The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1901-08-20

and Belgium is comparatively insig-
nificant.
Although the other continents show
a more or less pronounced numerical
pge%ponderance of men, it would be a
mistake to assume that there are no
countries on those continents where
the women out-number the men. Mic
aragua, the South American republic,
and other countries have more women
than men. The most peculiar condi-
lions are found in Hong Kong and
Hawaii. In Hong Kong there are only
400 women and in Hawaii 533 women
to every 1000 men.
1t has been found that women are
more sociable than men and that they
avoid countries where the population
is thinly scattered over a large terri
tory. Hunting and pastoral peoples
and even those in the first stages of
agricultural development, for that rea-
son, invariably have more men than
women. The countries with the great
est industrial development in proper
ton to their area show the greatest
numerical preponderance of women.
Other elements which greatly influ-
enc the percentage of women are
their legal status, including the laws
of inheritance and succession, unfav-
orable marriage laws, and other con
ditions inimical to the rights of
women.
Climate and meteorological condi-
tons also influence the relative ratio
between men and women. In tropical
and polar the men preponderate
in numbers, while in the moderate
zone the m slightly preponder-
ate. Dry and sterile countries invar-
iably have more men than fertile
countries with sufficient rainfall.
"a study Of these figures should
be d~iscouraging to those w%ell-inten-
toned people who want to put a tax
on bachelors" said an unmarried
man who lives in a hall bedroom in a
boarding house. Bachelors can now
rise up and point with pride to the
fact that they are saints and martyrs.
If they were to marry it would only
be reducing still more the number Of
manageable women in the world.
The bachelors can now say that it is
only from an unselfish and highly
c~ommendable motives that they refuse
to wed. There are 100000 of us
men in the world the bachelors can
say to their enemies, who are doomed
to remain single. If I marry, then
Jones or Brown or Robinson must go
on through life deprived Of the sweet
consolation of wife and Preside. There
are not enough women to go around.
1t is, indeed, sad, but such is the
case and so we bachelors accept the
conditions as they are and refuse to
further lower the visible supply by
marrying
I'm America alone the statistics
show that there are ~l,UUO,OUO more
men than ome So, at least 1,OOO,-
coo of the men should be considered
exempt from the bachelors tax. II
there are more than 100000 bache-
lors in the country all above the num-
Der exempt should be, when properly
corralled and branded, made to pay
the proper tax if the legislatures OF
the various states choose to heed the
cry of the enemies of bachelors and
put a tax on them. But from the
statistics it al be see that not old
bachelors, but old maids should be
taxed. The visible supply of men in
the world seems to be far over the
demand. Bachelors should be lauded
instead of condemned for not mar
rying. Yet there are people in the
world who would lay a tax on them
because they do not deprive other
men of the joy of matrimony."
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