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WHEN AND WHOM TO MARRY.


1. EARLY MARRIAGES.--Women too early married always remain small in
stature, weak, pale, emaciated, and more or less miserable. We have
no natural nor moral right to perpetuate unhealthy constitutions,
therefore women should not marry too young and take upon themselves
the responsibility, by producing a weak and feeble generation of
children. It is better not to consummate a marriage until a full
development of body and mind has taken place. A young woman of
twenty-one to twenty-five, and a young man of twenty-three to
twenty-eight, are considered the right age in order to produce an
intelligent and healthy offspring. "First make the tree good, then
shall the fruit be good also."

2. If marriage is delayed too long in either sex, say from thirty
to forty-five, the offspring will often be puny and more liable to
insanity, idiocy, and other maladies.

3. PUBERTY.--This is the period when childhood passes from immaturity
of the sexual functions to maturity. Woman attains this state a year
or two sooner than man. In the hotter climates the period of puberty
is from twelve to fifteen years of age, while in cold climates,
such as Russia, the United States, and Canada, puberty is frequently
delayed until the seventeenth year.