Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1919-07-18
TRUST THE AMERICAN GIRL.
No Fear She II Be Left in Competition
With the French Girl.

A returned young officer, Che must be
very, very young, writing in The Globe
Democrat, opines that the American girls
are going to have a difficult time regain
ing their hold on the youths of the A. +.
+. who have met up with the jennes files
in France. His mouth fairly waters as
he spreads forth the Turing charm of the
irresistible Marie and the fetching Fan,
Ghetto He is enchante.
AT home,' says this very, very young
officer, "a girl makes you think you are
lucky if she lets you take her out and
spend S25 and ton of energy pleasing
her"
In France, he has discovered, girls in
vite men to their homes. The maidens
there beg American men to condescend
to permit them to serve them. When it
comes to pleasing, flattering, coddling, i'll
general making hit with a man, the
little French girl is in class by her
SELF
From the remarks of the very, very
young officer we conclude two things:
He knows very little about French girls.
He knows even less about American
girls.
We have no doubt that the French girl
is charming creature. We have no doubt
she makes an excellent wife and mother
We have no doubt she is hospitable by
nature and is very grateful to the young
men who helped redeem her country.
Our very, very young officer has prob
ably mistaken gratitude for infatuation.
He also overlooks the fact that most of
the young Americans in France hadn't
| seen women to talk to for months before
meeting the French girls on social ba-
-, 81 how rnI
charming under the circumstances.
We venture the prediction that 90 per
cent of the Americans, when they return
to the United States and again mngle
with home girls, will forget that there
are women in Nrance. Experts assure us,
and we know it ourselves, that the Amer
! lean women have no equal in the world.
| Thousands of Europeans marry American
girls every year. How many American
men go to Europe for brides
The very, very young officer, or his in
formant, pictures the French girl in an
almost Oriental slavish attitude toward
men. We don't like the picture and don t
think it is real.
The time has passed when American
men want cringing wives, even if there
was such a time. Our youths are not
looking for women to work for them and
serve them as slaves The clingingvine
and smelling salt era passed with the Civil
war.
| The American man today wants a pal
as well as wife. He wants n companion
with whom he can deal on terms of equal
ity one who can take an interest in his
business, share his problems, and be an
all-round friend. Friend wife and
''friend husband" are American slang
terms, but, like many of our idioms. they
| express sound sentiments. The average
man in this country today would be dis
gusted with a girl whose only desire was
to please. fiatter, and coddle him and
beg for the privilege OF serving him. y
Sugar is the most sickening thing in the
world when taken frequently in large
quantities.
The suggestion of the very, very young
officer that some Americans would re-
turn to France to wed because of the
fortunes coming to women through the
death of male heirs is an unworthy
thought. If there are such American sol
diers our girls will be well rid of them.
The manhood of the United States
would be in a sad state if their ideal of
wife was reduced to a woman with a
slavish desire to please and with large
dot to bring to her husband. But let us
take comfort in the fact that the very,
very young officer and his very, very
young informants are very wrong The
French girl is not as he pictures her, nor
is the American man the Oriental fortune
hunter he is described to be-
We have no doubt that the returned
soldier will have kindly feeling for the
French girls (when he thinks of them
for their many kindnesses in their lone
some hours, but when it comes to marry
ing will pick out a good independent
American girl-the kind the lads in khaki
left behind when they sailed for wars.
He will find on his return that not only
does she surpass the girls of the Old
World, but that she has become much
more attractive and vital person.-St.
Louis Republic