Life — March 25, 1909 — page 11: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

‘LIFE The Beginning of a Cure CAME in to talk to you about my wife.” As Danbar, a young fellow who had only been married a year so so, entered the office of his distinguished friend, Dr, Pruden, and uttered these words, he was answered not by the doctor, but by a low growl, which proceeded from a box at the side of the doctor's desk. In the box was a cocker spani Under her paws were two old slippers that she was guarding with great solicitude. Dr. Pruden smiled in reply, as he held out his hand to his friend, whom he had not scen in a long time—over a year. “ Be careful of Sallie,” he said.“ She's in no mood to be trifled with. You must have knocked her box with your feet when you came around there.” “Yes, I did. By Jove, old man, it seems an age since I've seen you. Well, I'm married, and I sce you are makin; bigger strides than ever in your pro- tession.” Dr. Pruden’s reputation, indeed, was by no means local. He was in the best sense of that much abused word a true scientist, and his great work, “ Phylo- xenitic Humanity,” recognized authority. “Well, I don’t know,” he said, mod- cstly. “To tell you the truth, the ap- plause of the multitude doesn’t interest Perhaps,” he continued, “ be- always praise you in the I value my own work on a certain muscle of a frog's leg—a study of a lifetime—but I'm known in the papers for light inconsequential hypnotic experiments. So there you are. But what is the matter with your wife?” Danbar leaned back meditatively in his chair. was a me much. they wrong places. ause and “Dox’T YOU KNOW, MISS WASP, THAT YOUR FIGURE IS DREADPULLY OUT oY FASHION?" “There's so much the matter with “that I don’t know just where to begin of it is, I'm afraid it’s hopeless.”” The doctor smiled. “That's always a make with a woman,” he it is unscientific. conclusions, Tell me briefly the facts.” “Well, the facts are simple. She has been, and is now, considered to be one of the brightest and cleverest And when I say this I mean sensible, too She has a real mind, But some- how or other, she doesn’t take to home life. The meals are never right, The servants do as they pleasc—when we have any. She is constantly pre- paring papers, going out to literary clubs and so on. But 1 don't dare to. bring home a friend to dinner, not knowing what we will have to eat. In short, doctor, my wife apparently thinks that home life is beneath her. I'm ashamed of the way the house is run and apparently she is ashamed of me to think I'm disturbed about it Dr. Pruden stroked his chin soft! “That's what we a case of ¢| feminitis Americanis,” he s ly. “I used to think known cure for it, there isn’t. safe proposition said, women in town. even call id facetious- there but—well, Of course you understand,” he said, “that it is really a case of de- terioration, or, perhaps, I should say in your wife's case, of misdirected activity to put it mildly.” “How do you mean “Simply this. Whatever woman may become in the future, no one knows. But at present her proper physiological mission is to be a mother, to interest herself in the details of a houschold, to cook, to sew, and mend; in short, to oc- cupy herself with all of those apparent domestic trivialities, but which are in reality necessary for her normal func- tions. Now, whenever she shows a distaste for these things—thinks herself above them—discards them and takes to those so-called intellectual activities, she becomes abnormal, and immediately begins to deteriorate wife last one to believe this, She would passionately resent any such statement. But when we come to analyze her mental processes—the read- ing of papers before her club, for ex- ample, which is a well defined form of female mental degeneracy—and ask was no maybe Of course yo would be the her,” And the worst even if But don’t let’s jump at he said, THE HAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE ourselves what results is accomplish- ing, we see at once that her proper func tions have been suspended.” “Do you mean to say “Wait a moment. You are a busi- ness man. Say you are engaged in sell- In order to perfect yourself ing wool. in your business, that you may satisfy asa you can about sheep and their habits, from textbooks, from tion, from talk, Why? Because a knowledge of sheep is essential to your and your normal functions man, learn all you observa- success, your success is nothing result of exercising your human being, the Everything is that. woaw more than heritage as a pres- ervation of sel. sbor- dinate to olog an's physi- eal function is just as clearly de- fined as that when she de regular path sh “Of course, But avoided or helped?” Danbar ward, and a man's, Don't you see, there- fore, s from her is deteriorating?” how can this be his excitement leaned for- doing so he touched again the corner of the dog’s box. growled ominously “What's the matter asked ¢ doctor smiled. “There's nothing particularly the mat ter with he replied. “You see those slippers she’s guarding with so much jealous care? Well, she thinks they are puppies. Until she had them once She with her?” he her now,” comicbooks.com