The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-08-15
When Is a Mother-in-Law
 Acceptable

A mother-in-law having been accepted as a member of family, is so consider ed according to a recent opinion handed down by the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors
 We realize that any discussion of the mother-in-law question has us treading dangerously close on the heels of those old gags that now leave ghostly foot prints on the dust covered vaudeville stages of the country; yet, the in-law is- sue has long outlived the testers and IS with us today.
 There is much more within the recent Court opinion than that which appears on the surface The delicacy exists in the query of, "just when is a mother-in-law acceptable, and being so when is she ac- tually acceptable to the members of a family"
 Thus. it would seem to us that this re- cent opinion is wide open for the en- trance of certain technicalities; especial ly as the summary finding is based, con ditionally, on the word acceptable. m the face of this, we can cite many in- stances which have occurred among our scope of general acquaintances which have produced sharp differences of opln- ion on the subject of an acceptable moth- er-in-law some of these differences have bogdered on the violent.
 Case histories citing the various types of nnothers-in-law give vivid proof for the foundation for such differences Of opln- ion. To name but few, we pay note 10 that type possessing the daughter protec- ticn complex which works overtime. rms type until the day the son-in-law is buried and she personally has firmly stamped down the last bit of dirt with her foot will always eye him with dark suspicion and show no retieence in expressing her firm belief that he never was or could De good enough for her daughter
 According to the files on this type, she is rarely considered as member of the family. at least as far as the son-in-laW IS concerned; but, that solves nothing, even for the courts, for if there is to be any accepting to be done she is the one who will do it.
 Also. according to the case histories, there is that type who moves m as part of a family like fifth-columnist-by ln- roads She is all sweetness and light ana bears pseudo timidity of manner Whlch is deadly. tending to make any reasonao' lv cornpromising son-in-laW to feel like heel when the doubts of suspicion creep into his subconscious. She IS as lnpenI as a tigress and has calculating direct, ness of purpose which is so uniettefed that its simplicity has all the earmafks of sweet, innocent sincerity. This type, frankly, also does all the accepting put in a less painful manner.
 Any discussion here of these types ana ginlliar others, precludes at this writing, the worthy eulogiZing of that other type naother-in-laW who is regarded by hef son-in-Iaw as a blessing to his marriage. This latter type exists in great numbers and never has there been need of court opinion to decide her aeeeptability Wlth', if a family. She is heartily welcomed ard loved.
 All in all. it is likely that most lurlsts would avoid opinion on the mothef,ln" law issue, Great moral courage and dlllg.. enee to duty was shown by the iurists ot out state court. We daresay also that their recent opinion was adfolt and we'll turned even if we doubt it's adequacy, After all, iurists also get married and human affairs being alike they too must feel the heavy hand of personal eSpefI' ence laid upon them as they ponder the facts, Perhaps such a decision IS more ln the line of Mir. Anthony,