Arizona republican., 1904-07-18
BACHELOR MAIDS CONFESSIONS
An Explanation of Alleged Reluctance
 to Enter Into the Matrimonial State

The Independent has secursd from "an attractive and able young pTofes- gor Ca woman) in one of the uDiver- sites an article designed tc explain the reluctance to enter ,nto the mat rimonial state so often manifested by intelligent and cultured women of to- day"
 The young lady who makes this contribution to a discussion which al- ways seems to possess merit, but which is perhaps less pressing and peculiar to our own time than it is often as- stunned to be, has not been without as pirations for married life. nor without opportunities to experiment in their fulfllment, says the New York Times. Her betrothals appear to have been somewhat numerous. since she speaks of two or three" or her fiances of whom she narrowly escaped thinking that they would do." Jnd she defines the standard by which she Judged them, and. after what we may take to have been probationary periods, dropped them as follows: The married life of which I have permitted myself to dream and as to which she has made these preliminary personal investiga- tions-"contains a husband who may be an intellectual companion, who may be willing, even proud, to give me en- couragement and inspiration to devel- oD in my chosen field of work as I in turn would offer arpreciative sym pathy to him in his. So far from meet ing this ideal of husbandship, she de- clares that her "various lOVers' either desired in her only a mother for their children" or a "housekeeper," though do not doubt she admits, that they were perfectly sincere in their pro- fessed intention to make the emolu- ments of my position as generous as their circumstances would admit" AS to the former and obviously more i'm portant consideration. she sums up Ter present opinions as follows:
 'If I may have children decently- which is to say. if I may have the right to decide when and in what numbers they may come--I may perhaps as married woman feel that they more than repay the suffering attendnt upon motherhood, since under those con- ditions the suffering will not be shap- ened by loss of my self respect. But If. on the other hnd, I should still feel as am inclined to now, that I am one
 
 more for the world, and have their own lives more complete, by following a ca- rcer which does not admit of the re- strict:ons of motherhood I shall ex- pect the Right Man to acquiesce in my views, no matter what may be the criticism of clamorous public. And he will, if he be, indeed, right But I do not count much upon finding him. because I seem to have looked over the assortment pretty thoroughly all ready.
 We hardly think that most intelli- gent persons. men or women, would re- gard the demands of this bachelor maid as extremely unreasonable. There are not a few households in which they are respected and in which is found as fair a share of happiness as usually falls to the lot of husbands and wives and of such children as they may agree to have, should nature per init. They do not. of course. express the ideal of a very large class in the community, but probably they express the ideal of a considerable number of intelligent and cultured women,' of whom the maid is offered as a rep lresentative. That in her case the in- lsistence on these demands has beer