The German husband was the commander-in-chief of his household.
It was not that benevolent lordship which the man of the house assumes toward his wife and family in other nations.

The stern note of command was always evident; that attitude of "attention!" "eyes front!" and unquestioning obedience.
German women always were subordinate to their husbands and the male members of their families.

It was not because the man made the living and supported the woman.

Frequently the German woman contributed as much towards the support of the family as the males; it was because the German male by the system which had been inculcated into him, regarded himself as a superior being and his women as inferiors, made for drudgery, for child-bearing, and for contributors to his comforts and pleasures.

His attitude was pretty much like that of the American Indian towards his squaw.
Germany was the only nation on earth pretending to civilization in which women took the place of beasts of burden.