“You might as well excuse a thief on the same grounds. If a girl went into a store and STOLE A HANDSOME BONNET or a fine pair of boots you wouldn’t pardon her, would you, because she was fond of handsome bonnets or fine boots. In regard to being deceived by men, I grant you that I know personally of some cases where women have fallen through the machinations of villains—been brought to evil by devilish, calculating, cold-blooded deceit. But I am certain that the numbers of these in proportion to the others is very small indeed. But even these, apart from the evil involved in their very struggle for existence, work wickedness from the promptings of a heart which very fast becomes hard and impressionless as marble. I tell you, if there is any sympathy to be wasted on either, it is to be given to the victims of these harridans. Let them once get their clutches on a man, and they will hold him there until they have plucked him bare, and until he hasn’t enough character left to dust a tumbler with.” “I am afraid the discussions of your society have swamped your charity.” “I have as much charity as most people, but what I do say is that the social evil can’t be cured by petting and sympathy alone. Of course, in the present condition of things, you can’t put in force those REPRESSIVE MEASURES which I believe to be the only way in which the evil can be permanently lessened. You can’t start driving girls out of the houses they have to cover them without providing some way in which they can get food and shelter. But, sir, I am convinced that the way to cut off the supply of recruits is to make life in a bagnio unpleasant, unprofitable, and less seductive. Anyhow, by all means keep these flaming women off the streets. That does more to attract light-headed, vain girls into the ranks than any other one thing. I believe this could be done very easily. Just intimate gently that any house whose inmates were constantly parading the streets in their war-paint was liable to be raided, and I tell you this promenading would stop suddenly.” “Now, have you any clear idea how the social evil might be wiped out?” “I don’t believe it can be wiped out while the world lasts, but what I do believe is that if the matter were taken hold of with courage it could be lessened and rendered less attractive to weak girls. I admit that even this is quite a difficult thing to accomplish. You would not believe the amount of sympathy that exists in high places for these women. You would have to encounter and defeat all that and trample on a score of prejudices, but the man or body of men who tackle the subject and deal with it boldly and wisely will SAVE MANY A GIRL