Medford mail tribune., January 05, 1958, Image 32

Art by Lou Peters
American housewives are being
accused with some justifica
tion of browbeating their hus
bands. Much of this is just plain
nonsense, but our society is becoming
geared to female dominance in some
areas that used to belong exclusively to
men. In such an atmosphere, it's in
creasingly easy for the wife, perhaps
unwittingly, to bite the hand that's
feeding her and her family.
Many times this is unintentional.
With young married people especially,
it often happens because the wife is
caught up by the predominant thinking
of the times and hasn't bothered to try
understanding her husband. The result
is likely to be an unhappy marriage.
How to avoid it? That's easy: don't
exploit your husband!
It's a tremendous temptation and
usually easy to do. He's handy, fre
quently adoring, anxious to please but
he can be pushed too far. And when he
is, it's sometimes difficult to win back
his former affection.
Giving wives the benefit of the doubt,
let's assume that often they don't
know they're exploiting their husbands.
For example, I know one family where,
when the children were very small,
the wife had a siege of illness and the
husband helped out by making the beds
before he went to work. The wife has
been well for quite some time and the
kids are now old enough to handle the
job themselves, but the husband still
makes the beds. He's being exploited.
Sure, he's a simpleton for doing it,
but he's an easy-going, good-natured
guy who just never bothered to break
the familiar old routine.
Is the husband being exploited in
your family? Here are seven "don'ts"
in the. care and feeding of husbands.
They comprise a handy guide to
happy husband and a blissful marriage
11,(0) ffll
i &
' I if
S DON'T ASK HIM TO DO HOUSE
1 WORK. American husbands are
the only men in the world who
help their wives with housework. In
stead of appreciating this fact and
accepting the help gratefully, some
women look upon it as their right. It isn't .
This doesn't mean that it's wrong for
a husband to give his wife a lift around
the house when there is some special
need for it. But it is wrong for a wife
to expect it, or to ask her husband to
do her work for her as a matter of
daily routine.
2 DONT BUDGET HIS POCKET MONEY.
. Nothing gives a man more self
respect than having money in his
pocket for which he is accountable to
no one but himself.
Not long ago we stopped after a
show for a sandwich with some friends.
The other couple insisted on separate
checks, and when they came, the wife
had to dig into her purse for money
while her husband stood by, acutely em
barrassed. Afterward, they explained
lamely that he had "overspent his
budget" for that month.
A man should be able to pick up an
occasional check, treat himself to a
luxury, or lose a few dollars at cards
without being made to feel he's a
rounder or a spendthrift Family
budgets should be arranged to give the
husband a fair amount of financial
freedom if necessary, by providing
him with his own checking account.
And however it's arranged, his wife
shouldn't look over his shoulder at how,
when, or why the money is spent
was the most
wonderful man in the world
when you married him;
here's how to keep him that way.
6 Family Weekly, January 5. 19SS