The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1916-11-10
THOUSANDS OF FRENCH WOMEN
BEING ROBBED OF HONEY
MOONS.
POPULATION PROBLEM
Destiny as Mothers Sought BY Girls
of Warning Countries Frown-
ed Upon.

what to do with the young French
girls of to-day and how to secure the
necessary number of French children
has become of the most vital inter
est to France.
A young bride, who had been mar
ried in July, 1914, said to we'll
known French writer:
"There is one thing which l shall
never be able to forgive the Ger
mans, even if my husband should
come home from the war safe and
sound, and that is the two years of
happiness of which they have robbed
me-
but what about me?" a young
girl standing close to her exclaimed.
What about us, the young girls of
France, who have been robbed of our
prospects of happiness?"
She was right in taking a gloomy
look of the future of her generation
of young girls. She had every right
to demand that something be done
for them by the state, in saving which
their prospective bridegrooms have
lost their lives.
The young French girl of today
says to the state in very plain words:
Frenchmen
what have you thought of do
ing for us, who cannot get married
because there are not men enough
in France to marry us all? Has any
one thought of what is to become of
us?
"If the government thinks that we
are going to take the veil and enter
a convent, it is very much mistaken
indeed--we want to live our lives as
women, to fulfill our natural destiny,
to marry and become mothers. If
only we had votes the members of the
Chambers of Deputies would soon
begin to occupy their minds with our
position"
The anxieties of the young French
women are more than justified by the
facts. The marriage problem, which
was an exceedingly difficult one be-
fore the war, has now become tragic.
In time of peace there were more
women than men in France and 1O4
girls were being born to every 100
boys, while the rate of mortality
among the latter was greater.
Four surplus girls on every hun
dred does not look very alarming,
perhaps, but the aggregate result is
total surplus of at least 100000
women in France who are absolute
ly unable to get married, even If ev-
cry single male in the country decid-
ed to take unto himself wife. But
great many men are either unable
or unwilling to marry, and this fact
adds a great many thousands to the
number of girls condemned to cell
bacy.
The great war has made conditions
many times worse. The situation
has become dangerous to the very
existence of the country. France,
which is crying for children and still
more children. is in danger of losing
perhaps 100000 prospective moth
ers.
The discussion of the best means
to face and solve this problem has
been taken up in the press by jour-
nalists. members of the Academy and
prominent public men Writing in
LIE Journal. Maurice de Waleffe says:
I'VE all have q daughter. or q sis
ter. or some young girl relative who
10 In danger OF becoming ono OF the
million OF French women unable to
marry because she hes NO other dow
~ but her youth. Can We then do
nothing 10: save her from the torture
OF lonely and barren existences
"Of course. there are our colon
les. Noble races OF people are living
there--Arabs. Annamites and Ma
agascans-who have willingly come
forward TO mingle their blood with
ours In defense of France and of a
common ideal. but 1t is far easier to
work together toward a common war
Hike ideal than to share the petty
cares of everyday life. II marriage
between these people and French
women were possible they would
surely be gnhappy--o customs and
ways of living stand between us,
Foreign Husbands Non Grata. ~
Nov, foreign husbands for
French girls are just what France is
afraid Of There have been few
France-Germa marriages since 1870,
but II any French woman should dare
TO marry German after 1914. Ger
many may keep her and be welcome
to her.
"Rut from aDart from the Ger