The Minneapolis journal., 1903-12-07

IA R ANY women Will not marry
III because they prefer to keep
their individuality, as they
- Ia cannot if they we'd. They
do not care to change their
entire scheme Of living to suit some
man. They are selfish? Perhaps but
at least they make no one else the
victim of their fault.
The law in many states so dis
eliminates against woman that it is
an argument against marrying to
those who know anything about it,
The man, generous fellow, says at
his wedding. with all my worldly
goods I thee endow,' and the wife
who believes it finds to her surprise
that so far from being the recipient
of all his worldly goods he owns
even the garments she wears. The
woman who sees her assistants salary
drawn by the worthless husband with
whom she will not live, but who can
live on her. earnings, is not likely
to think we'll Of a condition which
permits the injustice; she who reads
Of q. child willed away from its mother
for no better reason than the malice
Of an angry husband Is likely to de-
liberate a little, for If nature teaches
anything or proves anything, 1t is that
the child Is the mothers. When the
law gives children to their mothers'1t
will do much to make women WISH TO
marry and to become mothers 1t
the law would keep any woman from
marrying. but they have.
It IS true that woman loves her free
dom perhaps the more that 1t Is so
new to her. She realizes IS no man
can the blessings which have been his
for ages to work as he will and climb
where daring leads. and she longs to
work, too, and to climb, to make her
self something in the big world, and
even more to that little circle which
is her world. She loves the possi-
biIity of this power 80 we'll that she
will not resign it for an UNIV orthy claim
ant. The man who turns an earnest
woman from the delights Of congenial
work and independence must be man
whom she loves more than she does
herself. No imitation man attracts
her. for she counts the cost before
she owns him "lord and master" and
inispite Of all the talk about the inde-
pendent woman and how she has
changed from the "clinging vine, va
riety she is like her Of all bygone
days in that she never does love until
her heart tells her here is he who is
lord over her. Woman's nature does
not change; simply her vision is
larger and she is not so easily satisfied
with inferior quality. ,a..
Women have so long been forgiving
to mans inf1delities that it may be
surprising to be told that they have
kept women from marrying, yet the
statement is true. There are Wom-
en- who have what is called instinct
i've virtue and who have no compre-
hension and can have none of the
average mans point Of view. To such
a one it is monstrous that g. man car
be untrue to her before marriage as
after. She knows no reason why he
more than she should seek illici
yrh
he has such a wave Of disgust sweep:
over her that it carries him as fa1
awayfrom her as if he had never lived
Such women are not SO rare as once
they were, and in this is the eXplana
tion of many marriage put off on thu
times forgives because she loves much
but she no more continues to love II
the same way than does the man wh'
forgives the woman who has wronget
him. AS her sense Of justice and o
personality develop in the comin'
Years, she will forgive less readily.
There are always in womanl
we1nen two motives for marriag
strong within them, and it is often a
actual pain to act counter to them
First of all Is the desire for children
After a. woman has reached 80, up
less she is a. shallow creature, she re
grets that she does not know mother
hood: Something says to her plaine
than: any person can that in missill
this highest glory of womanfoo
she has lost more than she can gain
There Is an aching in her heart whic
nothing stills and for which petting {
animals and other peoples childre
Is a poor substitute. Most women wi
admit that they wish they might haN
their own to love, tho this may /
questioned since there are so man
ChiIdleSS marriages. ...Es
A French woman once said to TT
writer: "Of course, marriage is
necessary evil. Women don't .expe
to be happy with their husbands, b
then there are the children, and OF
lives again in them, and has joy evel
instant Of their babyhood. and Joy eve
with the sorrow of their later years
and the woman who is childless los
all this, her birthright.
Then another inducement to- Il
self-supporting woman toward nlat1