The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-11-12
Intelligent
Women Lost
to Serenity
knowledge of Humanity
Woes Too Acute in
These Times.
BY EVELYN SEELEY
Tines special Writer

NEW YORK. Nov. III would
L like 70 explain TO Mrs. Harold
.. Cium. wife Of the United States
consul general at Bucharest. who IS
home on a visit. why We American
women are less happy-as she OBJ
serves-than she has ever seen Us.
Il IS not. as she thinks. because
we've spent TOO much energy achiev-
ing equality with men-and so
cheated ourselves out Of normal
feminine JOYS and made our home
life less charming.
The reason We are not as happy
rs she would like TO see US IS that
We are intelligent. And an intellI-
gent woman. living IN New York
today. can not BE- happy unless she
is blind. deaf and dumb.
l. may be. Mrs. Clurl. that one
could live in a tower in the Wal
d0rf. ride swiftly down in an ele-
vator 20 a waiting car, whirl away
% theaters or cafes or drawing
rooms and stay happy. But the or
binary day Of a New York woman
goes ike this.
You leave home in the morning,
and the elevator man looks tired
having worked too many hours for
too little pay. You come home at
night 70 hear the maid sigh over
her friends. whom the crowded do
~l~aN hoe left fnF-
less.
Going TO the subway you pass
beggar who wants a dime and then
a child looking through a garbage
can. You 60 10 work, and at your
Office you hear about the troubles
Of unemployed or hard-pressed
friends.
Mail Brings Sad Tales
II you write a woman's page
column the morning mail goes like
this:
A suburban wife is trying to sup
port her husband and two children
on her salary Of SIS a week as book
keeper: she wonders if she should
Quit her Job and seek a better-pay-
ing one in the city; her children are
undernourished. Another wife,
mother Of three, would take domes-
tic service. but lacks suitable clothes
TO look for the job.
An unemployed husband, home
doing the housework while his wife
earns the living. feels that she re-
proaches him for his iObleSsness-l
thinks she might be happier If he
left her.
That night you go to the theater
and see a realistic play thrashing
out the problems Of the world. You
walk home through the park softly
lest YOU wake the sleepers on the
benches. their feet tucked up in
newspapers against the cold.
Equality Still Lacking
That is why we New York wom-
en- are not so radiant. Mrs. Clum. /
Il isn't because we've wasted our
energy fighting for equality. Any
way. we didn't get it; there are 40 /
codes in the NRA that discriminate i
against us. Very few Of us are war
like feministS these days; We are
too busy.
I do not mean we go around |
weeping. Mrs. Clum. We indulge |
in normal feminine joys; We try |
hard to have charming homes; We
have not lost interest in our sweet
hearts or husbands; We are con-
cerned with the wellbeing Of our
children; We are often gay and we
are not averSe to fun.
But we are conditioned to observ-
ing the world about us. and it is /
too late 10 shut ourselves in with |
fairy tales.
Old Ways Gone Forever
Concentrating on being wives /
and mothers" you think. might /
make us happier. Concentrating on |
being a wife and mother these days |
means seeing the whole works out
side your door.
We like our homes. but We can |
no longer shut ourselves Serenely |
into them. We are committed to |
sharing the life Outside-to work
ing. as women say in political |
speeches. shoulder to shoulder with /
our men," It's too late to send US
back.