Weekly Calaveras chronicle., 1866-07-28
MATRIMONY.

Matrimouy is good thing; there is no
doubt of it-not any. If.proofis need
ed look at the uneasiness of young men
until they are doubled, and notice the
short time generally allowed to elapse
between the death of the lamented first
and the espousal of the beloved second.
All of which goes to prove that the de-
sire for matrimony is implanted in eve
ry human heart; that the welded state
is normal and the single state abnormal
in short that, as we stated in the be-
ginning, it is good thing.
Matrimony being a good thing should
be encouraged, not only because of the
happiness of the individual, but for the
good of society at large The s,married
man has given bonds to society. He is
tanned. The unmarried man lacks stead
mess, 6xedness of purpose and stability.
With no one to care for but himself, he
becomes improvident. With no cross
es to bear, he becomes proud. With
no one to ring his faults in his ears, he
becomes vain. He can pack his carpet
sack and march at a moments notice,
and hence is unreliable. Having no
solid home comforts, he seeks excite
ment in public places, and becomes
dissipated. In short, be is kite with
out tail, viii h may ascend rapidly
to considerable hight but which wab-
bles downward in an ungraceful and
disgusting manner. Therefore matri-
mouy is good thing.
We write these few lines sorrowfully.
Matrimony is on the decline. There is
not the marrying and giving in, NJ arriage
there once was, which, being a good
thing, we lament. Why is it?
Time was when it was perfectly and
entirely safe for young man to wed
the object Of his admiration with very
small stock of ready money, The Ia
dy's parents furnishing the outfit, the
step was not very hazardous. A salary
of $400 to $500 would not only keep
the young couple, but with economy,
something could be saved out of it for
the rainy day which sooner or later over
takes all. One of the most prosperous
men of the city, who is on the high
road to wealth, and who has passed
two-thirds of the milestones on said
highway, married on salary of $3.50
and saved the first year $3.50. And
they lived we'll
At present writing it cannot be done.
The female portion of humanity have
higher ideas than $3.50 per annum
The rent of the house to live in must
be $3.50 more than that sum, and the
furniture-$35O will hardly furnish
the least pretentious room therein. Then
comes the expense of servants, of cloth
ing, rides, excursions, parties, dinners,
everythiDg-why, the salaries on which
the generation just going out married
and thrived, and raised large families,
are nowhere.
These are stubborn facts as every
young man knows. Hence they can
not marry until they have accumulated
enough of this worlds wealth tosupport
this style; and by the time they have
accomplished this, nine out of ten of
them are not worth marrying, or have
lived so long alone that they have de-
generated into the belief that it is the
best mode of living, and don't want to.
There is but one way of remedying
this growing evil. Cut down the ex-
penses. When the luxuries are cheap
we use the more of them. If straw
berries were four cents a quart, the
consumption would be quarupled. Make
matrimony attaiuable to all. The young
men are as much inclined as ever, but
they are barred out. Fashion has plac-
ed wide gulf between thousands of
them and matrimony, which can only
be bridged with greenbacks. On the
one side they stand looking across long
ingly-on the other the thousands Of
young ladies who are approaching the
dreary confines of old maidhood are
standing, despairingly. Fill up this
gulf with common sense, take off the
tariff on matrimony, and restore to the
Probate Judge and the minister the
good old times of yore. - Cleveland
Herald.