Country Life Interests

Waikato Times, Volume 124, Issue 20740, 25 February 1939, Page 4 (Supplement)

Country Life Interests

A pag® devo*^ - . to the Interests of the Country Women of the Waikato, and 1n particular to advancing and recording the activities of those two great national organisations, the Women’s Institutes aw* the

Women's Division of the Farmers’ Union,

ADVICE TO WIVES THE TREATMENT OF HUSBANDS In the past few years many thousands of words, both plain and fancy, ha\e been written on the subject of Wives, And How To Treat Them. The modern husband—providing he reads the newspapers—has no excuse for bungling his job. Forewarned by those archly helpful litt'e articles which appear almost daily in the press, the veriest novice is nowadays aware that to retain his wife's affection he must he perpetually on duty, remembering her birthdays, delighting her with simple, _ fts, rep< itedlv assuring her of his imperishable devotion, • led gu< sts to dine. Thus, and not otherwise, apparently, is the modern wife to he kept. 1 >w< ver, that the allied topic Of Husbands, Their Care And Maintenance, is seldom considered worthy leorv seems to he that, whereas the best of husbands can 1." improved by a little expert advice, wives need no such assistance, knowing by instinct how to keep their partners docile and content. Thou Shalt Not However it would be to Hie advantage of every wife to realise that a sure way of annovinv t:ii- mildest husband to the verge ol frenzy is to rebuke or beliille him in public. There is nothing the average man likes less than to be reproved in the presence of others for wearing the wrong kind of collar or using .1 spoon for trie pudfling; nor does ii rejoice his heart to hear . gathering of comparative strangers regaled with an eyewitness's ; rat of his deep-breathing exercises. The conjugal fireside, not a hostess’s dining-room, is the proper place for the discussion of such intimacies. Yet wives who persistently offend in this way arc by no means as scarce as green chrysanthemums. Concerning the mothering of husbands by their wives there would appear to be some diversity of opinion. Some men strongly resent being regarded is helph ss, simple-hearted children, and can lie goaded almost to profanity by the offer of a mustard-bath or a thicker pair of socks. Others, apparently, rather like It, and when ordered to eat their crusts or put on their goloshes will obey in the most winning fashion. In (his matter every wife must rely on her own judgment—bearing in mind that any attempt to mother an unmothcrable male can only result in disaster. From the foregoing it will be obvious. 1 think, that the wife who aspires to keep her husband cheerful and contented must p'ossess the tact of an ambassador, the patience of a policeman the courage of an aviator and the tenacity of an insurance agent. It is rather comfortinc is it not-; —to reflect that so many of them do ! —K. R. G. Browne.