Widowers

Good scientists are insatiably curious. Sociologist Ray H. Abrams of the University of Pennsylvania, wondering how long a widower waits after the death of a first wife before getting married again, decided to explore the pages of Who's Who in America. Thousands of eminent widowers never remarry. But Dr. Abrams found 1,333 entries in Who's Who giving the date of a first wife's death and that of a second marriage. Among these remarrying widowers he found that the average interval was not very long--about two and a half years.

In The Scientific Monthly last week Dr. Abrams reported that businessmen and lawyers tend to wait longer than the average before taking another wife. Educators, public officials and medical men are not far from the average. Clergymen and engineers are quicker, a good proportion marrying again in less than two years. Dr. Abrams explains this by 1) the social advantage of a wife to Protestant ministers; 2) frequent moving of engineers to new locations. Scientists apparently remarry more quickly than any other group. For this Dr. Abrams had no explanation whatever.

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