Smoke Without Fire

After three happy years of conjugal life there came a sudden change in my pretty cousin's sensual nature. She suspended her husband, an engineer, to be unfaithful and reproved him for his disloyalty without any reason. Her husband tried in every way to explain but in vain. She was in so great a distress that she wept all the time. He had to stay at home with her in the hope that he might get rid of her doubt about him. But, to his amazement, this only led to her new suspicion. She thought that he remained at home all day because he was in love with the maid. He dismissed the maid and hired a new one whom his wife would call his new love. In short, she regarded any maid, irrespective of age, as the object her husband was in pursuit of. At last, her husband decided not to keep a servant in his house, leaving all the domestic work to his wife, which she undertook without a complaint.

Not many days had elapsed before she entertained more doubts about him. She suspected even her female relations, such as her sisters-in-law, being also in love with her husband. This made people think that she had gone out of her mind. She was then sent to a hospital where she was put under various medical treatments; but all of them had no effect upon her.
Such being her case, I recommended her to a psychologist. After two hours' tete-a-tete with her, the psychologist made a startling discovery.

"My dear madam," began the expert in a most sincere manner, "I should be able to remove all the worries from mind if you would tell me everything frankly. Have you anything to be kept secret?"

Thus asked, she started as if she were electric-stricken and began to weep.

"If you will let me into the secret, I promise to keep it from the knowledge of others," he continued. "For your own good, and for the happiness of your life, do tell me, madam!"

She sobbed bitterly and then gave the following account: It was about half a year ago when she met a young man with whom she fell in love. But before long, her sense of honor made her repent of her folly, and she came back to her husband again. What a shame it was to recall her past conduct, so she consoled herself by thinking that her husband must have done the same thing as she did. By and by this developed into a abnormal apprehension.

When the psychologist had found out the root of her disease, it was easy for him to uproot it. He told her that her disloyalty was due to her casual wrongdoing, not to the inevitable conduct of everybody. Nor could it be transferred to her husband.

That which gives one the feeling of distrust is rather complicated. It cannot be explained merely by nervousness. To have a suspicion against others usually comes of one's own sick conscience. Psychologically speaking, it is called the project action, that is the process of acting upon others. A Chinese proverb that presents fully the gist of this psychological action runs, "Suspicious are those who take an interest in the matter themselves."