THE CHOICE OF A WIFE.
"Go, draw aside the curtains, and discover
The several caskets to this noble prince:--
Now make your choice."--_Shakespeare._
"If, as Plutarch adviseth, one must eat _modium salis_, a bushel
of salt, with him before he choose his friend, what care should
be had in choosing a wife--his second self! How solicitous should
he be to know her qualities and behaviour! and, when he is
assured of them, not to prefer birth, fortune, beauty, before
bringing up and good conditions."--_Robert Burton._
Whether a man shall be made or marred by marriage greatly depends upon
the choice he makes of a wife. Nothing is better than a good woman, nor
anything worse than a bad one. The idea of the great electrician
Edison's marrying was first suggested by an intimate friend, who made
the point that he needed a mistress to preside over his large house,
which was being managed by a housekeeper and several servants. Although
a very shy man, he seemed pleased with the proposition, and timidly
inquired whom he should marry The friend somewhat testily replied, "Any
one;" that a man who had so little sentiment in his soul as to ask such
a question ought to be satisfied with anything that wore a petticoat and
was decent.
Woe to the man who follows such careless advice as this, and marries
"any one," for what was said by the fox to the sick lion might be said
with equal truth to Hymen: "I notice that there are many prints of feet
entering your cave, but I see no trace of any returning." Before taking
the irrevocable step choose well, for your choice though brief is yet
endless. And, first, we make the obvious suggestion that it is useless
to seek perfection in a wife, even though you may fancy yourself capable
of giving an adequate return as did the author of the following
advertisement: "Wanted by a Young Gentleman just beginning Housekeeping,
a Lady between Eighteen and Twenty-five Years of Age, with a good
Education, and a Fortune not less than Five Thousand Pounds; Sound Wind
and Limb, Five Feet Four Inches without her shoes; Not Fat, nor yet too
lean; Good Set of Teeth; No Pride nor Affectation; Not very Talkative,
nor one that is deemed a Scold; but of a Spirit to Resent an Affront; of
a Charitable Disposition; not Over-fond of Dress, though always Decent
and Clean; that will Entertain her Husband's Friends with Affability and
Cheerfulness, and Prefer his Company to Public Diversions and gadding
about; one who can keep his secrets, that he may open his Heart to her
without reserve on all Occasions; that can extend domestic Expenses with
Economy, as Prosperity advances, without Ostentation; and Retrench them
with Cheerfulness, if occasion should require. Any Lady disposed to
Matrimony, answering this Description, is desired to direct for Y. Z.,
at the Baptist's Head Coffee-house, Aldermanbury. _N.B._--The Gentleman
can make adequate Return, and is, in every Respect, deserving a Lady
with the above Qualifications."
This reminds us of the old lady who told her steward she wished him to
attend a neighbouring fair in order to buy her a cow. She explained to
him that it must be young, well-bred, fine in the skin, a strawberry in
colour, straight in the back, and not given to breaking through fences
when it smelt clover on the other side; above all, it was not to cost
more than ten pounds. The steward, who was a Scotchman, and a privileged
old servant, bowed his head and replied reverently, "Then, my lady, I
think ye had better kneel down and pray for her, for ye'll get her nae
other way, I'm thinkin'."
While the possession of a little money is by no means a drawback, those
do not well consult their happiness who marry for money alone.
"In many a marriage made for gold,
The bride is bought--and the bridegroom sold."
Though Cupid is said to be blind, he is a better guide than the rules of
arithmetic. We have false ideas of happiness. What will make me
happy--contented? "Oh, if I were rich, I should be happy!" A gentleman
who was enjoying the hospitalities of the great millionaire and king of
finance, Rothschild, as he looked at the superb appointments of the
mansion, said to his host, "You must be a happy man!" "Happy!" said he,
"happy! I happy--happy!" "Aye, happy!" "Let us change the subject." John
Jacob Astor of America, was also told that he must be a very happy man,
being so rich. "Why," said he, "would you take care of my property for
your board and clothes? That's all I get for it." In taking a dowry with
a wife "thou losest thy liberty," says an old writer: "she will ride
upon thee, domineer as she list, wear the breeches in her oligarchical
government, and beggar thee besides."
Better to have a fortune _in_ your wife than _with_ her. "My wife has
made my fortune," said a gentleman of great possessions, "by her thrift,
prudence, and cheerfulness, when I was just beginning." "And mine has
lost my fortune," answered his companion, bitterly, "by useless
extravagance, and repining when I was doing well." The girl who brings
to her husband a large dowry may also bring habits of luxury learned in
a rich home. She may be almost as incapable of understanding straitened
circumstances as was the lady of the court of Louis XVI., who, on
hearing of people starving, exclaimed, "Poor creatures! No bread to eat!
Then let them eat cakes!"
Nor is it wise to marry for beauty alone: as even the finest landscape,
seen daily, becomes monotonous, so does the most beautiful face, unless
a beautiful nature shine through it. The beauty of to-day becomes
commonplace to-morrow; whereas goodness, displayed through the most
ordinary features, is perennially lovely. Moreover, this kind of beauty
improves with age, and time ripens rather than destroys it. No man is so
much to be pitied as the husband of a "professional beauty." Yet beauty,
when it betokens health, or when it is the outward and visible sign of
an inward and spiritual grace, is valuable, and has a great power of
winning affection.
Above all things do not marry a fool who will shame you and reveal your
secrets. For ourselves we do not believe the first part at least of
Archbishop Whately's definition of woman: "A creature that does not
reason, and that pokes the fire from the top." The wife who does not and
cannot make use of reason to overcome the daily difficulties of domestic
life, and who can in no sense be called the companion of her husband, is
a mate who hinders rather than helps. Sooner or later a household must
fall into the hands of its women, and sink or swim according to their
capacities. It is hard enough for a man to be married to a bad woman;
but for a man who marries a foolish woman there is no hope.
"One must love their friends with all their failings, but it is a great
failing to be ill," and therefore unless you are one of those rare men
who would never lose patience with a wife always in pain, when choosing
you should think more of a healthy hue than of a hectic hue, and far
more of good lungs than of a tightly-laced waist "See that she chews her
food well, and sets her foot down firmly on the ground when she walks,
and you're all right."
As regards the marriageable age of women we may quote the following
little conversation: "No woman is worth looking at after thirty," said
young Mrs. A., a bride with all the arrogant youthfulness of twenty-one
summers. "Quite true, my dear," answered Lady D., a very pretty woman
some ten or fifteen years older; "nor worth listening to before."
Please yourself, good sir! only do not marry either a child or an old
woman. Certainly a man should marry to obtain a friend and companion
rather than a cook and housekeeper; but yet that girl is a prize indeed
who has so well prepared herself for the business of wifehood as to be
able to keep not only her husband company, but her house in good order.
"If that man is to be regarded as a benefactor of his species who makes
two stalks of corn to grow where only one grew before, not less is she
to be regarded as a public benefactor who economizes and turns to the
best practical account the food products of human skill and labour."
Formerly a woman's library was limited to the Bible and a cookery-book.
This curriculum has now been considerably extended, and it is everywhere
acknowledged that "chemistry enough to keep the pot boiling, and
geography enough to know the different rooms in her house," is _not_
science enough for women. It is surely not impossible, however, for an
intending husband to find a girl who can make her higher education
compatible with his comforts, who can when necessary bring her
philosophy down to the kitchen. Why should literature unfit women for
the everyday business of life? It is not so with men. You see those of
the most cultivated minds constantly devoting their time and attention
to the most homely objects.
The other day, speaking superficially and uncharitably, a person said of
a woman, whom he knew but slightly, "She disappoints me utterly. How
could her husband have married her? She is commonplace and stupid."
"Yes," said a friend, reflectively, "it is strange. She is not a
brilliant woman, she is not even an intellectual one; but there is such
a thing as a genius for affection, and she has it. It has been good for
her husband that he married her." In the sphere of home the graces of
gentleness, of patience, of generosity, are far more valuable than any
personal attractions or mental gifts and accomplishments. They
contribute more to happiness and are the source of sympathy and
spiritual discernment. For does not the woman who can love see more and
understand more than the most intellectual woman who has no heart?
A vacancy in the floor sweeping department of a public institution
having been advertised, the testimonials to the intellectual and moral
eminence of an old woman were overwhelming; but after the election it
appeared she had only one arm! Not less unfitted to be a wife is the
woman who, with every other qualification, has no genius for affection.
Dress is one of the little things that indicate character. A refined
woman will always look neat; but, on the other hand, she will not
bedizen and bedeck herself with a view to display. Again, there is no
condition of life in which industry in a wife is not necessary to the
happiness of a family. A lazy mistress makes lazy servants, and, what is
worse, a lazy mother makes lazy children.
"But how," asks Cobbett, "is the purblind lover to ascertain whether
she, whose smiles have bereft him of his senses--how is he to judge
whether the beloved object will be industrious or lazy?" In answer to
this question several outward and visible signs are suggested, such as
early rising, a lively, distinct utterance, a quick step, "the labours
of the teeth; for these correspond with those of the other members of
the body, and with the operations of the mind."
Then we are told of a young man in Philadelphia, who, courting one of
three sisters, happened to be on a visit to her, when all the three were
present, and when one said to the others, "I _wonder_ where _our_ needle
is." Upon which he withdrew, as soon as was consistent with politeness,
resolved never to think more of a girl who possessed a needle only in
partnership, and who, it appeared, was not too well informed as to the
place where even that share was deposited.
It would be impossible even to allude to every point of character that
should be observed in choosing a wife. Frugality, or the power to
abstain from unnecessary expenditure, is very important, so is
punctuality. As to good temper, it is a most difficult thing to
ascertain beforehand; smiles are so easily put on for the _lover's_
visits. We know the old conundrum--why are ladies like bells? Because
you never know what metal they are made of until you _ring_ them. An
ingenuous girl thus alluded to the change that is frequently perceptible
after marriage. "Your future husband seems very exacting: he has been
stipulating for all sorts of things," said her mother to her. "Never
mind, Mamma," said the affectionate girl, who was already dressed for
the wedding; "these are his last wishes."
There is, however, one way of roughly guessing the qualifications of a
girl for the most responsible position of a wife. Find out the character
of her mother, and whether the daughter has been a good one and a good
sister. Ask yourself, if you respect as well as admire her, and remember
the words of Fichte: "No true and enduring love can exist without
esteem; every other draws regret after it, and is unworthy of any noble
soul."
Thackeray said of women: "What we (men) want for the most part is a
humble, flattering, smiling, child-loving, tea-making being, who laughs
at our jokes however old they may be, coaxes and wheedles us in our
humours, and fondly lies to us through life." And he says of a wife:
"She ought to be able to make your house pleasant to your friends; she
ought to attract them to it by her grace. Let it be said of her, 'What
an uncommonly nice woman Mrs. Brown is!' Let her be, if not clever, an
appreciator of cleverness. Above all, let her have a sense of humour,
for a woman without a laugh in her is the greatest bore in existence."
It is, we think, only very weak men who would wish their wives to
"fondly lie" to them in this way. Better to be occasionally wound up
like an eight-day clock by one's wife and made to go right. There is no
one who gives such wise and brave advice as a good wife. She is another,
a calmer and a better self. The heart of her husband doth safely trust
in her, for he knows that when her criticism is most severe it is spoken
in love and for his own good. Lord Beaconsfield described his wife as
"the most severe of critics, but a perfect wife."
Burns the poet, in speaking of the qualities of a good wife, divided
them into ten parts. Four of these he gave to good temper, two to good
sense, one to wit, one to beauty--such as a sweet face, eloquent eyes, a
fine person, a graceful carriage; and the other two parts he divided
amongst the other qualities belonging to or attending on a wife--such as
fortune, connections, education (that is, of a higher standard than
ordinary), family blood, &c.; but he said, "Divide those two degrees as
you please, only remember that all these minor proportions must be
expressed by fractions, for there is not any one of them that is
entitled to the dignity of an integer."
Let us add the famous advice given by Lord Burleigh to his son: "When it
shall please God," said he, "to bring thee to man's estate, use great
providence and circumspection in choosing thy wife, for from thence will
spring all thy future good or evil. And it is an action of thy life,
like unto a stratagem of war, wherein a man can err but once.... Inquire
diligently of her disposition, and how her parents have been inclined in
their youth. Let her not be poor, how generous (well-born) soever; for a
man can buy nothing in the market with gentility. Nor choose a base and
uncomely creature altogether for wealth, for it will cause contempt in
others, and loathing in thee. Neither make choice of a dwarf or a fool,
for by the one thou shalt beget a race of pigmies, while the other will
be thy continual disgrace, and it will yirke (irk) thee to hear her
talk. For thou shalt find it to thy great grief that there is nothing
more fulsome than a she-fool."
The ideal wife is either what Crashaw calls an "impossible she," or--
"Somewhere in the world must be
She that I have prayed to see,
She that Love assigns to me."
But then--
"Shall we ever, ever meet?
Shall I find in thee, my sweet,
Visions true and life complete?"
To the old question, "Who can _find_?" it may too often be replied, Who
_seeks_ "a virtuous woman"? Is she wealthy? is she pretty? is she
talented? are questions asked more frequently than Is she good,
sensible, industrious, affectionate? And yet that man takes to himself
one of the bitterest of earth's curses who marries carelessly instead of
seeking with all diligence for those qualities in a wife that are the
foundation of lasting happiness.
A minister's wife falling asleep in church, her husband thus addressed
her: "Mrs. B., a' body kens that when I got ye for my wife I got nae
beauty; yer frien's ken that I got nae siller; and if I dinna get God's
grace I shall hae a puir bargain indeed." If men would seek for wives
women with the grace of God, if they would choose them as they do their
clothes, for qualities that will last, they would get much better
bargains.
One reason for this carelessness about the character of a wife may be
found in the prevailing opinion that there is little or no room for
choice in matters matrimonial. Sir John More (father of the Chancellor,
Sir Thomas) was often heard to say, "I would compare the multitude of
women which are to be chosen for wives unto a bag full of snakes, having
among them a single eel. Now, if a man should put his hand into this
bag, he may chance to light on the eel; but it is a hundred to one he
shall be stung by a snake."
Perhaps the lottery theory of marriage was never stated more strongly or
with greater cynicism; but is it true? If it were, to expend care and
attention in choosing a wife would be to labour in vain. If, however,
marriage is by no means such an affair of chance, a prudent choice may
prevent a man from being stung by a snake, and may give him a goodly eel
as his marriage portion. The important thing to do is to keep well in
mind the fact that a man's prospect of domestic felicity does not
depend upon the face, the fortune, or the accomplishments of his wife,
but upon her character. The son of Sirach says that he would rather
dwell with a lion and a dragon than to keep house with a wicked woman.
"He that hath hold of her is as though he held a scorpion. A loud crying
woman and a scold shall be sought out to drive away the enemies." On the
other hand, "the grace of a wife delighteth her husband, and her
discretion will fatten his bones. A silent and loving woman is a gift of
the Lord; and there is nothing so much worth as a mind well instructed."