their parents. Girls
no longer need to marry in order to transfer the burden of their
support from father to husband. Instead they may "go to work." And
once at work they are often reluctant to give up a personal income for
the uncertainties of sharing what a husband earns. Then, too, the
broadening effect of education makes marriage in the abstract a less
absorbing, momentous subject for the girl's thoughts. Also the rebound
toward selfishness coincident with woman's "emancipation" leads girls
to put off what they are sometimes led to consider a sacrifice of
themselves. The tragedies of the divorce courts are directly
responsible for many a girlish determination not to marry, a
determination which is broken only when the first zest of mature life
has passed and when the woman begins to long for the home ties she has
resolved to deny herself and decides to take the risk. The increased
cost of living and the ever-increasing responsibilities of rearing,
educating, and launching a family of children lead many young people
to postpone marriage until they can command a larger income. The
strain of modern industrial life, with its fierce competitions and its
early discard of the elderly and unfit, finds many girls who would
otherwise marry burdened with the care of parents who can ill spare
the daughter's help.

[Illustration: The Halliday Historic Photograph Co.
LOUISA M. ALCOTT
Miss Alcott's lifelong devotion to the interests of her family is a
well-known story. She made a happy home for them, and at the same time
attained marked success in the literary field.]

If all these obstacles to early marriage could be overcome, the
question of the wisest time for marrying might be approached fairly
and squarely on its merits.

Too early marriage means immaturity in choice, with the possibility
always of unfortunate mistakes and sad awakening. Too late marriage,
on the other hand, means settled convictions which often result in
that incompatibility which seeks relief in divorce. The plasticity of
youth at least _promises_ adaptability. The mature judgment of later
years ought to afford a wise choice. Between extreme youth then and a
too settled maturity is the wise time.

In order to approach the ideal in the marriage relation, the time of
marriage should be so placed that the girl is (1) physically fit, (2)
fully educated, (3) broadened by some experience with the world.

She must not be too old to bear children safely, or