Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1924-11-20
SHOULD A YOUNG GIRL KEEP COMPANY
WITH AN OLDER MAN?

one OF my readers writes me as
follows:
Dear Miss Flo: l am heartbroken,
and | am writing to you for conSola
ton For the last five years | have
been engaged to a man whom | loved
very much, and whom, as | thought,
loved me just as much in return. He
was much older than l, and | met him
when | was quite young. l have al
ways been quite popular with the
younger set, and used to have some
wonderful times. But he, being SO
much older than | Che was 40 and |
was 49,, had nothing in common
with my friends, SO little by little |
began to drop my friends and go with
his group Mother advised that l
should not give up my young friends,
but | was willing to make any sacri-
fee for him. He always said he want
ed to marry me, but not until | was
older. Before | knew it | was getting
old, and because | didn't fit in with
his crowd, / became quiet, and as
have found now, lost all the vivaclous-
ness that first attracted him to me.
Then 7 began to feel that he did
not love me. This was less than six
months ago. Last week he eloped
with a young girl Il years old. | am
almost "a now. My old friends have
married and quite few OF them have
moved away. | find myself without
any friends. | gave them all up tor
him. | know there is nothing to do
but accept my fate, but | wanted to
tell some ore about it, and | teel bet
ted for having written you, even tho
YOU can say rothng that will help
the dull ram in my heart.
Yes, Patsy. you are quite right
Nothing | can say will help the heart
ache that YOU are going to have tor
quite a while, but perhaps your letter
will serve as warning to other girls
who are making the same mistake
YOU have made.
| know two very lovely girls, and
I hope they see your letter. The first
girl is unusually attractive. She has
made a wonderful pal of her mother,
They go everywhere together, and she
is always in company with her moth
er's friends. But here is where she is
making her mistake. She has no friends
of her own age. She has false STAN
dard of ideals, and false sense OF
duty. She disapproves of the modern
Girl. She thinks that all young girls
are frivolous, when they are leading
a Young girls normal life. She thinks
| she is superior to the younger set, and
she is losing her life in giving up the
| Joys of girlhood.
The second girl is just as untor-
tunate She also is a very lovely per-
son. but instead of giving her time to
bows near her own age, she is giving
! it to middle-aged men She tells her
| friends that she can not stand kids.
The friends she has can not be
thought of as prospects" as any one
of them is much too old to be consid-
cred as husband for her. The young.
er bows always think of her as "old
because she is always with older peo-
pie. Some day this girl is going to
! awaken to the fact that her friends are
'.old men," and that she is doomed to
the life of bachelor girl.
Neither of these girls realize what
they are doing They both feel sup
erior to the younger set. In years. to
come, when the girls are reviewing
chapters of their life, this particular
period will be touched with sadness,
and they will, in all probability. view
it as a very unfortunate tragedy.
So, Patsy, don't take your heart
ache too seriously. You are almost
24"-not so terribly old. after all, IS
it? In the meantime, try to cultivate
Younger acquaintances-try to get
their viewpoint. and when pain OF this
unfortunate affair has worn off. you
will be more than glad that you did
not marry the older man. There are
many other girls who were not quite
so fortunate You have found out IN
| +;rpe Manu- others find out too late