103

A WORD
WITH THE WOMEN
(By Elia W Peattie)

A lady who refuses to smile with me
at the man who waters the lawn as a
divertisement sends the following.

'Behold the man' He holds the end of
the garden hose. He has a love for the
beautiful home, which, without a well-
kept lawn for his children to romp upon,
is far from a perfect home.

Elia W Peattie has chosen a good
subject, but has taken the wrong side.

'Tis sad to see the neglected yards in
our city. I know a man who has a
block of dwellings for rent but rents
only under contract that the occupants
must cut and water the grass. I wish
every landlord would do the same Mrs.
Peattie finds fault with the men for
sprinkling as she thinks it interferes
with the social conversation of the
family. There is a time for all things
and certainly plenty of time for the
faintly after the grass watered. Alas'
for the pitiful sight of an unkept lawn,
where there is no real enjoyment socially,
where husband is wedded to
the newspaper, and with heels higher
than his head pipe in his mouth and
coat off is seen on the front porch, but
sadder still, perhaps is not seen at
home at all in the evening. He has no
interest in keeping his lawn on beautifying
his home. There is no attraction
there.

Where your treasure is there will
your heart be also. He loves the telegraph
and barber poles in front of the
hotels. They are tall. He can get his
feet higher. Oh what a love of a
husband! Much better learn to gracefully
hold the end of the garden hose.
But Mrs. Peattie says the wife pouts or
sulks while the husband sprinkles. Well
if that is the case, we would not censure
the men for neglect but the wife
who is no more womanly to sulk
for this cause she is not worthy of a
kind husband. But I can't agree with
Mrs. Peattie on this. Most women love
a nice lawn and do not detest the garden
hose, but with myself, rejoice
every day and say with me 'Oh such a
blessing is the water. Just think! We
all use all we want, and the flowers, Oh,
so grateful, and reward us by more
flowers the next day, than we can pick
out the sick and suffering, who receive
with delight the beautiful bouquet'

All hale the man and the garden [?]

What was Byron's idea of glory? Was
it not to die upon the field of battle and
have one a [?] wrong in the
Dispatches.