The San Francisco call., 1897-11-29
OLD MAIDS WILL
Be given A SHOW
Bachelors Will Have the
Choice Of Marrying or
Going to Jail.
Mrs. Charlotte Smith Will At
tempt to Legislate Men Into
Committing Matrimony.
Marriage Bureaus Will Be Esta blished
Throughout the Land if She
Is Successful.

| Bachelors must we'd or go to Jail. There
| is Joy In the hearts of the old maids
throughout the length and breadth OF
this broad land to-day, for the spin3ters
who have grown old and ugly waiting for
the men who were TO come along and al
low themselves to be coaxed, wheed ed or
coerced into matrimony see a chance of
being freed from the irksome cares of
single life by calling on the law to ASST st
them in bringing the single men to time
and the Hymeneal altar.
This, to them, pleasant state of affairs
they hope will be brought about by Mrs.
Charlotte Smith, PRESIDENT of the Women's
Rescue League OF Boston, Washington and
New York, who has taken up the cudgel
in their behalf and will ask Congress to
pass law compelling men ana women of
marriageable age to wed. The followin G
are some of her demands:
1. That every man and woman OF
riageable age shall be compelled to marry by
law.
2. That a national matrimonial bureau be
established 10 aid in enforcing the law.
8 That the office of United States Commits
sioner of Matrimony be created, and that Mrs.
Smith be appointed to that office.
A. Tina. national matrimonial fund be ap-
propria ted for dowries of from 5000 to $50
Tor poor girls, to provide wedding trousseau
and furnish modes home.
s. That rich bachelors who refuse to marry
shall! annually pay fine which will be equiv
a!ent TO the support OF a family.
q. That poor men who refuse to obey thu
matrimonial law shall be punished, as for
any other infraction of the law, by prison-
ment
7. That women who refuse to marry shall
be punished in the same way as men.
ho foil al vi ha
sented to Congress:
To the President and Congress of the United
States, Greeting: We, your humble petition
ers beg for i'm mediate relief from your honor
able body for the following good and sufticien t
reasons:
As industrial women and wealth-producers,
we en- titled 20 the benefits of the products
OF our labor. We were promised protection
by the present protection administration,
which, up to the present time, has been an
empty promise-nothing more. There has
been but little done by manufacturers and
corporations 10 better the conditions of wage
women, who create "a per cent of the wealth
produC d in all the light manufac turi 6
industries in these United States.
This deplorable state of affairs makes it an
utter impossibility for 100000 women 10
obtain husbands or remunerative employ
ment. so that they may be provided for in
their dec lining years
What are we to do with this standing army
of marriageable and unemployed women, who
can never marry nor GO 10 service ?
Statistics prove that 80 per cent of the mar
riageabl men in New York and Massa chusetts
DO not marry. We want this vexed ques ton
settled at once by Legislation making mar
riage compulsory. The problem of what We
shall do with our surplus female populat ton
must be solved. either by such compulsory
law or by the establishing of State and ra-
tional matrimonial bureaus and by the ap.
Iointing of committees OF investiga tion by
Congress.
Mrs. Smith proposes to organize sys-
~
which shall b, the municipal bra che.
controlled by State organization which
shall be ruled by a national institution tC
be affiliated with an International bureau
The fact that the proposed law will pro-
vide punish ment for women who refuse
to get married similar 10 that i'm posed
upon recalcitrant bachelors has no terrors
for the old maids, for a canvass of great
many of them in this city yesterday de.
veloped the fact that all of them would
ten times rather Net married than go tC
| j1il, or as one of ttem put it, "She would
rather get married ten times than so to
| Jail once"
While the old maids are all in favor ot
Mrs Smiths scheme, the young and pretty
ones are Mortified at the idea. Not for
anything in he world would they want
to be compelled to marry. They would
rather go to Jail any time, horrible as that
m light seem
Florida Kingsley of the Alcazar Com
pany left off making her toilet for the
III natinee to discuss the subject.
MAKE the men get married? On, how
lovely! No, no; | mean what shame
| The poor men-to be put In jail. How
| horrid l don't think the law should
compel people to get married. believe
the men would rather go to jail first. |
know l would. l. think that there should
be a probationary marriage law-some-
thing like they have in Scotland, l think
it Is. That allows couple 10 marry on
probation, and if after two years they
find that they are congenial they can con-
tinue on in the married state. Many a
man now, after the first Cear of his we'd
ded life, neglects his wife, and she has to
put up with him, and he knows it and
doesn't try to do better. If he felt that
she could leave him at any time he would
act in an entirely different manner.
| Very few men are satisfied TO live with
one woman all their lives"
Gertrude Foster of the same company
was Mortified 10 think that any woman
hould attempt to get such law passed.
Marriage is too sacred an institution to
be iorced on people" she said. "a man
should marry the woman he loves, and if
he cannot find one that he can love he
should be allowed to remain single and
not have to pay any penalty"
Maud Edna Hall of Morosco's, who is
both young and pretty, threw up her
hands and laughed when the matter was
mentioned to her.
II would rather go to jail than marry
before l was ready. | know that m ost OF
the men would prefer the Jail. Why, if
such law was passed the jails would not
hold half the people who would go there.
They would have to be enlarged to ac-
com odate the rush. Mrs. Smith must
have had an unhappy married life.
Misery loves company, you know.
think that is what is the matter with her.
She's crazy"
Marriage is too sacred to compel peo-
pie to enter that state" said Lorens At
wood of Morosco's. Speaking profession
ally, ould not advise young girls in this
profession to get married for il retards
her progress. She can advance much
faster in her profession if she is unm arried.
There should be no law compelling people
| to get married."
| Others who were seen thought that the
| matter was great joke, or else the woman
| who proposed the law was crank.
| Several single men who were asked
| their opinions said that "they would
rather be jugged first"