ABSTRACT
Sidney and Beatrice Webb, whom I knew intimately for a number of years, at times even sharing a house with them, were the most completely married couple that I have ever known. They were, however, very averse from any romantic view of love or marriage. Marriage was a social institution designed to fit instinct into a legal framework. During the first ten years of their marriage, Mrs. Webb would remark at intervals, “as Sidney always says, marriage is the waste-paper basket of the emotions”. In later years there was a slight change. They would generally have a couple to stay with them for the week-end, and on Sunday afternoon they would go for a brisk walk, Sidney with the lady and Beatrice with the gentleman. At a certain point, Sidney would remark, “I know just what Beatrice is saying at this moment. She is saying, ‘as Sidney always says, marriage is the waste-paper basket of the emotions’.” Whether Sidney ever really did say this is not known.
