FEWER MARRIAGES.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1996, 2 March 1914, Page 2

FEWER MARRIAGES.

OPINIONS OF SOME CELEBRITIES. For a nnmber of years past (nays an English pajier) the marriage rate has been slowly but i«tno the less steadily on the. decline. Is this tile fault of man or wonian P

A celebrated doctor, Br, C. W. Salechy, Expresses himself iji terms which Would make one suspect that all his female relatives-- inducting cousins —Were ardent suffragettes.

" "It sei}ms.tO i me > ~' hc says, "that the vastly interesting .and still' more important quory &s to' Why tho marriage rate is declining fa one' almost iflH'°issihle to answer with any ckgtec'of rea! eoiiviction, = .My tiivn personal opinion, tlie conditions of iiiarriage, mtrlmling divorce, infinitely fairer for'women if' marriage is to ftiaintam its. pkiee in the social structure. At present tteep laws' leave so moch.' to he desired ftoni the stiiidpijint «f fairness that, to all thinking people,, it cannot he a- matt# for surprise tliat, the marriage rate is on the decline."

Mms. Clara BUM, '•To a very large extent, I think, the decline in tho marriage rate is dao to' tl.io different standpoint the younger generation taltft of life as compared With tlie; standrMint of their grandiatliers and graiwlnjottiors. The younger generat&n have larger ideas, more varied awl Wider interests, more ambitious ambitions than were, those with wliirii their fathers and mothers started life,

;W lien they thifik of the struggles' their fathers have told therji about tfieir early rnarricd life, iiow they piiichc-.i anti saved and -screwed, and denied themselves almost the ordinary ue.cestit.ies of life to provide their chiidreu with the means to procure a good cunc.-xion, and so on am] so forth, they think to themselves, 'is it worth While? I ani now earning a. small inrome - hai-« I fjie 3'tght. ;to ask a'WMflan tfi lead tho life of self-dvnial mv mother has. told lire slio hafi to lead, in her early married life 5 •'

,' s'Xlioy remember ■ that their mother ; always user! to sefcn) to' ho "working.: She would sit- up. sometimes far wis t.ljie early morning darning iter husband's sooks, mending rents in her ultildron's clot-Jips, sowing bntloiis m antique .shirts, and occasionally--ln;t only very oeefliiojialiy—making a new blouse for herself or "turning" her -skirt, in a vain endeavour to iniogititi that, when mite itjs turned,' she will have a dress which will looii almost au good as neiv. They ihiuk of all these tilings, aiid, having thought about them, Uicv. say ; 'Well' ■I shottlol like ta get married, of cow-so, kit really it doesn't seem worth it- for inn—or my wffo.'

;Lookmg at the question from tltis pomt. of view, who sJiiiil say whether {he ijiuii is right or not to remain unmarried? 1,, for one, .could not reply it; with any degree of conviction,"

Mme. Sarali Bernhardt. is, I fet>! safe, the change, k the manuors, Imbits, customs' of the times, that is responsible for the strailjlydcweassiiig n-.iit i iiigc " ; 54W" Wheri' 1- " ■was a girl it was ''''-iMV--'■£{)?''■ .Voting ladies to of tlie amouut of freedom awl liberty that i$ theirs to-day. The daily lii.iiclring jiiid .tjining 'afc' Wsta'ufants- with yoiuig 1)1.01 "aiid girls of their'dw.n ttgrt.which M 86 '• tommon to-day was-imkiiovvH". in- ••"hitgirlhood days. liotti' girls, and- iiion'-felt-tliat- if- they wished to meet- oftpii. and as, /iii sue-li case, they nouUl ohvays liaviito' :tnee t at liohie, it 'ivotiM Save a lot of tfanbie if they ware.to mnrry. afla a homo for thprnselves. - IV) look at tits question broadly arid -with Unbiassed miinl, and ; fearing in mim! tlte cliaiiges which have : taken plas'e in ettr 3aily habits within the past fifteen or iwentv years, I oanTiOt iiolp thinking that the chief reason why the marriage rate is declining lies ill ilia fact that- intercourse bctvveei; men at-id: wonmii to-day is ten thousand' times iestrirted tiia.ll was the c-a'sn in tlio :childhood days of oui" .parents."

Mr. C. N; Williamson. ! "I. think that people .marry less ofton because tho cost of things-kcepi; goim tip, and evejf 'love. i;i,a cottage 1 is mwh more ospetisivi;! than it used to be.. Poverty seems to lie coming in at the doorjvnless a chaHffett)? ca-ri drive up;to. it with -some' vague, cheap suggestion' <jf a motor-car; and Love stand.': ready ■to bolt out of the windn-w unless it can be ettrtai-Hed. with the most- charming muslin and chin* z.

; "There' Scetii to bo so many more things in thfc woi'id to 'want than tlie-i'o u4exl to be, so naturally we want, iliem; and, thevefore, it takes nioie conraue fcit 4 -poor mail to to a pretty girl than hi days wlicn all noroiist/s had .to>cttd tiiei-r Storie.'i with an or';a wedd-in-g. •'Besidcsj <Jf course, ymipg women li-are a better chance of fi'udi-ng work which is fairly well paid than they had years ago; so they -need not marry just for tho sake of beiiig married-: JVr-l-iSps, therefore, if people are marrying !i»sr, often they may be marrying, more happily."