Hard on the Girls (1928)

To the Editor:—

"Our sympathy may be wholly wasted, but occasionally these cold mornings, especially on the draughty street cars, we feel a tug of pity for the girls. They sit huddled in their knee-length coats, their legs protected only by sheer stockings, holding them close together, perhaps unconsciously in a pitable [sic] attempt to encourage warmth. The gooseflesh is sometimes visible. It may be true, as some contend, that the average woman, and more particularly the young girls who never wore long skirts, are seldom 'legconscious.' But that isn't true on such mornings as Jan. 3rd. They are 'legconscious,' painfully so, but it's their business, and perhaps they count the cost small for the effect obtained."

The above is an editorial from the N. O. Item-Tribune. It is timely and the point is well taken. These girls, and many older women too, expose themselves and their health to the cold and to the ridicule of others. From a sanitary and from an aesthetic point of view this abominable fashion stands condemned; but what of the moral point of view? According to the laws of God and of nature, and according to the teaching of Catholic theologians and the rules laid down by the Holy Father and the members of the hierarchy, this modern fashion is immoral. The average woman may not be conscious of the fact, but those of the other sex are. By tempting men and boys to commit sin, the women of to-day [sic] give grave scandal, and our Lord says of those who give scandal: "It were better for them that a millstone should be hanged around their neck and they should be drowned in the depth of the sea."

But what about Catholic girls and women who, in defiance of the laws of God and the regulations laid down by the Holy Father and the hierarchy, appear indecently clad even in the house of God! Not only for Holy Mass and Communion, but in particular for weddings? During the month of December, at several wedding ceremonies, in one of our "fashionable" churches, the brides and bridesmaids appeared half nude, and this is no exaggeration. Sleeveless, low-necked with bare backs and bare sides down to the waistline, they appeared in the sanctuary and remained there during Holy Mass. O tempora, o mores. "Woe to the world because of scandals," says our Lord (Matth. 18, 7). I am an old man, have seen the world, old and new, and I have some experience; but in all my life I had never to witness marriage ceremonies such as those I witnessed during the month of December, 1927. The parents of to-day have not the authority to regulate the dressing of their daughters and (sad to behold) some pastors have not the courage to enforce the laws of God and the regulations of the Church.

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Source: An Old Pastor, "Hard on the Girls" The Catholic Fortnightly Review 35, no. 5 (March 1928): 97.