FOOTNOTES:
[7] Illicit—illegal, non-permissible, outside of marriage.
Chapter Twenty-two[ToC]
THE EXTENT OF VENEREAL DISEASE
Former Ban on Discussion of Venereal Disease and Its Evil Results—Present Reprehensible Exaggerations of Extent of Venereal Disease—Erroneous and Ridiculous Statements of "Reformers"—Senseless Fear of Marriage in Girls Due to Lurid Exaggerations—Study by Woman Psychologist Reveals Harmful Results of Exaggerated Statements—Truth in Regard to Percentage of Men Afflicted with Venereal Disease.
Former Silence. Only a very few years ago respectable women, by which I mean all women outside of the women called "fallen," did not know of the existence of venereal disease. It was considered a prohibited, disgraceful subject, not to be mentioned or even hinted at in conversation, in books or magazines, in lectures, or on the stage. When I say that they did not know of the existence of such a thing as venereal disease, that the very words gonorrhea and syphilis were unknown to them, I use these expressions not as figures of speech, but in their literal meaning. All avenues of acquiring such knowledge being closed to them—lay people don't usually now and they surely didn't then purchase and read strictly medical works—where could they obtain the information? The result was that when a woman was so unfortunate as to contract a venereal disease from her husband, she did not understand its character and did not suspect its source. Which was a rather good thing—for the husband. Family peace was more secure.