stress
than his wife, and that as a general rule, a mistress is more true to
her lover than a wife is to her husband. This is horrible, yet to a
certain extent I am convinced it is true. And it may be so, and women be
no more to blame in the matter than the other sex. To-day, in the
fashionable society of our great cities, how much does it injure a
wealthy young man's prospects for matrimony, if it is a well-known fact
that he is a libertine? And how long can such a state of things continue
without dragging down the women who marry such men? If a lady cares not
if her lover is a libertine, she cannot possess much of genuine virtue.
The fashionable men of Paris keep mistresses--so do those of all
classes, the students, perhaps, according to their numbers, being worse
in this respect than all others. It is not strange, such being the
case, that the women are frail.

One thing is specially noticeable among the ladies of Paris--the care
with which they are guarded before marriage, and the freedom of their
conduct after. In countries where there is almost universal virtue among
women, the faith in them is strong, and a freedom of intercourse between
the sexes is allowed previous to marriage, which is never tolerated in
such a place as Paris. In New England it is not thought improper for a
young gentleman and lady to enjoy a walk together in the country, and
alone, but in France it would ruin the reputation of a woman. A friend
of mine in London warmly invited a young friend of his in Paris to come
over and make his family a visit on some special occasion. The Parisian
wrote back that he should like nothing better than such a trip, but that
business would not allow of it. "Then," wrote back my friend, "let your
sister come." The reply was decided: "Oh, no! it would never do for the
young lady to make such a trip alone, for the sake of her reputation."
It would have struck this Frenchman as a very singular fact, if he had
known that in America a young lady will travel thousands of miles alone,
without the slightest harm to her reputation.

But when the French woman _marries_, the tables are turned. Then she
possesses a freedom such as no American lady, thank heaven, wishes to
enjoy. She may have half a dozen open lovers, and society holds its
tongue. Her husband probably has as many mistresses. It is not
considered improper in Paris either for a husband and father to love his
mistress, or a wife and mother to love her acknowl