WHY "ONLY DAUGHTERS" SELDOM GET MARRIED.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIV, Issue 173, 22 July 1903, Page 2 (Supplement)

WHY "ONLY DAUGHTERS" SELDOM GET MARRIED.

(By a Very Discerning Old Maid.)

Some girls never have a fair chance of receiving an offer. It is circumstance, not fate, which rules their destiny. They drift on in a quiet, humdrum way at home and hardly ever see a man. Papa and. mamma like to keep "Baby" with them, and papa objects to gentleman visitors. "Baby" is probably quite as pretty, quite as attractive, as her married compeers; but how can she marry if she scarcely ever sees a "him?" And in these days knights do not go riding past latticed windows, behind which the poor, incarcerated damsel sits. And it is not a sudden case of — ■** "But neither bolts nor bars s>hall keep My own true love from me." In the first place "Baby" does not sit behind latticed windows, neither is she aware of her incarcerated condition. And in the second place, the twentieth century Romeoß do not go prancing about on fiery steeds in search of imprisoned Juliets. There are too many Juliets— and very nice Juliets, too—ready to hand for the Lochinvar style. So "Baby" leads a quiet, domestic life; plays for papa in the evening and gossips with mamma and —drifts into old maidism simply through lack of opportunity, not lack of attractiveness. Let me cite a case in point. Not far from us there lives a family of this type. Phoebe and Prudence are two nice, gentle—"girls," shall I call them? Anyhow, they are "nice" in every sense of the word, and I am certain would have married had they had some girls' opportunities. But papa Brown di 4 not like "young men about the house," and he and mamma Brown wanted their daughters at home in the evening. Well, they have attained their heart's desire. Phoebe and Prudence are almost certain to adorn the domestic hearth for many, many evenings to come. And I think they would have looked much better ornamenting "somebody" else's hearth. Again, some girls never have an offer from lack of attractiveness, not from lack of being seen and heard, too, by "man." Unlike the "Flower that's born to blush unseen," these buds of frail humanity are very often "in evidence." Katherine balls, parties, concerts, picnics in quick succession. Katherine's mamma assiduously trots her daughter out to every; available enter-

I barnmenti. The young lady herself I makes the_ very most of her charms. Alas! all in vain. The years roll on, and one fine morning Katherine awakes to find herself distinctly on the shelf. And not a very comfortable shelf either sometimes. It has been roughened by so many futile attempts to get off it.' But why futile? I cannot really tell! Kathevine is not ugly; neither is she brainless. Some women like her very well indeed. But women can't marry her. And the men who can, won't. She is deficient in that nameless fascination which attracts a man. I can explain it in no other war. Some girls can win a man's love easily, without effort; and some cannot even interest him; And so poor Katherine remains an old maid, sadly against her will. I once had her to tea, and Archie, my cousin, took her home. Of course, he was too much of a gentleman to show how he disliked the task. But on his return he did grumble to me.

"Why don't you like her?" I argued. "I am sure she is nice looking." Well, he couldn't tell me any more than I can tell you. "She was not in his line!" that was about the gist of it.