New-York tribune., 1908-12-21
COMPULSORY MATRIAfONY.

4 pbiIanthropic member Of the Wisconsin
legislature the Hon. John j. Farrell, is re-
ported to have undertaken noble If not aIto-
5atber novel task For the purpose Of aiding
hasbfuI men in securing wives he proposes TO
levy a tax on bachelors Other beneyoIently IN
clined statesmen have advocated the adoplioh
Of somewhat similar measures to accomplish Ille
same object, but either because they Iacheu
what st. Paul calls 'the gift of continuance OF
because Of some seemingly Insignificant de1ecC
in the form of the bills which they have sought
to enact. their efforts have fallen short OF
achievement Presumably the second eXplana-
ton here offered is the true cause or past 1al-
ures. and If Mr. Farrell will go over the ground
carefully he will perceive the necessity OF two
or three trifing amendments.
WHY we venture with some hesitation TO ID
ouire would Mr.. Farrell apply compulslon only
N bachelors? Is there not an equal If not
a greater need of exerting pressure upon the
girls? He says that many a man lacks the
nerve 70 ask a woman to marry him, and the
statement shows what a close observer OF
human nature he is-but why do men lack the
nerve? Obviously, because they dread re
frsaI Well. to what requirement does that
conclusion clearly point? Unless there could be
some guarantee that an affirmative answer
would be returned, how would taxing bashfui
bachelor help Cupid? Would not taxing the girl
who refused do more good? Why not arrange
a schedule of progressive penalties, letting the
women off easily for the first offence but snow
ing less mercy the second and third times? We
leave Mr.. Farrell to work out the Details mercy
Offering this general hint
A few months ago the Governor Of one Of the
Southern States. whose name we refrain from
mentioning out of regard for the feelings Of his
relatives. announced in a brutal fashion that he
was about to seek legislative protection from
1.-The wiles Of women" But does he or Mr..
Farrell happen to know how many or how few
women avail themselves of the leap year privi-
Iege? Our own volume of statistics on the sub
ject having been misIaid, we are obliged TO trust
10 memory for the moment. Theoretically, of
course, the number Of such offers might be ex-
pected to bear the ratio Of one to three to the
number Of offers from men to women, because
there is only one leap year to three other years.
As matter Of fact the proportion is, If we
are not IN error, about one to a million. Most
of the trouble. then. is with the women They
are too backward about coming forward, and
either too shy or too cruel when entreated.
Their scrupIes may in most cases be reasonable
ana even praiseworthy, but should a little thing
like that be permitted to stand in the way of
mems happiness?
Here is another point which the Wisconsin
reformer and others who have cherished like
purposes may have overlooked. Occasionally a
fellow who has successfully concealed from the
world his natural baseness Of character has
said to himself, Were my income sufficient to
enable me TO support q wife in comfort, how
fortunate should I be If I could win Maria. ."
Why is 1t not feasible to outwit such a man
and force him TO do his duty to society? Let
Wisconsin, either by statute or constitutional
amendment, make it obligatory upon every man
TO be five times cleverer than he really is and
able to earn five times as much as he actually
does That simple remedy would prove far
more effective than q tax.