
pie while his wife prefers the prayer
meeting crowd, is he free to spend
q hapy evening now and then among
his old cronies? Well trow not
When he does he has to make q sneak
of It, and tell his beloved Maria
enough fibs to send his soul to perdi-
ton.
For wives do not believe IN this
personal liberty stun, at least where
husbands are concerned, and wife
sees to it that hubby has none al
home. Why, the average woman
won't even let her husband eat what
he wants to. or smoke in peace, and
as for his indulging in any little fad
such as amateur photography, oil
collecting butterflies, or first editions
she puts an end to that before the
honeymoon is over.
OF course she says that highly sea
soned food disagfees with his stom-