The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1864-07-29
TOO MANY WoNEy.

The Boston AduertiSer has a singular statistical
article, showing that Massachusetts, has ordina-
rily had more than her share of women and that
now, through the withdrawal of men into the
army, there must be in that State one hundred
thousand more women than men. This remark-
able surplus is regarded as unfavorabe to the
morals of the community, as well as unfortunate
for those sections OF the country where the men
are in such majority us TO suffer from the lack
Of wives, cooks, and seamstresses. The AdreTtisgr
says:--
TO speak directly of the first and chief cause of
those tficultiCs Is 70 repeat the figures presented
in the census. At this moment there are in Mas
sachuEetis nearly one hundred thousand more
won Gu than there are men. In 1860 the excess
of the number Of women of all ages above that Of
men was $500. Since that time The war aud the
STEADY surplus Of the emigration of males must
have taken from us sixty or seventy thou ,and
more men-these, also, 1t must be observed, of
the malriageabe ages-leaving a surplus here Of
one hundred thousand women. Between the
ages Of IS and 40 the population Of WON in
Massachusetts, is about $4,000. The population
of men of the same age does not probably exceed
242 GOO at the present time.
This entire dispTOpOriOn, greater than we re-
member to have observed in the statistics of any
other country, may be ascrbed, to q cousidgra-
BILE extent, to the war. But we should mistake
greatly five should consider the war as It's only
cause. Before the war existed, ia 1860 the
excess OF all ages was, rs we have said 500.
Counting only the population between the ages
of fifteen and fifty, the excess of women
within those limits was 27000-a surp us much
too large to be overlooked in q careful study of
the cline of the community. The causes are
evident. Young men emigrate freely and largely.
They emigrate in much greater proportion than
women do. The emigration from Massachusetts
is much larger than the immigration into 1t. The
consequence is that large proportion of unmar-
ricd women are left by the tide Of emigration
within our borders.
fyFnf antsN ,s,fN 4,
found III the encouragement, by all proper means
of the emigration Of women from Massachusetts
into the regions where they are needed and of
systematic emigration of men from Europe into
our State. Merely selfish considerations Of u
Temporary lack in the supply of WOrkmen ought
not 10 stand moment in the way of the rectify-
ing O gross dispropOrtion, which, of necessity,
seriously endapgers the morals of the co immunity,
and the very foundations Of civil society.
1t must be remembered that the Western
States, particularly those Of the Pacific, are sner-
| ing under the counter difficulty. The census of
OlegOn shows a surplus of 10000 men TO match
our surplus of women. Trustworthy letters before
us, as we write, state that the LABOR of laboring
women In Oregon Is paid dollar day in gold,
with board besides. The grazing districts Of that
state are not fifty developed for want of women
TO make butter; the schools are not tity taught
for want of women 10 taachi the men are COM
| PEELED 10 do hOuseWOTk for want of women to
wash and 10 sew.
Granting for ultra delicacys sake, that the
| people of Oregan must not ray thar they want
wives for their mon and matrons for their future,
| they must say they need women for every pur-
| pose, Their best men make the most impressive
appeals, therefore for organized emigration OF
women. We understand sUme steps have been
| taken in New Eug'an looking towards such an
| organization. Quite Independently Of Il, We 10
not hesitate TO say that any woman who has her
living 10 earn. and is willing TO earn it, will do
wisely hy investing two hundred dollars in o. pas
fage 20 Portland, in Oregon.