Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-06-23


and ca danoerous and full of snares on the
other side. -,
No one will deny that every young gir'
not only needs some older woman to look
after her. and protect her, but she also
needs for it to be generally known that
she has a guardian who is keeping tab on
her. and all with whom she associates. 30
far the chaperone is all TO the good.
1t should not be forgotten, however,
that watch dog can keep friends as weli
as enemies off of the premises, and tha'
while chaperone may possibly keep un-
desirable men away from girl, she csh
most certainly cut them off from eligible
ones.
Here's case in point that has Just come
under nv own observation. L have peen
at a summer hotel where there were many
mothers and daughters. One mother was
the conscientious chaperone who is always
on the Job.
She never took her eagle eye off of her
daughter day or night. Wherever the
girl went Mother tagged her. Ii daughte,
played golf, mother sat where she couia
command a view OF the entire hhks: II
dagllhter was asked to 90 automoblling,
Mother assumed that she was also
invited and crowded in. If daughter was
laughing and talking with crowd OF boys
and girls mother joined the group. II
daughter was having tete tete with
yolng man mother turned the duet INTO
g trio.
The girl was just the common, or garden
variety of girl-pretty enough, bright
enough. sweet and sensible, and attractive
enough to have joined in with the balance
of the young people and had good time,
and perhaps have one of the nice young
men fall in love with her, If she had been
left to herself, and to go il alone little
But she had no stupendous fascination,
no ravishing beauty to enable her 10
carry the handicap of mother. and even
run in the popularity race, to say nothing
of winning out. No one wanted TO be our-
dened with the society OF mother, ana so,
as it was impossible to have the girl With
out mother, the girl was SIMPLY lett out
| overheard some young chap planning
a little party they were giving. The CUES
tion of asking the girl was discussed. i
wish we could" said one youth, but II
YOU do the old lady will come along and
I'm not going to be the goat who has her
wished on him Nor /, Nor i,
chorused the Others. So the girl was left
sitting with mother on the hotel veranda,
when the laughing merry throng drove
off. q victim of too much chaperone.
Furthermore, mother will chaperone her
into the Old Maids Home for she proudly
boasted that she never permitted her
daughter TO go to the theatre without her
and that she had never received a gentle
man caller alone.
Now among the 400 who may need
chaperones more than the million do and
where expense need not be considered 1t
NAV be well for the chaperonc TO accom-
panv Young couple everywhere they go,
but the average youth in business does
we'll if he has the price OF two theatre or
opera tickets, or can buy lunch Tor two:
Ii puts him entirely out of the running II
he has to drag the girls family along with
her. So the girl with chaperone Is per
fectly safe from being invited to see I'M
proper plays. Or proper ones, either, for
that matter.
Nor is there any danger OF the girl
whose mother always helps her entertain
her beaux ever being pestered much with
masculine society. When American boys
go to see girl they want to see her, and
not her mother and they want to see her
out of ear shot Of her family. Foreign men