Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1883-07-05
A MaIthusian Metropolis.

There has never been city whose stu
alton and construction are more unfayorable
not to say inimical, to progeny than New
! York. They seem to be regarded there al
interlopers, certainly as impertenances. The,
do not belong, as everybody knows, in
hotels and boarding houses, and parents
always experience difficulty in having then
received there. In leasing houses, apart
ments or rooms, the landlord or agent invar
lably asks the applicant, Have you any
children :" very much in the same tone
and manner that he would ask, Have you
committed murder 2" or, Are you afflicted
with leoprosy?" If obliged to plead guilty
to one or two children, even though they
be very small, he obviously does not regard
smallness either of number or size as any
mitigation of your offense; he insults you
with glance of hatred or contempt, and if
he fails to reject you altogether, accepts you
with an air Of protest but only al. an ad.
yanced rate.
New York is Malthusian city. 1t almost
constrains the conditions which the English
political economist considered essential to
representative population. His positive and
preventive checks are ever in operation here
the former, by shortning human life
among adopted citizens in the hideous tene-
ment houses the latter, by hindering mar
riage and increase of family among native
citizens. Food is abundant here, but places
are, for Anglo-Saxons, totally inadequate
In Manhattan there enters into the theme
of propagation factor which Nautilus had
not taken into account. Who would sup
pose that the shape of city would seriously
interfere with natural lawse The New
Workers look upon wedlock and its usual
a.ol
very naturally, under the circumstances.
Why should perfectly sane man assume
connubial or paternal responsibilities when
them? New York may be an Elysium for
bachelors but for husband and father
with an ordinary income it is next door to
Hades: Every street, every house, every
provision, says to him: IF you would
bacy, and we cast you out! This island is
for the needless aud the homeless. Being
none Of these, go elsewhere"
A mans quest Of a spouse is limited only
by his time and opportunities for looking
around. He can try to win anybody, al
though reasonable chance of success may
attend him with but few. At any rate, he
stands squarely upon his cheek and his
merits, and that is enough. On the con-
trary, society says that woman must never
60 step out of her way to secure the best
and most desirable of mankind. She must
simply sit and wait until chance brings the
longed-for opportunity of speaking. In fact,
it is said that young ladies pride themselves
upon feeling as well as seeming Indifferent
to all men until an effort is made to awaken
their interest No wonder social retormers
protest. If young maidenhood did not so
often fall victim to the first flight of
Cupid's darts its range of choice would still
be very small. As they 90 rich and poor,
pretty and homely, intelligent and ignorant,
probably women would not, if they ac-
cepted none of them, receive On an average
more than half a dozen offers apiece, and
not over three Of these reasonably eligible.
Suppose that she is fortunate to win score
of suitors, young lady is terribly handi-
capped. Like enough none of the twenty
would be just to her liking, and meanwhile
one that she greatly preferred to any of the
others might just escape coming under the
spell of her charms. 1t is all very pretty,
but this sitting in maiden meditation fancy
free," until some stray youth makes vigor-
GUS effort to deprive the aforesaid fancy of it's
its liberty very unsatisfactory thing when
critically examined. Probably it may
never be advisable to put woman on an
exact equality with man and let her go
forth with stock of caramels and valen-
tines to her ideal, and put the motto, "If at
first you don't succeed, try, try again. to
practical test. At all events, anything of
this kind is far in the future. If, however,
man is to be robbed of his time-honered
prerogatives or forced to share them Oh even
terms, we respectfully submit that adequate
attention be given to his immense advan-
tages in courtship.