scientifically explained by any superficial assumption that established
social conventions have repressed an original spontaneity of women. On
the contrary, there are the best of physiological and psychological
reasons for believing that the social conventions have arisen as an
expression of masculine aggressiveness and natural tendency towards
leadership in affairs of the heart. The accepted fact is that many
young women have no understanding of or demand for affection until
experience has taught them its place in life. In the records of real
life, as well as in fiction, many a young woman's possibilities of
happiness have been lost because she did not understand herself when
love came into her experience.

[Sidenote: Affection in marriage.]

Another side to the problem of the young woman's relation to love and
marriage is brought to our attention by the lamentable fact that many
wives lose interest in devoted husbands when the children come. This is
probably true in at least half the families; and many matrimonial
disharmonies are the result. This is really one of the greatest
problems of marriage which cultured women should consider seriously;
for even more than in most other sex problems, it is one for the
solution of which women are in a position to take the leading part.
This problem is especially important in these days when the household
inefficiency, personal extravagance, and desire for social position of
numerous young women of eighteen to thirty are having an enormous
influence in advancing the age of marriage because many of the best
types of young men pause and consider seriously the impossibility of
adjusting a small salary to the ideas of their women friends as to what
is the minimum of a family budget. Add to such facts a growing
pessimism of young men regarding inconstant affections of wives with
children, and the need of special educational attack is evident.

[Sidenote: The duty of parents.]

From whatever side we look at the question whether the larger
sex-education should somehow try to mold the ideals of young women
with regard to love and marriage, we see reasons why parents should
encourage their maturing daughters to get some advance understanding of
such relation. If parents are themselves unable to help their daughters
to this understanding, they can at least exert great influence by their
own attitude, and they can approve the reading of books, and perhaps
there may be opportunity for h