Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1921-03-29
The Invasion of Picture Brides
BY Frederic j. Haskin
TEW YORK CITY, March 24.-While pre-
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justment, the women of Europe are quietly
settling one Of the gravest afterWar diff
culties by emigrating to this country, where
there is a surplus supply of husbands. These
women have a great advantage over former
generations of war-made spinsters. They
have at their disposal the art of photography.
Thus it happens that genuine romance has
recently been revived in New York by the
ADVENT of hundreds of picture brides from
the most man-exhausted countries The Jap
anese have long used the picture bride sys
tenn, but now half dozen other races have
followed suit Every ship brings in a dozen
or so, and the other day a Greek steamship
arrived with three hundred in it's steerage,
much to the confusion of the immigration
authorities and to the great fatigue of sew
eral priests and parsons, who have been kept
constantly busy tying the marriage knot.
Most of the brides are from Greece Syria,
Turkey, CZecho-Slovakia and Italy, and are
fair specimens of proletarian pulchritude.
They do not seem to be the slightest bit
downcast at the thought of marrying men
they have never seen before, although they
are naturally curious at the sort of prizes
they destined to draw
The waiting picture grooms are equally
curious as to their fate. Thus when this
particular Greek ship was held up in the
harbor for long interval owing to case
of smallpox on board, the harbor police
launch had to be requisitioned to keep the
impatient SWANS from mobbing the boat.
and dories, eagerly searching the faces of
damsels on the lower deck and comparing
them with thum Unmarked photographs. Some
of them, having located their prospective
brides, sent them fruit, candy and even wear
ing apparel in baskets, which the ladies lifted
with piece of light rope.
AS soon as the girls stepped off the boat,
there was wild rush among the assembled
bridegrooms; few seconds of hasty fdentifi-
cation and Introduction, and then storm
of rapturous embraces An onlooker would
have supposed the couples had known each
other for years. In a few cases, there was
a childhood betrothal in the background, but
for the most part exchange Of photographs
and letter or two was the only basis of the
relationship.
Most Satisfied
To most of us, choosing mate by photo
graph would seem even more hazardous than
most methods, but in all this crowd of picture
brides and groOms there were only few
cases of disappointment. One very pretty
English girl who had left italian villa,
where she was employed as governess, to
marry man from our far west, decided that
she couldn't go through with the arrange
ment when she saw her prospective mate.
II feel that 1 should marry you since
you've paid for my passage over mere, put
simply can't" she told him. "You look very
nice and kind" she added gently, "but [ am
sure we wouldn't get along. Your. letters
sounded different somehow thought
we'll, l guess I'd better cable my people for
passage money back home.'
Another girl who was not disposed to &C
cept kindly the husband fate had awarded
her, was not so polite. She was large and
buxom Syrian lass, with pair of fine brown
eyes that sparkled with excitement when she
talked
~ will not marry you she declared con-
temptuously, as she took in the grotesque
appearance of the small, bent and somewhat
elderly Syrian gentleman who claimed her as
his property. "You are not the same as
your pcture-no hair, perhaps no teeth
and you dare to think you marry mel"
At this point, member of on. of the sew
eral social service organizations, which offer
protecting arm to the picture brides at
Ellis Island, hurried to the scene, and tried
to slraighten out the difficulties. The man
explained he had a fine house, a fine auto
mobile, was wealthy. He would treat her
we'll, he said, and she would not have to
work. But the girl remained Obdurate so
the social worker sent her to an immigrant
home. Here, a Syrian society became inter
ested in her case, and she soon had most of
it's membership list as candidates for her
hand Among these, she finally founu one
to her liking, who paid the picture sutton
back his passage money, and the incident
ended happily.
In the great majority of cases, however,
the course of picture love runs smooth. The
and the men are usually more than pleased
because the girl turns out to b. better look
ing than her photograph, which is a cheap
and badly posed likeness. Occasionally,
man feels that he was led to expect a great
deal more than he go, but he is apt to take
it philosophicall! like one Armenian, who,
upon beholdng his bride exclaimed, "Ah,
we'll, why waste the passage money. All
wives are the same in five ar"
The fact is that picture marriages are
probably IS safe and quite as romantic as
any other kind. The peasant girl Of Europe
is accustomed to the idea of marrying a man
she does not know, because over there the
parent-arranged marriage is the conventional
thing. No self-respecting girl would think
of marrying the youth of her own choice, un-
less by some stroke OIL good fortune he also
happened to be the choice of her parents.
She has been taught that marriage must be
governed ny economic considerations. The
man must be we'll established J. his trade or
profession, and the girl must have her dot
and trousseGu.
The lack of dots and trousseGux since the
war is another reason for the rush of picture
brides to this country, where bride need
have no property at all, except leather mat
tress Even a picture bride is expected to
have this perquisite Hence, h &c, I'M
wieldly lumpy mattress, rolled and tied with
a piece of string, is conspicuous item OF
picture bride luggage which has recently
been doubling the work of the health au-
thorities :tationed at the docks
AS for he man, ordering a bride oy pic
ture from the old country is a convenient ar
rangement for him, too. Coming from Syria
or Jugo-Slavia or Czecho-Slovakia, he lives
where there is probably not single, sat
icfa II married. ladies