The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1925-08-25
WHEN LOVE RUNS HIGH
BRAINS ARE USELESS
THINKER SAYS SWEETHEARTS
SEE ONLY BEST SIDES. AGE
HAS MUCH TO DO WITH 1T.

Marriage has been wittily described
as the voyage for the unknown, with
the unknown; and bearing in mind the
large number OF couples who, without
anv very close acquaintance with each
others personalities. rush into matrl-
monv the epigram contains a consid-
cradle amount OF truth, says medl-
cal man in London Answers.
In the short course OF an lmpetuous
courtship. in an almost wholly artitl-
cial atmosphere where both are on
their best behavior and intent IN little
but the exercise OF mutual charm and
fascination. little heed is paid to the
important factors of personal habits OF
life family traditions, temperaments,
and, most important OF all, relative
ages.
But before considering the question
OF the right ages for the prospective
husband and wife respectively it will
be as we'll to glance for a moment at
the subject Of the marriage OF mere
adolescents. The children resulting
from marriages OF the immature are
likely to inherit the physical, mental
and moral immaturity of their parents,
Happy Brides of twenty-five.
The average young man, then
should wait until he is in the middle
tWenties before he marries In the
case of women, since they mature ear
lier than men, a suitable age for mar
rage is twenty-five or tWenty-three.
At an earlier age than this they are
scarcely fitted for the accomplishment
OF those tasks which healthy mother
hood entails, and there is a possibility
that their children would be inferior
both mentally and physically. An ideal
age would seem to be twenty-eight
for the bridegroom and twenty five
and a half for the bride.
1t is usually taken for granted that
for a happy marriage husband should
be older than his wife. Most people
hold this view.
They seem to have conjured up a
picture in their minds eye OF man as
the chivalrous knight, and woman as
the hapless maiden threatened by all
the powers of darkness, against which
he is her sole and trusty protector.
This idea arose during that long pc
Rod in which women were kept in sub
lection, and il was assumed that man
was the guide and must therefore be
the wiser of the two.
Mismatches Often Happy.
Many marriages in which the hus
band is a good many years older than
his wife prove happy enough; but the
chances OF their being so are no great
er than those in which the wife is
some years older than her husband.
The point, after all, would seem to be
that the ages of the husband and wife
should not differ greatly,
While it is possible for many mar
riages to turn out quite happily where
the age of the husband exceeds that
OF the wife by five, ten or even twenty
years, the marriage most likely to
prove successful is one where the man
and the woman are of the same age.
When there is no disparity in ages
there is less likely to be any subse-
quent clash originating in the totally
different habits of life and general
mental outlook OF the pair who have
been unequally yoked in respect OF
their years.
Again, a couple who have seen the
same number of summers are likely
to watch the passing OF succeeding
winters in close companionship and
with deepening affection.
A powerful factor often overlooked
by those contemplating marriage is
the fundamental "mothering' instinct
of women. Pending later develop
ments, she wants to mother her hus-
band with all the care and devotion
which in her younger days she lavish
ed on her unresponsive dolls.
To her the wisest man is only big
and hayward child, to be duly tend
ed, nursed and mended" But-and
this is important-if he is SO obviously
and insistently her senior that her
mothering instinct is baked OF its sat
isfactcin it will have to be repressed
with somewhat disturbing results to
her equanimity.