The Washington herald., 1921-09-16
8 REGARDS ROMANTIC LOVE.

successful and highly-paid teacher.
said the other day:
II regard poets and novelists as
the greatest enemies to the femi-
nine sex because they have made
us slaves to the delusion Of ro-
mantle love. From our cradles up
we are taught to look forward 70
romantic love as the very crown Of
our existence, and to believe that
IL we have 1t. we have everything.
and that IL We have II not. we have
missed everything, no matter what
other blessings we may possess.
so imbued with this false doc
trine are women that they are will
ing to sacrifice a whole life time
Of commonplace comfort, and peace,
and well being or an hour OF ro-
mantle love, and when II is over
they spend the balance Of their
days beating on their breasts. and
bemoaning their loss. Or else they
start out on a still hunt for a sec
ond supply of romantic love, ana
they, generally, seek 1t along devil
GUS ways that gets them into trou-
BILE.
Now take my own case. for in
stance. I am a very warm-hearted
and affectionate Individual. with
well marked domestic tendencies.
like to keep house. and cook, and
fuss over people. and the only rea-
son that haven't got a house. and
a husband. and children instead of
a kitchenette, and a cat, and a
roomful OF books, Is because I am
victim of the romantic love fall
lacy.
when I was a girl I had plenty
of beaux, and many opportunities
to marry good, fine men. One or
two OF these men I liked tremen-
dously. I respected and admired
them, and found them congenial
and sympathetic. I felt the warm
est friendship for them, but didn't
have thrills and chills every time
they came near me. I didn't agon-
ize every minute they were out of
my sight, and feel that 1 would
commit suicide II anything hap
pened to one of them.
Therefore, because I experienced
none of the symptoms of romantic
love as set forth in my favorite
novels and poems, I decided that !
was not in love, and said, NO"
when they popped the question. ]
was waiting for the tightening to
strike me. and to have that be-still-
my-beating-heart-he-comes feeling
which all the lady loves in the Six
Best Sellers experience. and which
is the ear mark of romantic love
But the wild appeal never came
My heart never skipped a beat over
any man, and the years drifted by
and presently found myself out
of the zone Of romance, for good
and ALL
Then realized that had been
following a will o. the wisp. I was
of the phlegmatic. common sense
type that is not given to Mysteries
nor emotional appeal. and had
wasted my life in waiting for some
thing to happen to hne that could
never possibly occur. For 1 hadn't
thrill in my system. couldn't
palpitate over any man, but what
could have given some man was a
warm. loyal devoted friendship that
would have been a mighty COM
Portable thing for both of us.
And I wonder II there are not a
lot of other women in my class
who are making the same mistake
that I did. and who are refusing to
marry men who come up to their
ideals because they don't strike
some romantic chord that they are
expecting to break into heavenly
music. They forget that people
whose feet are planted solidly or
the ground are very seldom swep,
Off of them.
After all, respect, and congeni.
ality. and suitability make a IA,
better capital on which to marry
than does romance. for romance is
as feeting as the dew on the grass
but respect and congeniality, ant
suitability are the solid rock upor
which to found a home.
| TT Is impossible that romance
should survive the honeymoon. A
man and woman can have no illu.
| sions about each other when they
live at close quarters, and see each
other sick. and disheveled, and un.
shorn, and in curl papers, and wher
they have to wrestle together ovel
the high cost of living, and the
collie, and when their temperament
clash, and they have to endure each
others relatives.
Then romance goes by the board
and IL they cannot command eact
others genuine respect for rea
character: II, they have not the
same taste and interests in life; d
/ they do not belong to the same
lodge and have the same macs.
words, then that marriage is g
failure.
In the end. very successful mar.
riage comes to be a great friend.
ship-the sort of friendship thai
was defined by the little boy who
said that a friend was a person
who knew all about you, and liked
you, anyway. So why should friend.
ship and comradeship not be enough
to begin housekeeping on?
| Romantic love makes us see
men and women surrounded by 6
halo that causes them to look like
angels and demigods. Friendship
enables us to see them Just as they
are, with all tReir faults and bir-
tues thick upon them. Certainly II
looks, as IL we would have lo'
better chance of happiness II we
picked out our life partners wher
we were sane and sensible and WITH
our eyes open. instead of doing 1,
In a delirium, and guided by q