The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-10-27
Dorothy Dix Talks
How the other Hair Lves--f.
BIZ DORoTHT DIX
FSssd's highest Paid Woman Writes.


A young woman, only nineteen years
| old herself, but the mother of two chill
dren. recently abandoned her husband,
and home, and babies and went back
to her own mother.
Whereupon her husband promptly
had her arrested and brought before
the domestic relations court
1T isn't that don't love my babies,
Judge" the girl said in defending her
self, but my husband was always
scolding me about spending so much
money on the housekeeping, and COM
planning that 1 wasn't a good manager.
and accusing me of being idle. So 1
just went away and left him with the
house and the children to look after
so he could find out for himself how
much it costs to buy babies milk and
food, and all the other things it takes
to run a home. And how much work
there is in taking care of two little
children, and doing the cooking, and
washing, and cleaning and mending
for a family
About a million other women will
feel like chipping in and building a
monument to this intrepid young
creature who has had the courage to
do the thing that they have contem-
plated doing a thousand times, and
lacked the nerve to do, and that is
to show their husbands, what a
woman's work really is.
For when Adam got his second wind
after reproaching Eve for kidding him
into eating the apple, he immediately
began telling her how much easier her
job was than his. And all the sons of
Adam have kept up the song ever
since.
Without doubt our greatest great
grandmother in the cave age used to
have to listen while greatest grand
papa cave man told her how lucky she
1 L.
look after the cave babies, and bring
in the fire wood, and skin and cut up
and cook the meat. and tan the hides
of the wild beasts he slew with his
little stone Ratchet, or speared with
his little flint spearhead. instead of
having to weary herself in the chase
as he had to do.
Per h aps greatest grandmother
Strengthened out kink in her back
that she had gotten from scrubbing
out the cave, and answered weakly,
Eyes, DEAR" as most of her descen-
dents do. Perhaps, being a husky
lady with red hair, and wolf teeth, she
threw the first handy thing at his
head, and told him generally where he
got off with that line of talk.
But, anyway, that's a little family
drama that is enacted in practically
every household in the world every
day in the year. For the great major
ity of men still labor under the delu-
sion that every woman who is a do
nestle woman leads a life of Sybaritic
ease, and that taking care of colicky
babies, cooking meals. and sweeping
floors is simply the diversion of an
idle hour. Far, far different from the
hard work they do. This masculine
attitude towards hOusework is shown
in the fact that the census report does
not include home keeping women
among working women.
Also no man can ever understand
what a woman does with the money
she spends. His wife represents to
who was always crying for "more.'
Every morning at breakfast is the
demand for a few dollars. Altho he
gave her some yesterday, and the day
before. and the day before that, and in
his mind the inference is unescapabIe.
She must waste it.
Therefore, he cries out: Good
heavens, woman, where is that five L
gave you week before last? Do you
think I'm the national treasury? I
tell you that if you had to earn your
money as hard as do mine, you'd be
a little more careful about the yyay
you throw it about, but you've got
nothing to do but hang around the
house here, and go to bargain sales,
and think up some new way of blow
ing in the dollars toll and swear for,
Pretty easy you women have it. I'll
tell the Wor1di'
Then it is that even the most Pa
tient Griselda among women feels like
putting on her hat, and slanming the
door behind her, and going back to
mother, and leave husband the bag to