Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1889-11-14
CUPID'S FIRST WOUNDS.
Thoughts on the Beautiful Ex-
periences of the Heart.

The First Love Is Merely Preparation
for Better to Come - How 1t Az
fects and Helps Both Men
and Women.
There are those who hold that love
Is simply love, and that one can love a
thousand times, and each time as deep
ly, truly, humanity and spiritually with
the same exaltation and freshness.
But l hold that there is in that first
stir Of the emotion by the opposite sex
turn given to life, a color to our emo
tions, and a lasting bias to our whole
being that never is given again. One
may love more wisely the second time,
and with moro lasting devotion, but
only the first love can give the abso-
Lutte thrill OF unalloyed bliss and open
the world to you as place of ]oysome
work and worship. You are suddenly
awakened from boyhood and boyish-
ness, from responsibility and care
lessness concerning the future to q
feeling OF marvellous responsibility.
Behind you is the school, and play.
and obedience, and the fathers house:
ahead is the exquisite pleasure of
working for and tenderly guarding
a wife, and there is the new home to
which your imagination summons only
flowers, and song, and peace, and con-
tent. Your love has not yet had a
single jar Here is a perfect thing.
The first love is rarely ever welded.
1t is not SO intended. Her mission is
to prepare the way for rational love
and a safe marriage. 1t is prema-
ture, preliminary, in the nature of
things is temporary, and has nothing
in it of the home-making. The mar
ried love is economical, deliberative
and practical; the first love is neither
OF these. 1t sees tho world In false
light, because not full light The
color of all things is no longer the
red of life's sunrise, nor is it yet the
yellow of sunset; it is rose color. II
our first loves were often welded. the
result would, without doubt, be a
vast amount of misery. Marriage
would, indeed, be failure. The
worst of all marriages are early mar
riages, and the next worst are late
marriages. Those that are very
early are sure to be lacking in COM
mon sense. The first experiences are
babyish, and the result is childish
quarrels. The two contend over
tri6es, and, as for very late mar
riages, here again there is quarrel
ing over trifes, because each one has
learned to have undisputed sway over
personal matters. The ideal mar
riage follows soon after the first love
has faded and the disappointment Of
burst bubbles and vanished air castles
has well healed.
If, unfortunately, the first love ends
in a speedy wedding, there is first Of
all the bosh and nonsense to be go'
rid Of / do not mean that the gush
OF first affection, the overflow AND
flooding of spring tenderness, are in
themselves nonsense, but they be
come nonsense when carried ovei
to our work-a-day world. They have
their place, but not in the family. Il
they get there they have to be got ric
of. And the coming down from airy
castles to cottages in some vast will
derness," and from that to plain city
flats, with daily round OF dreadful
prosaic duties, is neither easy mol
often successful. The chances are thai
the change will come as a collapse
and all affection will fall fiat into dis
gust The woman is likely first u
come to the practical issue, and vii
either despise the spoony style OF hel
partner, if he be young and tender OF
she will play a pettish part, as sh'
was used to do with her mother.
A woman rarely, although some
times, takes first love in the serious way
that the boy does. She is never more
different from man than at this point
She is more accustomed to affection
and to its outbursts. While it Is trn'
that girl who has loved often is un
fit to be true partner with one, We
1t must be understood that a girl is al
ways in love. Her friendships are 0
the same nature as love. Most girl
are by nature prepared to serve as GU
first loves.
Aman can have only one first loVe
Iventure the surmise that girl ma.
have several In this way nopi'
girl is able to break in and tam
and render marriageable hall aoze'
lads. think l know ono or two oil
maids who we're peculiarly burdene'
in early life with lovers, but every on
of them first lovers They were sens,
Bile enough to comprehend this ana
instead Of Selling on one OF the sus
ceptible youths, marrying him out Q
hand, aud so securing an escape iro.
old maidism, they did what was sens
BILE and right and are the happier 10
It But they keep souvenirs OF tnos
DAYS. and look them over with a yer
gentle touch Indeed. l think 'nos
first loves served them, and still serve
10 k.es their hearts warm. Inc oeu
eft VI irst loveis most largely 70 man