The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1914-04-16

and has a right to know what The
nature Of that danger is. The in
stinct for home and motherhood /:
in every young wOman's life. II /.
Just as much a part Of her as the
nest-building instinct is a part oil
the sparrow, or as the desire fol-
food and sleep is fundamental
want in the normal human being
This mother instinct is 50 lofty and
so pure that she desires TO become
the mother of strong, healthy chill
dren only. No wholesome, pure
minded young woman ever hopes
TO have a home where weak and de-
formed children will play. so far
as the health and The perpetuation
Of the race are concerned the duties
Of parenlhood are the most sacred
duties that ever come TO men and
women. And the joys Of parent
hood are commensurate with its
sacredness.
Now since the happiness of par
ents depends largely upon the
health Of their children, and since
the joys of the mother depend
largely upon the health of the faith
or, il is important for young wo-
man to know where danger some
times lies. II all young men both
before and after marriage lived pure
lives there would be much less I'M
happiness in many homes. But not
all men are careful. Some willing
iy take risks that may endanger
| their own lives as well as the hap
piness and lives of their wives and
children. Many q sweet trusting
girl has married the man she loved
dearly, with the expectation Of hav-
ing the happy hOmelife that all her
best nature Graves and deserves, but
discovers too late that much of that
happiness will never come because
of the irregular life of the man she
married. A very high medical au-
thority estimates that fully 10 per
cent of all men who marry rob the
home OF much of IFS happiness be-
cause they have not lived the kind
of life that worthy young man
should lead. A committee i'm New
York City who made an investiga-
ton among the hospitals discovered
that 30 per cent of all women who
suffer from the social diseases"
suffer thus because their husbands
had-not always followed the die
tates Of the higher and nobler in
stncts in their lives. The National
Committee whose business it is to
gather and give currency to infor-
nation on this subject places the
percentage at 40 instead of 80. A New
York physician found that of all wo-
men who came to him for special
treatment 20 per cent were respect
able married women whose homes
and lives had been made unhappy be-
cause their husbands had not been
true TO the marriage vows.
81 course Their, is much more of
this unhappinesJ In the cities than
in the country. But there is much
Of It II some places in the country.
] myself have known of many I'M
happy people md many homes
where sorrow and misery had driv-
en- out JOY because of the weakness
in human nature that leads men
sometimes to forget their better
selves. We are astounded TO learn
that in the year 1912 there were
over 1000 cases of these social
diseases" reported TO the State
Board of Health in Kentucky. And
not all cases were reported. This
means that there are perhaps at
present over 10000 young men in
this state whom young women who
expect to have happy homes can
not afford to marry. The highest
medical authority in Kentucky told
me that over 50 per cent of the
young men under thirty years OF
age have at some time been affect
ed. You must understand that
there are plenty of pure men just
as there are plenty of pure women;
but the number of men who have
lived irregular lives and have suf-
fered for doing so is much larger
than the number of women who
have done so. | do not want 10
cause you to lose any faith in man
kind but | trust that you may al
ways guard your own safety TO the
degree that will insure your own
happiness.
Another thing is important to
know. II is natural TO suppose that |
all young women hope TO have
homes of their own some time. II
is always quite natural TO suppose
that every normal, healthy young
woman hopes TO yield TO the mother
instinct when she has a home Of
her own and become the parent Of
healthy children. This is the way
nolupa inIandad that hnnao oha,,Id /