TABOO AND GENETICS 197 



is a long way to the understanding of the diffi- 

 culties involved before we approach a solution. 

 We do know, on the basis of the work, of 

 Neisser, Lesser, Forel, Flexner and others, that 

 regulation and supervision seem to increase the 

 incidence of disease. Among the reasons for 

 this are : (i) difficulties of diagnosis ; (2) 

 difficulties attendant on the apprehension and 

 examination of prostitutes ; (3) the infrequency 

 of examination as compared with the number 

 of clients of these women ; and perhaps as 

 important as any of these reasons is the false 

 sense of security involved. 



The model woman of the past has known 

 very little of the prostitute and venereal 

 disease. It is often stated that her moral safety 

 has been maintained at the expense of her fallen 

 and unclean sister. But such statements are 

 not limited as they should be by the quahfication 

 that her moral safety obtained in such a fashion 

 is often at the expense of her physical safety. 

 If the assumption has a basis in fact that there 

 is a relation between prostitution and mono- 

 gamic marriage, the complexity of the problem 

 becomes evident. It is further complicated 

 by the postponement of marriage from economic 

 reasons, hesitation at the assumption of family 

 responsibilities at a time of life when ambition 

 as well as passion is strong, when the physio- 

 logical functions are stimulated by city life 



