So long as Romance exists and Lochinvar remains young manhood’s
ideal, love at first sight and marriage in a week is within the
boundaries of possibility. But usually (and certainly more wisely) a
young man is for some time attentive to a young woman before dreaming of
marriage. Thus not only have her parents plenty of time to find out
what manner of man he is, and either accept or take means to prevent a
serious situation; but the modern young woman herself is not likely to
be “carried away” by the personality of anyone whose character and
temperament she does not pretty thoroughly understand and weigh.
In nothing does the present time more greatly differ from the close
of the last century, than in the unreserved frankness of young women and
men towards each other. Those who speak of the domination of sex in
this day are either too young to remember, or else have not stopped to
consider, that mystery played a far greater and more dangerous role when
sex, like a woman’s ankle, was carefully hidden from view, and
therefore far more alluring than to-day when both are commonplace
matters.
