possible to wriggle and escape to outlawry, it may be the world will
discover only a completer restriction, will develop a scheme of neat
gyves, light but efficient, beautifully adaptable to the wrists and
ankles, never chafing, never oppressing, slipped on and worn until at
last, like the mask of the Happy Hypocrite, they mould the wearer to
their own identity. But for all that--gyves!

Let us glance for a moment or so now, in the most tentative fashion, at
some of the data for this inquiry, and then revert from this excursion
into general theory to our more immediate business, to the manner in
which our civilized community at present effects the emotional
initiation of youth.

The intellectual trouble in the matter, as it presents itself to me,
comes in upon this, that the question does not lie in one plane. So
many discussions ignore this fact, and deal with it on one plane only.
For example, we may take the whole business on the plane of the medical
man, ignoring all other considerations. On that plane it would probably
be almost easy to reason out a working system. It never has been done
by the medical profession, as a whole, which is fairly understandable,
or by any group of medical men, which is the more surprising, but it
would be an extremely interesting thing to have done and a material
contribution to the sane discussion of this problem. It would not solve
it but it would illuminate certain aspects. Let the mere physiological
problem be taken. We want healthy children and the best we can get. Let
the medical man devise his scheme primarily for that. Understand we are
shutting our eyes to every other consideration but physical or quasi-
physical ones. Imagine the thing done, for example, by a Mr. Francis
Galton, who had an absolutely open mind upon all other questions. Some
form of polygamy, marriage of the most transient description, with