The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1933-09-22
Howe About:
German Husbands
Value of Routine
Lack of Intelligence
G. 1888. Bell syndicate. -wNu Service.
By ED HOWE

their wives. Americans ana FRENCH
men rarely expect to. but Germans al
ways vigorously attempt to.
Bismarck was one of the greatest
of statesmen, and devoted his life to
the business. but was more determined
to boss his wife than to boss Europe.
Before their marriage he began train
ing her; he had her complete submis-
sion in writing before the ceremony,
and ruled at home as long as he lived.
The diplomacy he exercised in manag-
ing his mother-in-law, also was as con
slant and successful as his manage
ment of the French. His biographers
say his wife Johanna worshiped him.
She gave that impression as part of
her training; probably she despised
him.
The weakness of American men, now
the wonder of international politics,
may be due to their being universally
henpecked; our easy submission due
to long training by our wives and
daughters.
The fact that the Germans control
their women at least has not Injured
them as soldiers. The henpecked
French who attacked the Germans In
1870 were overcome in a few weeks {;
perhaps this was the best exhibition
of soldering since Napoleon and Fred
erick Possibly historians of the flu.
ture will say a still better exhibition
of soldering was given by the Ger
mans in the World war, when they al
most whipped all the other men in the
world; might have done so had not the
German women been temporarily out
of control and clamored for peace.
When the panic of 1887 occurred the
people regarded it as passing jolt
and expected the same prompt recov
cry that followed the panic in 1919.
But by 1889 1t was evident that con-
valescence was going to be slow. So
Ralph Waldo Emerson. the wisest
American then. was appealed to. In
a series of talks on Human Life" he
said ridiculous things. There is hope
in extravaganza; there is none in rou-
tine" Emerson said. Later Emerson
completely reversed himself.
The real hope in human life is in rou-
tine; in patiently learning the lessons
of experience, and patiently following
them. The ruts, the beaten paths.
have been followed by vast multi
tude, and for a good reason.
In previous centuries of world his
tory there have been enormous ex-
hibitions of human sensuality. cruelty.
religious fanaticism. famine. mean
ness, rioting. destruction. poverty,
plaques. In all these respects the an
clients established records ! do not
believe moderns will ever equal. Flu
ture historians probably will not have
another horror like the Inquisition to
make their writing interesting; nor
will they have another war lasting
thirty years. Black Plague sweeping
unhindered over the world, a reign
of terror like that in France, wom-
an as noted, powerful and bad as Cath
crime the Great, a king as magnificent
and cruel as Louis XIV.
But 1t remained for the present age
to set a high-water mark in lack Of
intelligence. We have more food and
easier produce 1t than any other
race, and more comforts, but | look
for future historians to record that
from 1929 to 1888 mankind at last
acknowledged it's entire lack of in
telligence; every citizen put a fools
cap on his head and widely proclaimed
himself an ass.
A man of eighty-seven who has par
ticipated in good deal of honorable
activity in the world, writes: "If
were an old gentleman-that is, If
were a hundred and forty or so in
stead of only little over eighty-seven
Il should be filled with uncontrol-
liable joy and merriment. I'd be cack-
ling loudly and harsly with a sense of
triumph and vindication. AS | sat In
my chimney corner eating my Cruel
I'd stop often and knock loudly with
my spoon and call all the people to
observe with me the sad remains of
the Young Mans empire that came to
its clamorous end with the smash of
the sacred Bull market in 1929. Seen
in retrospect that empire seems to
have been run by children. And I
oor1Id foil eyraat opd roSoupd;pr toIa,
of what its juvenile bosses did first
to me and then TO the country in gen.
eral In those gay days forty-five was
the age Of senility. and nothing mat
tered but pep. whatever that may be;
1 have never met anyone who knew.
And what fills me with mingled feel
ings Of joy and distress these DAYS is
the manner in which these amateurs in
life took their beatings in the Days Of
Judgment. They collapsed in helpless
ness and fright. On the downward
way they put mp no decent resistance
at all and many of them jumped from
windows"
Unhappily, all our moral teachers
are statesmen; their doctrine extrava-
gance.
And extravaganza Is not morality.
The truth Is probability that can
hardly fail, whereas extravaganza al
ways fails, and is the greatest Ameri-
can sin. Extravaganza will ruin man
as surely as idleness. intemperance or
burglary. although in a grander way.
And we all love the grandeur of
extravaganza. and, in our bond issues
and general living. display it more fire.
quently than any other people. Grand
is what's the matter with
us in the present period of our great
est humiliation and poverty.
There has long been moaning be-
Pause of the diSaDDearance of the buff