San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1925-12-25
|DoMen. Shirk'
Marriage?
BY Beatrice Fairfax.

preme interest to us all. For it's
generally conceded that TO most hui
man beings marriage is the important
event of life.
Perhaps you don't wish TO marry.
Some modern girls claim to be content
with single blcsscdncss. But you must
admit that you're likely to change your
mind any minute-a woman's preroga.
tive-when the right man comes along.
And then you'll find yourself intensely
interested in marriage.
There's been much talk OF late to
the effect that modern men and women
postpone marriage and in many IN
stances do not marry at all.
Education takes up more years of a
girls life than it used to and this
often leads to deferred marriage. Also,
office work, the professions, arts and
various means by which girls earn a
livelihood are absorbing to them and
spur their ambition to q career rather
than matirmony.
Of course, girls no longer marry
kmerely for home because any young
business woman, singly or with another
girl, can, if she wishes, have her own
little housekeeping apartment.
| Modern living conditions are in every
way favorable to bachelors as we'll as
bachelor girls. Machinery has so sim
plified homework that young men can
and do enjoy the comfort and privacy
of home in their own bachelor apart
ments, hiring housekeeping service by
the hour. Under these circumstances a
bachelors life is delightfully."- easy and
independent. He has few responsible
ties and his time is his own. But
these advantages are likely sooner or
later to pail in comparison with the
added joys and responsibilities of mar
riage.
Countless young men are prevented
from marrying by the high cost of
living, or perhaps / might more truly
say the high cost of extravgance. For
wave OF snowy, extravagant spend
ing has swept over our land.
Give me the Injuries of life and
will do without the necessities" ex-
presses this obscssion, which prompts
Mary. Jane and Eleanor to wear only
the most expensive furs and furbe-
lows, even though the costly flu. coat
must serve also as blanket.
Men give up more of freedom and
independence when they marry than
girls do. A young girl finds marriage
n release from restrictions with which
convention binds young girlhood. In
| many instances modern girls find in
| matrimony release from the monotony
of office routine.
But to man marriage means
greatly increased responsibilities and
cares and divided income. 1t means
giving an account Of every moment of
his time, the sacrifice of his spirit of
lrresponsibility and carcfree advcn-
ture. For these reasons doubtless
men have always to some extent
shlrked marriage.
But after all, are modern men
Sinking marriage more than the men
of other generations?
Unfortunately statistics on this
point are scant. Federal records OF
marriages are not kept in the United
States and have been irregularly kept
everywhere until in late years.
We know, however, that four cen
turtles ago the confirmed bachelor was
well-known type-so much so that
Shakespeare was able to build n roi-
licking comedy about his adventures.
determination not to marry and final
capitulatiop.
When said / would die a bache-
lor," lamely explained this Shake
| pearian hero of "Much Ado About
Nothing" on the announcement of his
betrothal, II did not think L should
live til l were married.
That marriage has been on the in
crease in recent years in America is
| proved by census returns for 1870
showing only SO per cent of the male
population unmarried, whereas, in
1900, fully 40 per cent of American
| men were unwed.
There arc today in the United
States, according to the last census,
12.967 ,565 unmarried men and only
9,616,0O2 unmarried women. Figures
do not lie and these figures seem TO
| prove that modern men arc not shirk-
/ ing marriage also that every girl has
| fine chance to win good husband.
Home to be perfect must include
husband and father, wife and mother.
children-if possible grandfather and
grandmother and now and then babies
-neighbors and friends for guests.
Last but mot least there must be plen-
| ty of love to 20 round.
No bachelor independence can pos.
sibly bring the deep happiness and
content Of this sort Of home. And
even the most confirmed bachelor
i gladly exchanges his care-free life for
a home patterned after this ideal and
presided over by the woman he loves