Past Problems: Put up and Shut Up

A problem and answer from Mrs Jim's page, Home Chat Magazine, July 1939. Husband is playing away. Wife finds out. Many barriers are in the way of wife leaving. She is advised to keep quiet, make herself pretty and be kind to him. Good lord.

Unhappy Discovery

When tidying my husband's desk the other day I came across a letter in his handwriting starting with the words "my darling". Thinking it was one of his old letters to me, I quite innocently read on, only to discover it was to another woman. This has been a terrible shock. I have never suspected my husband, though he has seemed strange recently and I put it down to business worries and ill health. Should I tell him what I know or shall I await developments? I gather from the letter that they meet in business and often in the evenings. I feel as if the bottom had dropped from my world. 


Mrs Jim's answer:

My dear, I'm terribly sorry. I gather from your letter that you have been happy together until now, so please be patient and give your marriage a chance of righting itself. Don't, on any account, let him know what you have found out, but be extra kind and patient and understanding.  Encourage him to confide in you and try to get him away for a holiday. Make yourself as pretty and attractive and new as possible; make changes in the home - try to infise your life together with a new charm. Some day you may be able to tell what you know, but not until you feel that you are on the safe ground again.



Read more about 20th century problems here

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