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Article THOUGHTS ON CONJUGAL HAPPINESS. ← Page 2 of 2
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Thoughts On Conjugal Happiness.
emblematical piece of advice to the parties to avoid all future bickerings and animosity , and promote mutual harmony and peace . In modern marriages I do not remember to have heard of any other sacrifices than those which are usually made to Bacchus and Venus on the wedding-niht : certain I amthat the most interesting
g , part of the antient ceremony is omitted , having observed a little tincture of the gall diffusing itself over the human mind , even after matrimony , by which I am inclined to think this necessary precaution has been but too frequently neglected . Kj uucedny oi readers
my wno nave ever voyaged up the Thames as far as Battersea , but must have met with some of those young skiff-adventurers , who , having never learned to row , afford matter of much mirth and entertainment tothe passers-by : it is not undiverting to observe how aukwardly two of these gentlemen-watermen handle their oars , to mark the force which is alternately made use of to hurt and retard each otherthe quarrels that ariseand the dangers they
, , encounter , before they perceive the necessity , of pulling together , and pursuing their course by that equality of strength and skill which should be mutuall y exerted on the occasion . I have often thought this no bad emblem of matrimony , where we may frequently perceive man and wife shifting the labouring oar from hand to hand dragging one another round with great vehemence to
, shew their several forces , rowing direct contrary ways , with twenty other ingenious methods of exposing their want of skill ; till experience at last teaches them , that all the art lies in pulling together , and that half the pains which they take only to make themselves ridiculous , would , if ri ghtly applied , be more than sufficient to steer them safe into the harbour of peace and happiness .
_ It hath been remarked , that travellers in a stage-coach shew very little inclination to be sociable for the first ten or twenty miles , and seldom begin to grow good company till towards the end of the journey ; in like manner many of those whimsical travellers whom Hymen drives in his nuptial car , will look very sour upon one another at first , but when time has jumbled them a little together , and reason told them that
they may as well be good company as not , have agreed to jog on with cheerfulness , and , in spite of bad fare and dirty roads , be as happy as society could make them . I have known many an absurd couple , who , after scolding and scratching for twenty or thirty years , have at last parted the best friends in the worldand expired in each others arms with all the
im-, passioned fondness of a bride and bridegroom . According to the received maxim of Better late than never , this is certainly a prudent resolution ; as life , however , is short , or , to carry on the allusion , rather more like the Turnham-green than the Yorkstage , I see no reason why any gentleman and lad y who have taken places in the matrimonial vis-a-visshould not set out with good
, - humour and complacency , and endeavour to preserve their social disposition with a desire of being mutually pleased and satisfied throughout the whole journey . June 24 , 1704 . HOMO ,
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Thoughts On Conjugal Happiness.
emblematical piece of advice to the parties to avoid all future bickerings and animosity , and promote mutual harmony and peace . In modern marriages I do not remember to have heard of any other sacrifices than those which are usually made to Bacchus and Venus on the wedding-niht : certain I amthat the most interesting
g , part of the antient ceremony is omitted , having observed a little tincture of the gall diffusing itself over the human mind , even after matrimony , by which I am inclined to think this necessary precaution has been but too frequently neglected . Kj uucedny oi readers
my wno nave ever voyaged up the Thames as far as Battersea , but must have met with some of those young skiff-adventurers , who , having never learned to row , afford matter of much mirth and entertainment tothe passers-by : it is not undiverting to observe how aukwardly two of these gentlemen-watermen handle their oars , to mark the force which is alternately made use of to hurt and retard each otherthe quarrels that ariseand the dangers they
, , encounter , before they perceive the necessity , of pulling together , and pursuing their course by that equality of strength and skill which should be mutuall y exerted on the occasion . I have often thought this no bad emblem of matrimony , where we may frequently perceive man and wife shifting the labouring oar from hand to hand dragging one another round with great vehemence to
, shew their several forces , rowing direct contrary ways , with twenty other ingenious methods of exposing their want of skill ; till experience at last teaches them , that all the art lies in pulling together , and that half the pains which they take only to make themselves ridiculous , would , if ri ghtly applied , be more than sufficient to steer them safe into the harbour of peace and happiness .
_ It hath been remarked , that travellers in a stage-coach shew very little inclination to be sociable for the first ten or twenty miles , and seldom begin to grow good company till towards the end of the journey ; in like manner many of those whimsical travellers whom Hymen drives in his nuptial car , will look very sour upon one another at first , but when time has jumbled them a little together , and reason told them that
they may as well be good company as not , have agreed to jog on with cheerfulness , and , in spite of bad fare and dirty roads , be as happy as society could make them . I have known many an absurd couple , who , after scolding and scratching for twenty or thirty years , have at last parted the best friends in the worldand expired in each others arms with all the
im-, passioned fondness of a bride and bridegroom . According to the received maxim of Better late than never , this is certainly a prudent resolution ; as life , however , is short , or , to carry on the allusion , rather more like the Turnham-green than the Yorkstage , I see no reason why any gentleman and lad y who have taken places in the matrimonial vis-a-visshould not set out with good
, - humour and complacency , and endeavour to preserve their social disposition with a desire of being mutually pleased and satisfied throughout the whole journey . June 24 , 1704 . HOMO ,