The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1929-03-26
Dollars or
LOUe Riddle
Rises Again
" MARTHA LEE

persists. 1t never Will be solved as
long as there are girls who want,
above all things, lives of luxury and
leisure. come what may. And even
if all those girls should change COM
pletely, there are still the ambitious
mothers, who must be dealt with as
painleSsly as possible.
1t is perfectly natural for mother
to save her children from hardship.
No mother wants to see her own
child struggle through poverty
stricken years of Scrimping and saw
ing and doing without the good
things of life.
And by the time a mother is old
enough to have a daughter of mar
riageable age, more apt than not
the glamour of romance has been
worn a bit threadbare. Struggling
with the butcher, the baker, and the
candleStick maker have made her
realize the infinite security of hav-
ing a bank account.
Worry SmOthers Love
Worry about how Johnny was 60
ing to be sent to college and still
have enough left to see that Mary
doesn't go shabby have smotf1ered
the thoughts of young love in a cot
tage.
Now, most of the time. the daugh-
ter will fall into her mothers way
of thinking without much struggle.
She accepts, as she has accepted
most things, this idea about the es-
sential value of having money (and
the more the merrier) as truth of
life not to be clouded with as CHM
erial thing as love and romance.
But once in q while a girl asserts
her rights as a free human being,
capable of making, her own choice,
perfectly suited to tussling with
genteel poverty if she wishes. And
that's where the trouble begins.
Youth Won't Give Up
The eternal battle of one who
knows and one who hopes, that is
the marvellous thing of youth. How
they can hope against all the knoWI-
edge Of the world!
Dear Martha Lee-I am in love with
splendid young man of whom my mother
does not approve Is it fair for her to
interfere with our happiness? Is it right
for her to prevent me from going out with
him?
That is precisely what she is doing, and
hot he
is poor and, according to my mothers way
of thinking, not in my class, whatever
that can mean.
I am 20 years old and think have
right to choose my own companions. I
have very good education and always
have been fairly sane in my judgment of
things. What is your opinion on this
subject?
My idea is very clear. I would rather
be a poor mans slave than a rich mans
darling with no love in the home. I espe-
cially would most like to be this poor boys
slave. Mother says that is all very fine
now. but that have been raised in sur
roundings that will make 1t impossible for
me to be happy with poverty. much less
make my sweetheart happy.
HEARTBRoKEN.
That brings up the old question
which you must solve for yourself.
Do you love luxury and idleness and
finery more than you do this boy?
No one can answer that but yourself.
1t would be impossible for me to
say. After that question is answered
truthfully in your own mind, then
go ahead and do what that answer
prompts.
Must Be Mental Equals
For my own part, there is no
class distinction excepting mental
aristocracy. If this boy is mentally
your equal, the other things will
work out all right, because the fact
that you think alike about the i'm
portant things will take care of the
other problems.
If your young man has ambition
and intelligence, there is no reason
to suppose that you will spend life
in poverty. If he has common sense
about things and a good Job now,
there is no reason why you should
even have to start out on your mar
ried life in the state of poverty, as
most people understand poverty.
Ask yourself honestly whether you
would mind doing your own laundry
work, your own cleaning, your own
cooking and baking, for him, in a
little apartment, that will be hot as
the hinges of hades, whether you
will mind giving up social life and
the luxury of your own home for
him. Then you will have the ques-
toned answered.