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And there are many persons in our own day who, enlightened by the

study of anthropology, and fascinated by what is new and strange,

some using the language of fear, others of hope, are inclined to

believe that a time will come when through the self-assertion of

women, or the rebellious spirit of children, by the analysis of

human relations, or by the force of outward circumstances, the

ties of family life may be broken or greatly relaxed. They point

to societies in America and elsewhere which tend to show that the

destruction of the family need not necessarily involve the

overthrow of all morality. Wherever we may think of such

speculations, we can hardly deny that they have been more rife in

this generation than in any other; and whither they are tending,

who can predict?