Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-07-20 00:00:00

s scouted by society, and regarded with detesta-
:ion and horror by all who respect virtue and

hate the paths of infamy. That this should be

so, none can wonder, seeing that those who
become perjured, as far as the oath of matri-
mony is concerned, inflict evils—serious and

alarming—not only of an individual but national

character.

Of all crimes which stain our police sheets,
lat of wife desertion is the most reprehensible.

He is not a man who will give pledges of

earnest and unalterable attachment to a

young, innocent, and confiding female, and after

he has been yoked to her " for better for worse,

for richer for poorer," basely leave her and the

offspring of their union to the tender mercies of
the world, seeking in other portions of the globe

another partner and another home. We punish
with severity, and properly too, offences of far
less magnitude, morally and socially speaking,

but the crime of wife desertion is left without a
remedy at law. This should not be so, It is a
disgrace to our statute book that it does not

contain some enactment for cases of this kind.

The offence or crime of wife desertion is one of

requent occurrence. Occasionally the walls of

Liverpool are posted with a list of names of men
who have left their wives, basely betrayed their
marriage oaths, and allowed poor deluded
females and helpless children to seek and obtain,

as best they can, such sustenance as will prolong
their existence.
Be it further observed, that as the law now
stands, there is not any possibility of arresting
the criminal in his base intentions. The poor-
law enactments do not authorise any interference
with husbands until their families become
chargeable on the Union. But before this is
the case the wife deserter is far away, either to
America or Australia. Meantime the wife and
children are pining away in poverty and desti-
tution—all their hopes and prospects are blighted
for life. She who has been a faithful, a devoted,
a fond and careful mother, is betrayed. She
sees that her affections have been misplaced,
and that she gave her hand to a monster in
human form.

A calm consideration of the results arising

from wife desertion, individually and nationally,
cannot fail to satisfy every one that legislation

thereon is imperatively called for. We adm

that the subject is an exceedingly delicate and
difficult one. Still, we contend that each and
every difficulty can be surmounted. We want a
law which will stop up every loophole or chance
of wife desertion. On the ground of the welfare
of the nation at large, there should be some
enactment which would render it impossible for
a man to leave his wife without support. We
know that there are many instances where men
do for a time apparently forsake their families,
in the hope of bettering their condition, and
ultimately bringing all belonging to them out of
the meshes of poverty. These, however, are an
exception to the general rule. The other
instances are not only numerous, but decidedl y
such as prove that the perpetrators are possessed
of all the tow cunning which usually marks the
the character of the dishonest and the
depraved.

No later than last week a case in point
occurred on board the Florence Nightingale,
which sailed for Melbourne. One of the
passengers, a Welshman, had made up his
mind to desert his wife. She obtained such
information as led her to believe he was on board,
and went to the office of the owners, Messrs.
GIBBS, BRIGHT, and Co. To the credit of that
respected firm, on hearing her sad tale, they
took steps to effect a reconciliation. But no ;
the man was stupid and dogged in the extreme.
When the ship got under weigh, the scene on
deck was painful in the extreme. The poor wife,
mother of a boy twenty-two months old, and
enciente five months, with tearfnl eyes implored
her false, and, at the time, drunken husband, to
return. He had no moral crime to allege
against her. Her only fault was, that she was
not Welsh, as he himself was. He had paid
his passage, and had upwards of 8/. in his posses-
sion. That amount, properly laid out, would
have enabled him to provide for himself, his wife,
and child, at home. This he disregards, and
outrageously leaves all that at GOD'S altar he swore
to protect and provide for, The law as it stands
was insufficient to meet such a case, and to hold
the husband until it could be clearly showed he
had honourable and legal purposes in view.
How the matter terminated we have not yet
learned.

PROTRACTED SITTING OF PARLIAMENT.—OATHS
Lord J. Russell rose at a few minutes before two o'clock,
on Saturday morning, to bring in his bill. A smart and
somewhat angry discussion ensued. The opponents divi-
ded the House repeatedly for the adjournment of the House
and then for the adjournment of the debate. At length
Lard John Russell consented to withdraw his motion, and
gave notice to renew it on Tu.stday next. It was now
half-past four, and the House adjourned in broad daylight,
having been sitting with a brief interval since Friday at,
noon.

IMPORTANT CAUTION TO SHIPOWNERS AND MARIWERS.-
-A despatch has been received at the Bard 011 Trade
from Lord Stratfird d a Redcliffe with refere'Ace to the
violation of the Turkish regulations in the r,Jardanellea,
the Pasha commanding the ports in tlio?.,e waters com-
plaining of the wilful violation of the formalities required
by every master of a vessel passing from the Dardanelles
into the Mediterranean. The facilitit accorded to vessels
during the war employed in the transport service no
longer remain in force, and con sequently it is obligatory
that masters of vessels fulfil 'the usual formalities. The
Pasha has informed Lord S'aatford de Redcliffe that he
will ao longer suffer such unwarrantable and manifestly
wilful irregularities. After a reasonable period has
elapsed to make Ws intentions known, he has resolved
upon compelling the observance of the regulations
referred to by shottod guns, and will not hold himself