Mundane Musings

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 7, 30 March 1927, Page 4

Mundane Musings

When Their Wives Don’t Understand ’Em! (Written for THE SUN.) Ann blew into the office the other day as is her wont “Hullo’d” me airily and proceeded to waste my time .mi smoke my cigarettes. Whenever she drifts in like that, it’s a sure sign she wants something, but strange to say. 'twas nothing more expensive than a confidante this time. ... 1 waited, and presently she began: “My dear, I’ve met the most wonderful man! He’s adorable, so goodlooking and so clever —an inventor oi something like that —but he’s : Tarried to some awfully insignificant little thing too, who doesn’t understand him and whom he can’t even take about among civilised folk! Isn’t it ghastlv?’’ “Oh,” I said, “who is the paragon this time?” I knew from past experience that it’s a habit of Ann’s to rave about some “he” for lavs and then to suddenly discover all kinds of flaws in the poor brute’s otherwise perfect nature, and to drop him like the traditional hot potato. “His name’s Billy Gordon, and he’s just joined Harold’s club. He’s a most dreadfully clever child, and plays bridge wonderfully. I met him at the.* Bright’s the other evening.” “Oh, yes, was his wife there?” “Good Lord, no! . He said —well, no —he didn’t exactly say—but 1 gathered from different little things, that she doesn’t play and that she doesn’t like him to, either. Poor darling! Fancy that sour-tempered thing blighting his life like that!” “Of course he didn’t go so far as to- say anything definite about her, but he let drop lots of little scraps of information unknowingly, and you could easily see what a dreadful little person she must be.” I met him myself a day or so afterwards and found him even as fascinating as Ann had said —the kind f cheery soul with whom you’re the greatest possible friends in ten minutes. He was the very essence of sympathy and good-fellowship, and he was of course, invited everywhere. No one ever asked his wife out, because they all vaguely understood hat she was one of those horrid, wetblanket kind of women who so often marry handsome, clever men—the Lord knows why! I, too, began to feel quite sorry for the poor lad and sympathised with Ann in her envy of his wife. Fancy any woman being able to hang the label of “husband” —that useful, if rather unromantic tag—upon anyone so brilliant, so amusing, so handsome, so dashing, so ambitious so everything that husbands usualr aren’t —and un-get-atable bachelors usually are! Then the blow fell! Ann breezed in again. “My dear, I’ve met her!” “Who, the Duchess?” J. asked brightly. “No!” snapped Ann, “Billy Gordon’s wife, of course!” “Oh, that! Well, did. she bite badly? ’ “Do you know she’s the most attractive and most intelligent woman I’ve talked to for ages.” “Oh yes? Where do I come in but Ann ignored my injured tone. “She was charmingly dressed and she had her baby girl with her. Such darlings! And to think we thought of her as cramping Billy’s style ” And Ann and *her indignation flounced off. And that’s that! Another bobble burst! Another of the many bo~nmisunderstoods! I wonder if all the “men-whose-wives -“-don't- understand - ’em,” live in dread of someone one day being able to? What a blow it would be to them! They’re so perfectly enchanting o the outside crowd, and they so easily make you feel that they would have conquered worlds if only they had had the right woman by their side. Apparently they are all the kind of men who would still be married to the i wrong woman, even if they had

secured a combination of Cleopatra,, the Blessed Damozel, and Mrf Hector. —incidentally what a wonderful blend that would be —almost good enough to reconcile a man to being a husband at all! Yet it’s rather amusing to watch them gaze into every attractive Woman’s eyes, and hold her hand and whisper to her with a clever break in their voices what a boon a woman’s sympathy and understanding is! But then to think that they go home and < sneer at their wives and kick the cat! J H.M. £

DEATH AT MELBOURNE MRS. BELLA MACCULLUM s t It will be learned with regret by a wide circle of friends and acquaintances that Mrs. Bella Dytes Mclntosh MacCullum, wife of Professor Peter MacCullum, professor of pathology at the University of Melbourne, and only f daughter of the late George and Re- * becca Timaru, Canterbury, 0 died at Royal Parade, Royal Park, Melbourne, recently. Mrs. MacCullum graduated master of arts with first class honours at the University of 1 New-Zealand in 1908 after a distinguished academic career. She was also woman champion in tennis at the University of New Zealand, a first-class hockey player, and had great influence in the social life of Canterbury College. From 1916 to 1918 she carried out important research work on New Zealand flax for the Government. She was awarded a research D.Sc. of the University of New Zealand for this worK, and was the first woman in New Zealand to obtain that distinction. In 1919 she was a research student in mycology at Cambridge, and at the same time was studying pathology and bacteriology. In 1920-21 she was lecturer in botany at the University of Edinburgh under Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour, and undertook important investigations on the “blueing” of timber. She became a fellow of the Linnaen Society in 1920,- and was also a member of the British Mycological Society. She was twice married, in 1915 to Captain Lance S. Jennings, who was killed the following year on the Western front, and in 1919 to Dr. Peter MacCullum at St. Giles, Edinburgh. She had three daughters by her second marriage.

NEW ZEALANDERS ABROAD Mrs. Arthur Atkin, of Auckland, has been staying with relatives in Devonshire, and more recently has been visiting Ireland. Mrs E. B. Mitford-Burgess, of Martinborough, has recently been staying at Biarritz, but returned lately to Paris and London. Mrs. H. C. W. Ross, a well-known resident of Wellington, expects to remain in England for another year. She has placed her daughter at school in Queen’s Gate. Mr. and Mrs. W. H. French, of Coromandel, are at present staying in Kent. Lieut.-Colonel Freyburg, V.C., and Mrs. Freyberg, left England for Gibraltar on February 4 by the Ranpura. Mr. J. B. Merrett was entertained at a luncheon given by the Rotary Club in London recently.