Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1911-04-14
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LET WOMEN PROPOSE. ;


A well known English clergyman
has made a daring suggestion in
pleading hard for greater equality be-
TWEEN the sexes where certain matters
were concerned he ventured to express
the hope that the day might not De
far distant when it should be consid-
cred as natural and as modest for a
woman to propose marriage to a man
as it is now for man to offer his heart
and hand to one of the opposite sex.
His idea is by no means a new one.
but the fact that it has been seriously
brought forward by a cleric will
doubtless fill with apprehension the
soul of man. Hitherto he has regard
ed it as his almost divine right to
suggest marriage On this fact he has
based his superiority, and by this
means he has held woman in subjec-
ton. He has made her dependent on
his whim and caprice and favor.
If the time ever comes when gir4s
will not need to- wait to be asked III
marriage it will still be possible for
man to take the initiative if he likes.
No one would wish to rob him of the
delight of speaking first, only he Will
have to be less diffident than he is at
present in a rather different way. 1t
will be open to him, too, to refuse an
offer, and perhaps the more conceited
specimens of manhood will find the
plan work much better in their case.
They would be able in such circum-
stances to pick and choose" with
greater security. AS matters now
stand, if Edwin, whose chief asset is
his personal appearance, wants to
marry for money he has to proceed
very warily, He cannot very well ask
d seemingly suitable girl what her
prospects are. Appearances are de-
ceitful. Her father may have nothing
| to leave, though he has a town and
country home, a superb motor and a
wine cellar. So Edwin has to run .
certain amount of fisk when he asks
Angelina to accept him. Now, il
Angelina is allowed to ask Edwin she
can put her financial and social posi-
ton before him, and there is more
likelihood of mutual understanding.
In the coming by and by women
doubtless will be less financially de-
pendent on man. Presumably, there
fore, they will more often be able to
marry for love alone When they do
love, why should they not say so? They
can but cast the die as men do. Ii
they are refused they will be no worse
off, after all, than if they never tell
their love, but let concealment, like a
worm in the bud, eat out their aching
hearts. To do man justice, his hesita-
ton to suggest marriage may often be
due to his unselfshness or his chiv-
airy. He may not think himself
worthy to marry particular girl. He
may regard it as impossible to ask
her to share such a home as he can
afford. Why not, then, make no more
bones about it, but give the proposal
right to both sexes alike and see what
effect it has on marriage statistics? If
men do not like the arrangement they
can but signify their disapproval IN
the simplest manner. The difficulty
| lies in making the innovation. How
could the project be started Who
would lead off, and how could a We
man be sure that a sufficient number
of her sex would have the courage to
follow in her train? The only possible
way of insuring a trial of the system
would be for a certain date to be
fixed, let us say, as a general proposal
day and see what advantage was TAX
en- of it, AS a last word it may be
pointed out that woman's instinct is
always supposed to serve her excel
lently we'll as a guide, so it is possible
that she would never propose where
she did not think she was likely to be
accepted.