WORSHIPPERS AT SHRINE OF MAMMON?

NZ Truth, Issue 1186, 23 August 1928, Page 3

WORSHIPPERS AT SHRINE OF MAMMON?

'Matilda's Wrath ___________ f

: Wife's Wardrobe — — —

' - : Thought Husband World's ""Meanest Man"

BUT FURBY BLAMED MATILDAS EXTRAVAGANCE £n_iii_iii.i..iiii.ii.i.i.iii.i.i.ii._ii iitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniii iititiiikiiMiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiititiiiiuniiuniiiiiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHtiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiititiiiiiiiiiinntituuiifiiititiiiiiHiniiiiuiiin,i>iiiiiiiiii,i,iiiH,H ;4i-i-.iiiMWimiiinMimitiiiiimimmiimiiimiiiMuiiimmnimimiiinura^^^ II (From "N.Z. Truth's" Special Christchurch Representative.) • 11 | f ■ • . i I i Her counsel: "We have heard a great deal of late about the Olympic Games champions, but this man is Jf |[ the champion mean man of the world . . ." ■-„-.* If || His counsel : "It has been represented that this man is the world's meanest man—an obvious extravagance Jj || —and lam not going to be guilty of a similar extravagance and say that the wife is the world's most extrava- |§ |f gant woman, but she would qualify very high up . . ." ! I| _ = _ ' 11'

SJ«iiiinti«miiiiiiiiiiftritwritiMti(iiiiitiMiifr»iiijii«i«Ji|niiiiiiiii«miitiimmiun™nt-»MuniiimiHiii SiMiniiuiiiuininiiiiiinuuiiiiuiiimnnimiiiiiuiuiHimiMiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiuniiiiHiiniuiiiiiiiiiiitiiiNi ONE tfiin'g, at least, is certain, so far as the • Furbys, of Christohurch, are concerned — that Mammon has always been a bone of contention with them. On the one hand, the wife, complaining- bitterly about her husband's meanness iri the home, while, on. the other, reproaches from the husband concerning his wife's extravagance. In the circumstances, it was only natural that the pair should bring their •*" differences to the maintenance court, there to ask Magistrate H. P. Lawry, to ' decide what was what. ... The bench, however, thought the , case should have been settled out of i court and adjourned it .for a fortnight, \ to see if some settlement could not bo reached between the parties. , When Annette Matilda Furby decided that she had suffered enough of the domestic arrangements under the personal -direction of her husband, Edward Harold Ambrose Furby, she sought* a solicitor and poured into his ears her tale of woe. , The result was that Edward was called upon to pay a visit to the maintenance court to explain why his wife should not be granted the usual orders. But Furby had no means of caving- . m without a fight. The outcomesome remarkable and piquant revela- , tions. ' Matilda, well-dressed, slim, and with a touch of hauteur on her not unr charming countenance, put up a good tale to the magistrate, relating m . grieved tones the petty meannesses she" and her children had suffered at her husband's hands. As a housekeeper, she had no opinion ' at all of Edward, who, she alleged, would not allow more milk m the house than one pint dally. This, she complained, was out of all reason, especially as her little boy, who was delicate, required nourishing _ food. She went further and declared that

Furby- had actually stopped the boy's malt and- oil tonic, prescribed by a doctor. Getting well into her stride, Matilda poured -out her grievances. Her husband never . provided lunch for them and they would, have nothing to eat from breakfast -time until Edward came home for tea at night. As he did not care for meat stews and such dishes, the humble sausage figured far too frequently on the menu, she declared. . . Then, again, oh the question of sugar. So meticulous and methodical was Furby m laying m supplies, that when the sugar ran out one day^he . • declined to buy any more at the time, as "it was not the right day to buy sugar." ' ■ The food scarcity, asserted Matilda, ~" was bad enough, but when the children were going without clothes, she thought the limit had been reached and took steps to remedy matters. The result was that she went out to work herself, "to provide clothing for my children.'' But Furby, she said, queered her pitch by kicking up a row and telling her he would go down to the place where she worked. Matilda gave a deep sigh. "It was useless to try and carry 'on," she said. Added fuel to the fires of Matilda's •wrath, "at the way the house was being run, was added by her' knowledge that Edward had benefited considerably under the estate of his mother. But just how much he had benefited, she told the court, she did not know, although she had often asked to see the bank-book. Lawyer Tracy informed her that friend husband had benefited m all to the tune of over £800. All this time, Furby was m a job at a little under £4 per week, but this fact was made the subjeot of the allegation that he deliberately chose to work at a low salary.

When Matilda was keeping house, her allowance was £1 12s. 6d. per week, but she said she was accused of extravagance. In the finish, Edward took over the job himself and worked his housekeeping expenditure out at about 30 shillings. "But," remarked Matilda, "we were not properly fed, on that." . Since Christmas her husband had bought the boy two pairs of pants, three shirts, three pairs of- stockings, and a pair of boots, but the boots were too small and the nails came through, hurting his feet. Lawyer K. M. Gresson then took up the running on behalf of the husband. Matilda admitted that she had received presents of money from Edward on her wedding anniversary and on her birthday. ' ' L Counsel: "And he told you to renew your library subscription?" Matilda (with some 'spirit) : "He was a member of the Officers' Club and ,pays £2 2s. a year for his own pleasure." . Counsel then ventured on the delicate subject of Matilda's wardrobe. He wanted to know whether she was m her best clothes and was it not a fact that she had a very extensive wardrobe? •' Matilda answered that she certainly was not arrayed m her best, as she did not usually ''wear her best clothes m the road." Counsel: You admit that you have a well-stocked wardrobe? — I admit that I am not short of anything m that line, except a few stockings.' ." ' " i. Lawyer Gresson then tackled the contentious question of the milk supply.. ;."/. He asked Matilda if she wanted the court', to believe that she could not otder more milk if she. needed it. :g|gfc Matilda! "I have nothing to do '^prith the ordering of the milk and I am prepared to bring the children .along to prove .that I am not al* j- lowed to order any. If I did, there I would be a row." Counsel: Did your husband not teli you to order'more milk If you needed | it?— No, he did not. .

iiiiiiiMiiiuiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiMiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiititiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiuliiiiiniiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiii iiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiniii|iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiu.iui She persisted that she was not allowed .to buy anything m the way of household necessities. "It is the same with coal," she went on. "I have told him that I will order this and order that — and he has told me that, if I did so, he would put a notice m the papers saying he would not be responsible for my debts." Matilda paused remihiscently. "Yes," she explained, "he did that once when we were m Gisborne, wb.en he had no cause to do it." Lawyer Gresson let

it go at that. Matilda left the box to resume her seat m court! Lawyer Tracy then called Dr. Per-

main to tell the " — : court what condition of health the little boy was m. "The boy is rather under-nourished m a way," said the medico. Lawyer Traoy: Is the boy's condition consistent with the mother's story of a lack of diet?— -So far as I cap see, there is no other reason for it. The boy needs a pint and 3- half of milk a day . . . and if he were mine, that is what 1 should give him. I To, Lawyer Gresson, the doctor admitted that there were, other children iiiiiniiiiiniiniiiiuiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiniiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiuiinniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiM

A Doctor's View

iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiniiniuii_tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiuuiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii|iiiiii imiiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiimuiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiiiiii who were well cared for, who yet were slender. '■ Counsel then opeAed the case for Furby, doing his best to translate all the hard things v that had been said about the husband into virtues. After unburdening himself of his weighty reply concerning the wife's extravagance, m response tp Lawyer Tracy's condemnation of Furby as "the champion T mean man of the world"— which remark was made at the commencement .of the case — Law-

yer Gresson opened up with his big guns and raked the wife's stor^ fore' and aft. To start with,

there was the question of Furby's £800 legacy. What had the wife had out of it? Well, said counsel, £100 oj; the money went as deposit on a house. She had a free hand m the selection of the furniture, and, although Furby had stipulated that his limit for sticks was .£2OO, when the bill came m it was £ 350. He paid that amount out of his legacy. - .- "Furby's story will be that it was for him a steady battle against his wife's extravagance," said counsel. ';,. "His policy throughout has been to make his;- wife as happy as could be. 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 <■ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 r 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 r 1 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ■i r r 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ■ r 1 1 1 ■ 1 1 1 1 1 m r 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

iiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiMiiiiiiiMnHiiiiruiuiiuiuiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiMiiiiiiiiMiiiiiiuiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuis iHi»:Miiii»iimiHK»iimi»tNiiniui»n»Hiiiiuiii»uiiiiiiiimi»iiiimiiiilniiiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiT He has been extremely indulgent so long as the money lasted." (It was now exhausted). "What money he had, went on the house, the furniture and on his wife. He realizes that his policy of dipping and dipping into his capital to placate his wife was not successful . . . and he discovered, that his policy had not achieved the object he intended it to haye — that of making his wife happy. "He has gone to lengths to which few husbands would go to make: things happy for her, find this expedient of .taking over the housekeeping himself was the last desperate measure. "It may be that the wife's mature cannot adapt itself to .restricted conditions and that has caused the trouble between them." j Furby then entered the box, describing how he had paid out. £loo on the house— and furniture to the tune of £350, although his limit had been £200. Explaining the system under which his wife kept house, he said that originally they came to an arrangement that she was 'to keep house on £1/12/6 weekly, newspapers, lighting and similar items being exempt from her allowance. ••'•■•■ But, said Edward, she used to spend her allowance over the week-end and then "came at ma" during the week for more. This was no good to Edward, so he rationed her, giving her £1 on pay nights; and the balance during the week. On one occasion she came to him, crying, with a bill for' £1/19/-, mostly for cigarettes, and asked him to pay it. He then told, her that as she could not. keep within his limits, he would have to take over the housekeeping himself. Her reply to that was: "You — well try it, but you must keep me m cigarettes!" ■'■ y ■'■■'■ . Furby said he had been doing the housekeeping ever since.

"These Old Hens" -, — — : : — _."■

"She went, round telling the women about it „ . . and these old hens were picking on to me and telling me it was humiliating for a woman to be placed m such a position. "And," said Furby, "I agree that it is." . Telling how he had spent his legacy, 1 apart from the expenditure on the house and furniture, he mentioned that among- other items he had given his wife a Christmas present for £20, to buy "French underclothing and toilet requisites." There had also been two trips to Dunedin for her... The last- £60 he had m the bank he drew out a few days before the case came on for hearing. He did this because his wife had said "she was going to have me skin-, ned . . . and I thought I would draw the money and pay some of my debts." Furby candidly admitted that his wife was not free to purchase food for the children, but she had to tell him what was required and- he purchased the goods. Lawyer Tracy then commenced a gruelling cross-examination, in' the course of which he did not spare Furby. Counsel: As a' result of your boy's visit to. the doctor, you had to give him malt and oil? Why did you stop giving it to him? — Because he was looking so much better. His condition " seemed mudh improved. Oh, so you took it upon yourself to stop the malt, without referring to the doctor?— The boy's condition had greatly improved; that was why. • Now, I put it to you that you drew out this £60 the other day to avoid examination as to your -means? What have' you done with the money?-— I paid a debt for £10. To whom? — A brother of mine. Counsel (scoffirigly) : "A- brother of yours . . .?" The Bench: What were you borrow- -

'■'His Obligations

ing money for, 'when you had this money m the bank? — I could not get it when I wanted it. ' Lawyer Tracy: What else .have you spent it on? — I paid about £8 for my mother's tombstone. , "Have you the . receipt?"— Furby rummaged at length m a brief bag full of papers, but failed to produce the receipt. Counsel: Now, let us 'have it. Why did you draw this, money the other day? — Well, my wife said you were going to sell up my house and get -my bank balance ... . . and that I would be stripped of all my assets. I drew out the money so that I could pay oft my .depts and have a good start if a maintenance order was to be made against me. "You have spent about £40 to £50 of this money? Why did you _^iot spend it all?" , Furby itook oh an air of deep contemplation. "Well," he said, "I haVe an obligation to Mr. Gresson here." > After a few further questions, Lawyer Tracy wanted to know why Furby had made references to his wife's language. "Why. did you drag, that In?" . he demanded. ■■••■' ' Pat came the answer. "For the same reason as you had m telling her to come along to the court: m her shabby clothes." . Counsel ' (m thundering tones): "I did- not tell your wife that! Will you please withdraw that remark?" With a smile, Furby withdrew it. At this stage the magistrate remarked that the chief cause of trouble } between the parties seemed to be money.' There had been no allegations of drunkenness, etc., apd he thought the case was one that should be settled out. of court. . '•.■.'■ He would adjourn the hearing for a fortnight to see if some settlement could not be reached. ' >v And so round one saw honors even.