Arizona republican., 1922-01-03
Financing of a Marriage
To the Editor

To the Editor
In a recent issue of the Republican
you published an article by DIR. Frank
Crane wherein he reviewed the re-
suit of the circulation of a question
naire among the girl students of
some educational institution on the
subject of what income they consid-
cred necessary to enable a man to
marry.
1t was interesting, even IL the view
expressed were largely of girls Of
one class, position or social status
or whatever one may wish to call It.
The replies to the questionable re-
Elected wide divergence of opin-
ion. One of the girls throught a man
should have $4,000 per year, while
another thought thai a man and wife
should be able to get along on 81 900
per year, although the article did not
state whether or not she thought
she could do so.
Do you not think that the views
OF our local girls might be inter-
esting? 1t is an all important sub
Ject. We are warned by some that
the whites are not marrying and
multiplying at the required rate and
that ERE long (and a few centuries
Is not long in history the yellow
races viii overwhelm us, while by
others we are warned that increasing
laxity of morals is carrying us rap
idly toward a state of absolute pro-
fligacy. 1t must be admitted that as
race we are multiplying at an ever
decreasing rate as 1t must also be
admitted that we are slipping NOR
a frt.k 80
Imagination to attribute the tend
ency, at least in part, to the fact that
existing conditions are not at all ia
vorable to the average man taking
unto himself wife and living hap
PLY ever afterwards.
On the subject of who or what
Is responsible whole volumes might
be written. Perhaps our standard OF
living has been raised too high, or
perhaps we ourselves have raised it
beyond our reach; perhaps prices
are too high or salaries or wages not
high enough; but whatever the cause
the effect is that there is an ever in
creasing multitude OF men of mar
riageable age who are unable, or at
least feel they are unable to marry
and provide for a wife as they have
been taught a wife should be pro-
vided for.
And they are not marrying. There
is many an unmarried man of 80,
who at 81, had very definite ideas
and intentions on the subject, who
now looks upon matrimony only as
a possibility in the more or less re-
mote future. If they are not able
to provide for a wife they at least
imagine they are unable to do so.
About them they see some couples
getting along very nicely, but they
also see the matrimonial ship Of many
another couple either going on or
headed for the rocks, and they shake
their heads obviously and conclude
mot yet awhile" or course this
does not refer to those oman or wom-
am who look upon marriage fol-
lowed by divorce as a mere expert
ence necessary tc ones education, or
as means of evading the law on
concubinage; what / have in mind is
people who would like TO play for
keeps" people who look upon the
married state in a spirit of serious
ness with which it should be re-
garded, and / think it would be of
interest to have the views of the To-
cal (serious minded) girls on how
much they think a man should have
before contemplating the step.
Suppose you handle it and see what
you can develop. Ask the girls to
write you on the subject, setting
forth their opinions. They need not
sign their names, but l would sug-
gest that they state their occupa-
tion, or If they have none, state the
occupation or business or profession
of their father or whoever is sup
porting them. If a girl is supported
by prosperous father who can main
tain her very comfortably and per-
maps also grant her a generous al
lowance, 1t would not be surprising
II she should state a figure than TO
others would seem more than ample.
Likewise If a girl employed as a ste
nographer or clerk should state that
a man should have $4,000 a year, Mr.
Average Man might be justified in
suspecting that as there are not
enough of that kind to go around
some are going to be disappointed
On securing the replies you could
tabulate the results, announcing, for
instance, that the sales girls think q