If this were a proper place to give advice to young men on the grave
subject of selecting a wife, we should say, "Never marry a young lady
merely for her showy, outward accomplishments, which, ten chances to
one, have been attained at the expense of more valuable and useful
acquirements--perhaps at the sacrifice of the ornament of a meek and
quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. Never select
for a wife a young lady who dishonors her name and sex by the avowal
that she dislikes children; that she even hates the care of them, and
that she never could find pleasure in household duties. She could never
love flowers, or find satisfaction in cultivating them."
A lovely infant is the most beautiful object of all God's handy works.
"Flowers _are_ more than beautiful;" they give us lessons of practical
wisdom. So the Savior teaches us. If I did not love little children--if
I did not love flowers--I would studiously hide the fact, even from
myself, for then I could not respect myself.
But to return to the remark which Louise made to her husband, when he
presented her with that good and useful book--a book which has elicited
praise from many able writers, and called forth the gratitude of many
wise and good parents.[D]
This remark was anything rather than a grateful acknowledgment to her
husband for his thinking of her when absent; and it not only evinced a
spirit of thoughtlessness and ingratitude to him, but manifested a
remarkable share of self-sufficiency and self-complacency.
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