EARLY MARRIAGES

Taranaki Daily News, 18 October 1934, Page 14

EARLY MARRIAGES

OLD WARNING SCORNED. CONFIDENT YOUNG PEOPLE. “Marry in haste and repent at leisure,” goes the old adage, says the Auckland Star. But the young people of New Zealand have decided that times have changed. So one gathers from the official statistics, which contain much interesting information for those who study our social habits and tendencies. It has been suggested that the slump has caused many wedding postponements. But the apparently dry-as-dust figures in the Year Book show that there are more youthful romances coming to a happy ending now than in the boom years 192024. During that period of plenty 9.56 per cent, of the total marriages celebrated were between minors. In 1932 this had risen to 12 per cent. Similarly among those who had reached the age of discretion but had not seen their first quarter of a century, the number of marriages increased. The period 1920-24 showed 30 per cent, but 1932 boasted 33 per cent. So it is quite clear that young married people are much more plentiful nowadays. For many years the average age of marriage tended to increase, reaching its peak in the years 1917-19. Since then the age has again dropped. Many times it has been remarked that these afe the days of young men. Intending bridegrooms have taken this saying at its face value, and now their average age is 27, compared with 28 in 1928. But the number of older men marrying tends to push the average up. For men, the most popular time for saying “I do” before the altar is 24. Girls have always married younger than the men. They do not have to establish themselves in business before putting the question. Both in 1928 and 1932, 24 was the average for orange blossom and the Wedding March. WIDOWS AND WIDOWERS. Among widows, widowers and divorced persons the figures vary a great deal, but since these marriages are governed by circumstances quite different from those of bachelors and spinsters, they cannot be regarded as sipwing any marriage tendency. Widowers still find 48 the most satisfactory age at which to pay a second visit to the altar. But the divorced men are spending another year single before embarking on a second venture. They find 49 the most suitable age. Among divorced women, 36 seems most popular, and widows are now taking a second husband at 47, compared with 43 in 1928. Returning to the young people under 21, one discovers that in 1928 there was one bride aged 14. There were three in 1929, and none in 1932. Owing to recent legislation, youngsters under 16 cannot now be married. Among the boys, one aged 16 found himself a married man in 1928, and two took on the responsibilities of matrimony in 1932. One often hears the lament that churches are losing their popularity for wedding purposes. But of the 9896 marriages registered in 1932, only 2069 were in the unromantic office of the registrar. The craze for informal weddings originated with the smart set in London, but New Zealand brides soon decided that this was a dull way of celebrating the dreamed-of event of their lives.