Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-06-01
WOnld,1S S Life and LOUe
by wINzFRED HARPER COOLEY
Are Girls of Today Immoral?
y wINzFRED HARPER COOLEY

voiced. She did not chew gum and tall
in nasal tone, and yell on the street,
and use cheap slang, and calcimine her
! face. and smoke and drink and spoon
| I'm not so sure about the last, how
ever. Grandmother was wise, too, in
her generation, and there were ham,
mocks and garden hooks and moon :.
light nights, even before the days OF
automobiles How about the morality,
| in the sense of kindness, of those ruth :
less Southern bellies who were such
! firts that men fought duels for love OF
them? Murder and suicide were actual
! facts In days of old when knights were
bold, and IL was accounted clever to be
heartless firt.
Today's girl has reckless air, but
her heart is kind, and she you'd not
send man to his death. she Is too
good sport" for that. She Is square.
II is time to ask. What is immoral
ity, anyway
is Il merely some one act, perhaps
thoughtless or done under stress of an
emotion almost overpowering? ls ones
whole life to be one of repentance and
self -abasement because some social law
has been infringed. in spite of the fact
that the girl is charming and sweet and
unsclfish, and has a thousand noble
traits? 80. =.
Or. Is morality largely a matter OF
ones attitude toward life and one s
associates? Is there any sin in itself
in smoking, for instance? is not it,
rather, mere trifing habit like eating
candy to excess? The only way II
would affect ones life seriously would
be that II often goes hand in hand with
a reckless. fast bravado in public
which causes girl to be misjudged
and gossiped about Perhaps you are
city girl, asserting, II have a right
to do as please. am just as free as
a restaurant. / will" Your abstract
right is indisputable; but if you learned
that malicious persons, seeing you
doing things which are associated with
so allied bad women, would actually
brand you as woman of the streets
YOU. an innocent girl--would not you
cease to do this. for your own protec-
ton?
Morals have lot to do with taste.
1t Is in wretChed taste to be loud and
seem vulgar and to dress in a manner
SO compelling that the nasty minded
man will turn on the street to look
and comment IL you knew what he
said. you would blush and really be
ashamed that you had attracted that
kind of comment.
Girls in the past would not have
shown their legs above the ankle. The
public would have said the world was
going to perdition. Then came bicycles,
and hiking, and public swimming, and
styles took the skirt up and up. Folks
got used to girls in knickerbockers, and
riding breeches, and bathing suits. even
one piece. and now, even street dresses
are up to the knees. 1t is a rathr
ugly length, and is not so alluring as
a soft, clinging drapery which is much
longer. But as for being immoral, why,
the moment a thing is common and the
eye Is used to it, it ceases to have any
especial significance. A few girls wear
the modern modes brazenly. inviting
inspection-but they lose in charm.
II morality is being courteous and
Just and kind and charitable, never
willingly hurting or harming our fell
lows. always trying to give them the
benefit of the doubt, and acting ac-
cording to our own best ideals-the
modern girl generally is decent and
moral, and perhaps has some sports
manlike. fine, big qualities her ances-
tors did not possess.