The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1890-05-22
WHEN SHOULD A GIRL MARRY I
Mrs. Harrison Puts the ago at twenty-five
Years.

- w E1L SNOulQ DC tuC aye VI lile !IloucIH
bride7 Our Washington correspondent
propounded this interesting query to Mrs.
Benjamin Harrison. Said she:
"IuAtead Of making % the proper age
to marry ] shonld make it %. AS 4 rule
woman ia married twc-.hirds of her
life, and she eau easily lend two or three
out Of those yeats to what ought to be a
happy period with every girl, the years
between her school days and marriage.
physically aud mentally woman is
at her best at Is and that is The time she
should marry"
"But your marriage took place at q
much younger age, did it not?" asked.
"Ye-es, did marry little younger"
she acknowledged laughing. ~ was 90,
but in those days a girls education was
finished at 16 or II, and there was 30 lit
tie for her to do as compared with the
present."
"Should a girl choose for herself7" said
eyes, as rule" replied Mrs President
Harrison, "but not when a girl is very
young Marriage cannot concern any but
the parties to it, and they should decide,
although / must confess that they some
times make poor work of it.
The first lady Of Lhe land has this to.
say about marriage for position:
"Loye snG respect, but never position,
should decide woman's choice OF a hus.
band."
Here are the views Of some leading
New York society leaders on this topic:
Mrs. William Astor thinks twenty-five
an excellent age for bride, and believes
that whatever fitness for matrimouy a
NC nan will develop at all will evince it
se.. at that time. Mrs. Astor, herself,
however, was welded at the age Of II,
and all her daughters have married before
they attained the age of 25. In each case
the marriage has been an eminently hap.
py one, and just why Mrs. Astor in theory
approves OF more years in bride it is
hard to imagine.
Mrs. Frederick Vanderbilt thinks that
Is is the most suitable age for the modern
bride, as at that age she is likely to un:
derstand her own character and those of
the people whose happiness is dependent
on her.
Mrs. Henry Cews thinks that early
marriages are to he deprecated in most
cases. Of course, love is essential to a
happy marriage, and is consequently Of
more Importance than the age of either
of the high contracting parties. But r
woman who has seen something of the
realities and exigeucies of life is surely
better fitted to become 8 happy aud q
helpful wife than girl whose sentiment
ality and unreal ideas about real things
equip her poorly to cope with the
responsibilities of married life.
Mrs. S. Van Redsellaer Cruger is fre-
uuently mentioned as the most fashiona-
Bile woman in New York, whatever that
may mean. So her opinion on the proper
manageable age ought to carry much
weight
"Really," she said, II scarcely know
what to say in reply to such question.
It is so clearly matter to be decided by
circumstances. / think, however, il a
woman intends 10 marry at all the quicker
she does it the better. Some women have
found that while they we're waiting for
the proper manageable age to come
along their marrisgeable chauces had
quietly passed them by altogether. We
all know, after all, that marriage is lot.
terry, and 1 think women have just as
good chances early as aslate-youpg as old.
The great mistake about marriage is, that
very young brides are apt 10 compare
married life to perfect bliss. Married
life, as fact, is very like single life, hap.
py in various degrees, but, from its very
nature, never perfect bliss. Indeed, I
am getting to believe that all the women
ought to marry and marry early,
but that the men ought not to marry at
ALL"
Mira. Chauncey NJ. Depew believes very
decidedly that 25 is the earliest age at
which woman is apt to make o ludicious
and happy marriage. "Of course" said
Mr.. Depew, "there are circumstances un-
der which a very young girl can select
her husband with almost certain promise
OF happy married life, but they are ex.
ceptiona. A woman scarcely knows her
own mind, her own desires, her own
character, aud certainly not the world,
until she bas learned what experience
alone will teach. She has seen more and
can tell better what her own mind and
heert require at Is than at any age pre-
ceding. But, after all, marriage is 80
purely personal matter that it is hard to
decide proper age BY theorizing about it
or on general principles"
Mrs. John r. Brady thinks it very diff.
6cult 10 decide what should be the age of
the modern bride. She said in effect:
ri should say love has no age. The
modern bride is no doubt often afflicted
with genuine attack of love, aud in such
case l do not sec why age should be ta-
ken iuto consideration. | will say, how
ever, that in my estimation 25 is the most
suitable age, under most circumstances
to marry. BY that time woman will
doubtless have seen many varieties OF
men ard her experience, even if unevent.
| full and UNMARRIED, will enable her to make
more judicious choice than she would
have done at an earlier age. But, after
all, love has no age, and we can never
tell when woman will fall victim to
the tender passions, so the modern bride
may be said to have no abiding age"
Mrs. j. Bellangeo Cox, of Philadelphia
does not agree with Mrs. Harrison re.
garding the proper marriage age. She
said
SIT depends altogether upon the cir
cuulstances. 1 have known many marri'
ages ct 10 or even is years of age that
have resulted most iavorably. a young
lady who is left alone iu the world at q
young age may find it much to her ed
vantage to marry early. A strong point
in favor of early marriages is the greater
mutual adaptabilily at such ages. a
young lady at 10 years Of age has lex.
ible nature that is readily moulded and
accommodated to another, but as they
grow older women become mere fixed in
their ways, and they find it more and
moro difficult to bend and adjust their ma
lures to husbands ways. But then, you
may reason out all the laws you want ro.
garding marriage, and no one of them
will holt. good. There are strange aftini.
ties that we cannot explain
For example, was in Europe lasl
summer, and with me was q young friend
a beautiful woman. a gentleman who