Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-04-30

the consular bureau in the country from
which he would like to choose wife.
Governments have other bureaus, 80
why not bureau to deal with the basis OF
all life and enterprise
One remedy which has been seriously
suggested is that every Briton select one
woman to be the mother of his children
and another to be his intellectual COM
panion This plan is dismissed by some
who are opposed to polygamy and by
others who contend that not every Brlton
needs an intellectual companion, while
many Britons are not anxious to be called
father. Another argument III opposition
is that raised by the high cost OF living, but
the reply here is that 1t would be good
business policy for the state to subsidisc
families, Just as it is doing in the case OF
bread :.
There is still another remedy. Australia
has preponderance OF men. 30 has
Canada and New Zealand. England pro-
duced fine type OF woman IN the land
girls who came to the rescue OF the co'ln-
try in the time of the most acute food
shortage Encourage these healthy ro-
bust young women to emigTate to the
colonies is the advice of those who are
giving serious thought to the difficult
excess of women.
Various causes are responsible for the
unhappv situation OF all the European
countries. Britain has the smallest pro-
portion of boy babies On the other hand,
the relative male mortalitN is higher
while there is tremendous emigration
annually Of the most virile males. During
the war Britain suffered heavy losses on
the field OF battle of the men who should
TODAY be either potential or actual hus-
bands and fathers. From whatever angle
the situation is viewed, 1T appears ex-
tremelv serious and is causing much worry
not only TO the women, but to those who
are taking a farsighted view of society and
the position Of the state.
Young women played prominent
part in winning the war. At the outset
everyone wanted to be a nurse. and soon
the supply of willing applicants far ex-
ceeded the needs of the army and navy.
Slowly women began to replace the men In
office factory and field. The War Office
EMPLOYED thousands of typlsts, messen-
gers. translators, censors, mechanics. They
found places In the air service, the army,
the navy. as motor drivers, farm hands,
shop workers. police officers, detectives
and a hundred and one different occupa-
tions. They came from every walk IN life-
rich and moor. educated and illiterate.
Some of these girls were brought up under
the careful guarding Of watchiul. parents;
Others had been forced to fend for them
selves almost from infancy.
Hard work, long hours, new associa-
tions. all had an influence on these young
women, and no one was surprised when
unpleasant stories were circulated about.
AS in the case of soldiers, 1T Is Impossible
to generalze or to consider any large
group simply because there have been
scandals among the women war workers.
The critics OF the country's morals find
food in the night club life of London and
the large provincial cities, such as Liver
pool, Glasgow. Birmingham and New
castle. But it is as fair to judge morals on
the basis of night club life as 1T would be
to represent the old tenderloin as typical
of America or the Paris boulevards as
representative Of French hfe.
Women are reported to be heavy
gamblers, and now and then a club run
especially for their patronage is raided.
All of which drives certain clergymen to
sweeping dcnuncistion of modern life and
violent TRADES against the demoralizing
effects of war This is not the mid-Nic-
torian period, but 1t is a far cry TO Baby
lon.