Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-01-24
One Roof, One Family, is a Rule
Seldom Broken With Good Results

but she'll pretend it doesn't. She'll
be, in short, the victim.
And as to the working out of such
a project, the letter I've already
spoken of furnishes the details. In
this household, the young husband
meets most of the expense and the
young wife does most of the house
work. The letter goes on:
"The mother-in-law seems to keep
the poor girl in hot water all the
time. Last spring the wife lost her
baby before it was time for its
birth, after one of the nervous at
tacks she has been having. The
mother-in-law acts as if she could
hardly stand the wife around, yet
insists that the husband stay and
help support the parents.
ITO be just, the wife is rather
high-strung from being ilh but the
mother-in-law is very conceited and
headstrong, and runs to her son
with all kinds of tales she imagines
she has ground for. And, of course,
the wife, out of love. and not want
ing to make it any harder for her
husband, says nothing, but gets
thinner and more unstrung all the
time.
Some blame may be laid to this
girl for not standing up for her
rights, yet anything she. said or
I'D would be twisted and turned to
make it appear against her"
wish felt sure that the young
husband in this case will come to
see the family situation as it is,
and insist that his wife have her
own home and freedom.
But he's probably a nice, be-
wildered, altogether dense young
man, who will keep on balancing
his wife's side of the case against
his mothers and imagining it's his
duty to remain neutral. The kind
est husband in the world can't al
ways see his way out after he has
let himself become the blindfolded
center of domestic tangle of love
and jealousy and unfairness.
Hints Cor Young Lovers.
But it's the kind Of story thar /
wish young people who aren't mar
ried yet, the blissfully engaged ones,
who believe that perfect happiness
is only lap ahead of them, would
consider carefully.
Perhaps marriage is going to be
sweet and serene and successful for
all of them. But none of them can
be sure that at any moment there
won't come some turn in family af-
fairs which will seem to suggest
that they sacrifice that freedom
they've dreamed of. Somebody has
died or somebody is out Of Job or
somebody is lonely, or somebody is
poor. And in any case, somebody
wants to sap their youth and hope
and health and happiness.
It really isn't fair.
II may be necessary, I know. And
in such a case, the newly welded
ought to make their sacrifice gay
heartedly.
But usually it isn't necessary. It's
merely expedient or economical. It's
the plan of somebody who is timid
or prudent. I'm sure it's scarcely
ever prompted by real wisdom.
And if the older generation were
as wise as they believe themselves
to be, they would protect young
lovers from risking their married
happiness in family cooperation.
Cooperation is an excellent prin-
ciple. I believe in applying It to
almost every department Of life. But
it ought TO be praeticed by people
who are on the same footing. And
the trouble with these family expert
ments is that the older woman and
the younger are not on the same
footing. The older one dominates.
And the younger one suffers. And
so continual struggle goes on that
makes everybody miserable, and that
ruins forever, perhaps, the marriage
that has been so inauspiciously be-
gum
Room for Newlyweds.
"A newly married pair need room
to make their mistakes in. They
need privacy to be foolish in. They
need time and opportunity to talk