Quote:
Originally Posted by Blossom
So here's what I have to ask. If 20 was underage? Could a Guy get in trouble for taking her across state lines? That just baffles me. The hero in the book is upset because he just took the heroine in his boat from LA to MS thinking she was a boy but finding out she was a underage girl of 20.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by koland
I'd suspect that even then, "underage" would be closer to under 18 (although some adult rights were tied to 21, then).
It's more likely he'd be upset that it was an unmarried girl (and many were much slighter in size than today, so passing for a teen boy might be a bit easier); it would not be at all unusual for a mid-teen boy to be on his own at that time (or even much later in time), but not usual at all for any unmarried female (esp. under 30).
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I did note in the US Census one I posted that it said "adult unmarried population" that includes age 15 and over. Although, like Karen I believe it was the fact that she was unmarried not under-aged. Women and girls were pretty much property of fathers and husbands and stayed with parents/relatives. "Morals" were still pretty much a way women were judged and not being under the "protection" of a family member or husband could pretty much "ruin" a female's reputation and chance for a "good" marriage.
I also found a snippet
Spoiler:
"The United States developed a unique form of marriage during the 1800s, the "common-law" marriage. In a common-law marriage, a man and women are not united by any religious ceremony or legal document. Instead, they merely live as husband and wife, and present themselves as married to the world. The American courts held that because frontier life required people to be so mobile and live so far from one another, a promise between two parties was tantamount to a marriage contract. Common-law marriage is still with us today.
Read more:
http://www.faqs.org/health/topics/15...#ixzz2TxHBV0Rd
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