The Savannah morning news., 1903-08-30
MARRYING AGES.

There are times in every womans
life, according to a high feminine au-
thority, says the Baltimore Sun, when
she will marry anybody that comes
along. These times are when she is II
and q. Between these ages she is dis
eliminating, and after the second Of
the two she is apathetic. To the girl
of II, it is said, the idea that she makes
a real live mans heart go pit-a-pat is
so ecstatic that in gratitude for the
distinction of a passionate proposal she
easily fancies she is in love. She
thinks her refusal to marry Augustus
will break his heart and send him to
an early grave. So she weds him out
of generous pity in order not to wreck
his life. She says yes" and learns
afterward that Augustus heart Is
tough and had survived numerous
prior desperate attachments. At II 1t
is any man-any individual sufficiently
inorfensive 10 allow her to nourish I'M
checked the illusions which her self
love cherishes. For at this age man
is only the occasion, not the object of
her affections. He is only a dummy;
it is she who occupies the whole stage
with her swiftly varying fancies and
caprices.
At 10 she has evolved an ideal. 1t is
no longer any man, but a particular
mana man tall, dark, passionate
looking. with a Byronic air. One at
war with his kind and of abnormal
opinions is the type. He may be pes
simistic and melancholy. His merit Is
that he finds in her the beauty, purity
and innocence that restore his faith
in humanity and make happiness again
a rational hope. A year later she Is
still romantic, but experience begins to
make her a tritle more practical. The
| spectacular beau of striking physical
aspect is refined into the strong, earn
est man, who looks at things in
| lofty, high-minded way and has fad.
| Her idol may be a matinee hero, an
unappreciated genius a social settle
ment worker or long-haired poet. 1t
is time of danger. She may accept
| theological student or elope with her
| music teacher. Such is her missionary
| spirit that she is capable of marrying
| a drunkard to reform him. With Y
| there is less risk of such unpromisng
ventures. She begins to enjoy life in
it's objective aspects, without exclusive
reference to her subjective medita-
| lions. Matrimony, like heaven, is a
cherished aspiration, but social Incl
dents have become interesting. She
| sees farther than before into the
| drama of life as others play it and 1t
entertains her. Many tepid admirers,
| she thinks, are better than one who is
| fiery In short, she is having good
time and is averse to exchanging the
| gaietes of life for humdrum nus
band. If she marries at this age, she
| is likely to make a discreet choice.
| At q, however. comes a period OF
panic, and, as ten years before, the
| danger is great. 1t Is seen that her
| contemporaries have nearly all mar
| ried The girls who were her school
mates are settled matrons and boast
| the virtues of their children. She ac-
cordingly begins to feel lonesome. The
| younger set put her aside or ask her TO
| chaperone their parties. Perhaps
gray hair-awful sight!-makes its ap-
pearance. Is she an old maid? The
| idea frightens her. She loses her
nerve and plunges wildly taking the
first man that offers Foolish matches
| belong to this period-the superan-
| nuated beau or the widower with ten
! children.
Spinsterhod has it's own pleasures
which the spinster at 80 begins to APP
preciate. The panic Is over and Pc
riod of calm and contemplation sue
ceeds. Many marriages of friends
have turned out badly and there Is
consolation in seeing what one has
escaped. Love is all right, but she sees
that in many cases 1t was unequal to
the trials of matrimony. 1t is not the
only thing to be had in view In mar
| riage, an establishment. with ample In
come, having in it the promise of a
| dienified life if not ecstasy. The sub
seauent stages are few "At 49," says
Dorothy Dix, whose authority we have
been following. the old maid is hope
lessly addicted to her latch key and
her own pocketbook, and her matri-
monial chances are nil. Some few
widows who have acquired the habit of
having a master, and are lost without
one, marry after that, but the spinster
rarely does. When she does, however,
| she throws Judgment and reason to the
winds and marries to please a sudden
fancy"