The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1920-04-02

her greatest uSetulnesS and con
Naturally every mothSg desires that
her daughters marriage shall be sue
cessful, and thai it will result, like the
old fairy tale. in "and SO they were
married and lived happily ever after
ward" instead of ending in the di-
yorce court
This being true, the greatest marvel
ON earth is. that the average mother
does absolutely nothing To fit her
daughter for the business Of wifchood
she teaches her nothing, either theo-
reucally or RfRctically, that she win
need 10 knowS64Bhen she is married and
has husband. and home 10 manage
She sends her out to tackle the most
difficult, and the most complicated Job
on earth, without having given her a
single direction about how to even
begin her gigantic task.
No wonder that so many marriages
are failures II speaks volumes for the
patience, and the forhearance. and the
devotion OF men that more of them do
not bundle back their ignorant, UNI
taught, unframed brides 10 the moth
ers who have fosted them off on un-
suspeeting men who wanted, and
thought they were getting, wives who
could do their part, as the men do
theirs. in the making of home.
And the curious part of IL all is that
these women. who send their untitled
daughters into the dangers of mar
riage, do not thus recklessly risk their
girls happiness through any spite or
nallgnancy, though hatred itself could
40 no crueler thing, They love their
girls. They want them TO be happy.
They want them to get along with their
husbands. They want them TO be good
and thrifty housekeepers. hut they want
these things TO be accomplished in some
mysterious manner without their hav-
ing 10 20 to any trouble about II.
Yet every married woman knows.
from her own experience, that the basis
of happy married fife is bound TO be
laid on the solid foundation of n conf
Portable, well ordered. and well run
home. There is no romance that VIII
survive soggy bread, and swatery pota-
toes. overdone or underdone meat
There Is no sunshine in house where
the wife has always got up the rainy
weather flag Of tears over the pies
she. has burnt. No man can look for
ward to coming home at night after "A
hard days work, 10 a Qkth tered house
where the beds are unfNede, and the
floor unswept. and everything is at
sixsH and sevens. No love survives the
perpetual pounding of the bill collec
tor on the door.
The first quarrel that the great ma.
Jority OF young couples have Is over
the wife's incompetency to manage her
end Of the joint matrimonial partner
ship. She can neither cook, nor keep
cook. She has no idea of how b.
buy, and runs her husband in debt.
His first dlsiilusion comes when he
finds out that instead of getting u
helpnleet, he has taken on himself a
BURDEN. and that the home that he
hadf looked forward to for so many
wears Is not the place OF rest and peace
OF his dreams. but a place of turmoil
where a hysterical bride wecps over
food that Is first aid TO the undertaken,
and sobs out that she wishes she had
never married and was back with her
N -o-t-h-e-r, In which wish she is
fervently. II silently, joined by the poor
goat OF a husband,
of course. In time, the young wife
generally does learn TO cook. and to
keep house. and to keep the bills In |
reason, but by the time she has ac-
quired all OF this valuable Information, |
that she should have started out with. |
she has brushed the first bloom off OF |
marriage, and its finest rapture is gone,
Her husband VIII neNermore see her
upon a pedestal, but as laundering
amateur, who didn't know her Job and
learned on him at the expense OF his
digestion
Every mother might save her daugh-
ter from this disastrous experience II |
she would for no matter what other
advantages or lack Of advantages they
may have, every mother can teach her
girls how to cook. and how TO mar
ket. and how "a sew, And no matter
what else she does in the world she
Is sure 10 be called upon at some time
10 have to do these things.
That girls are reared without any do
nestle knowledge Is the mothers fault
because all girls have an instructive
toward their hereditary occu-
nation. You can see this la the way
title girls always play keeping house,
add making mud PIES and having
their doll tea parties.
But mothers are 80 jealous of their
9wn prerogatives, they are so bossy
md so afraid that somebody else win
have some authority In their homes.
hat they keep their daughters out OF
he Kitchen and never give them a
nance TO learn the things they need |
O know. Mother wants her daughters
% help. but she will never let them
y doing things with ones own hands
hat one gets a working knowledge of
suw TO do them properly
Nor do mothers teach their dauEh |
efs anything Of the ethical duties of
vifehood They do not tell them that
means sacrifice. that 1t |
nrans unselfishneSs and putting OF
omeoues else happiness before their
wn. that Vt calls for patience and self
ontrol. and understanding. and tender
less, aud that when woman takes
nan for better or worse, II means being
good sport who swallows the bitter
nth the sweet without making faces
There is only one person on earth
Tho can settle the divorce problem
md that Us mother. In her hands rests
he domestic happiness of the men aud
iomen Of the world, and she doesn't
rouble to safeguard 1t. what pity,
Copyright 1920. 10y The Wheeler Syn.