(and this is the serious point of the matter) that many a young man is
deterred from soliciting a maiden in marriage by knowing that his
means would not enable him to let her dress as he is accustomed to see
her, and this is doubtless one of the many reasons why so many of both
sexes remain unmarried. I hold, too, that whatever forms an obstacle
to marriage has a tendency at the same time to obstruct the entrance
to heaven.

I will now allude to some of the duties which will devolve upon you as
a wife; and recollect that it is on the faithful discharge of these
duties that your happiness, here and hereafter, mainly depends. All
labor is honorable, and you know who it is that says, "My Father
worketh hitherto, and I work." Being married, you must make your
husband feel

"THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE HOME."

His business will probably take him from home most of the day, and it
should be your care, as I doubt not it will be your delight, to see to
his comfort, both before he starts and when he returns. It may
sometimes happen in his fighting the battle of life that he has to
encounter much that is unpleasant, and he may return home depressed.
You will then have to cheer him, and be assured no one can do it so
effectually, so pleasantly--aye, and so easily--as yourself.

It is not to sweep the house, and make the bed, and darn the socks,
and cook the meals, chiefly, that a man wants a wife. If this is all
that he needs, hired help can do it cheaper than a wife. If this is
all, when a young man calls to see a young lady, send him to the
pantry to taste the bread and cake she has made. Send him to inspect
the needlework and bedmaking; or put a broom into her hands and send
him to witness its use. _Such things are important_, and the wise
young man will quietly look after them. But what a true man most wants
of a true wife is her companionship, sympathy, courage, and love. The
way of life has many dreary places in it, and a man needs a companion
to go with him. A man is sometimes overtaken with misfortune; he meets
with failure and defeat; trials and temptations beset him; and he
needs one to stand by and sympathize. He has some stern battles to
fight with poverty, with enemies, and with sin; and he needs a woman
that, while he puts his arm around her and feels that he has something
to fight for, will help him fight; that will put her lips to his ear
and whisper words of counsel, and her hands to his heart