The Rotary Balita no. 706 (October 9, 1952)

"It is much easier to put zippers on the lips of a woman than to be an ideal husband," declared Inner Wheel Club prexy Fely Tanco. Mrs. Tanco admitted that every woman has her own conception of what an ideal husband is. But she said that no matter how all women may disagree on the subject, they are unanimous in one point: the ideal husband is definitely not her husband. She said that most husbands believe themselves to be ideal husbands. They give their wives food, shelter, clothing and some luxuries that a woman craves. But that does not make them the least ideal. She claimed that there is no such animal as an ideal husband. Mrs. Tanco gave four virtues of an ideal husband. These are: "First, he must love his wife and be vocal about it. Not in the sense of proclaim- ing it to the world, but in the sense of tell- ing her day and night if possible. And if this is not possible, at least at night. "Second, he must be considerate. Should there be any family discord, he should present his side with coolness and with words that do not leave a lingering pain long after the quarrel is over. He must be civilized and never utter words that are unfit and unbecoming a gentleman, no matter how mad he may be. "Third, he must be tender. Man, they say, does not live on bread alone. Well, a woman, especially a wife, needs also some-hing more than bread. She needs a little tenderness. Not all the time, but even just once in a while. And here most husbands fail. All of you Rotarians are brilliant men. How many of you are brilliant husbands? All of you are gentle with women. How many of you are gentle with your wives? "As a matter of fact, most of the time the only tenderness found in the home is in the tenderloin which a wife cooks and the husband eats. And even then, he still complains. "Fourth, an ideal husband must be understanding. No wife can possibly consider a man an ideal husband if he is weak nor can she consider him ideal if he is not understanding. "These, therefore, are the basic qualities which might make an ideal husband-love, consideration, tenderness and understanding." In concluding her speech, she said, "There is no such thing as an ideal husband. So perish the thought. Better still, perish the husband." President Hans Menzi, one of the most eligible bachelors in the country, spoke in turn on the subject, "My Ideal Wife." As to the qualities of a good wife he said: "I would sacrifice beauty for intelligence. It is more lasting. I would sacrifice some intelligence for complete understanding. It is more pleasant. I would never sacrifice love. It is so interesting, so wonderful." Menzi denied that marriage is a 50-50 proposition. He said that it is 100 per cent for the wife. Rotarians, according to him, would expect their wives to be pretty, captivating, faithful, to love them, understand them completely and ask no questions, take care of them, exercise discreet tolerance, show patience, praise them, be good mothers, good housewives, should not spend more than the income, and be ready to share the fortunes and misfortunes. "These qualifications will make a woman a perfect package," he said. "But I doubt that there is such a package." He admitted that he was told that marriage is wonderful. But still there are others who told him that he is lucky for being a bachelor. He defined a bachelor as a man who lives as a king and dies as a rat; and a married man as a man who lives as a rat and dies as a king. He took opportunity to laud the contribution of the Filipina heroines as Melchora Aquino, Agueda Cahabagan, Trinidad Tecson and Gregoria de Jesus, wife of Andres Bonifacio, for the building of the nation. John Allison, Asst. Secretary of State on Far Eastern Affairs, delivered a 10-minute talk. He disclaimed any political motive for his trip to the Orient and said that he is here not as a statesman but as a student for there are lot of things he doesn't know about this part of the world. Miss Sonia Piñon rendered a vocal solo Leroy Young was the finemaster. Fely Tanco was fined ₱10.00 for every point she gives on her subject to be paid by her husband Art. The fine amounted to ₱40.00. Fely Go was given a round of applause for her daughter who was awarded a scholarship. Hank Marsman was also given a round of ovation. Hans Menzi whose subject was "My Ideal Wife" who at the same time is a bachelor was fined ₱10.00. In connection with the present campaign sponsored by the Rotary Anns for the support of the Psychopathic Hospital all Rotarians were fined ₱2.00 each.