Wisconsin herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1846-1849, 1847-02-20

lone flesh. The constitution. says that
they twain shaisbe as separate & distinct
persons, as any other two individual.
| in the community, or as any laws car
make them. Tell me.wlat more ear
be done by laws, to effect this obiccti
Woman is to be transferred from hcl
appropriate domestic sphere, taken a
way from her children. and be cast out
rudely into the striies and turmoil oil
the world, there to have he. finer SEN
sibilities 5lunted, the ruling motives oil
her mind changed, and every trait OF
loneliness blottcd out. When the
husband returns at night, pcrplexed
with care, detected with anxiety, de-
Ipressed in hope, will he find, think
you, the same nice and delicate ap-
preciation Of his wife he has hereto.
fore ioundf Will her welfare, and
feelings, and thoughts, and interests,
he all wrapped up in his happiness, as
they now are? Will he, whatever
friends may have deserted him, what
ever disappointments may have befal-
len him, however cold the world may
have turned upon him. always seek
shelter in the bosom Of his family, with
the same confidence of soothing SYM
pathy as hcretofcrea Will the word
home sound as sweetly? Where will
be its guardian angel? O, sir, the cc.
feet Of this law, upon the husband, up.
on the wife, upon the children, and
upon all the domestic relations will
be most fearful. | am well aware
that its evils will not appear at first,
that they will dcvelope themselves
not at once, but gradually, for it takes
time for communities to change their
habits and customs. but its direct and
inevitable tendency is to produce them,
and in tie course OF time they will
. have their full and daui;-h -~re-.>t;.-.
We should not disregard all expert
: ence and authority upon this subject,
and we have it on both sides Of the
question. This provision is subsian-
, TALLY copied from the rivil law. II
exists in France. and | will merely
say, that more than one third of the
children annually born in Paris are H.
Legitimate. Other causes may operate
to produce SO great RIGHTEOUSNESS, and
do undoubtedly, but this apprehend
is the most potent. On the other hand
there is no such purity Of morals in
this respect as in our own county
Woman is treated almost universally
with delicacy and respect. She can
travel in our public conveyances hum
drcds Of miles, alone and amongst
strange RS, without receiving the slight
est insult; and so remarkable is this,
that English travellers through our
country, and those, too. who were dis
posed to snecr and carp at all our in
situations, manners and customs, have
uniformly spoken Of this beautiful
trait with the highest admiration.
That great frauds will be pcrpctra
ted under this section. every one adj
mits. ! shall not undertake TO run
out the law in this respect. Every one
for himself can think Of divers WAYS
where the property Of the husband in
falling circumstances will find its way
into the ownership Of the wife. lie
will become sort Of man about the
house, convenience, degraded in hi:
own and in the eyes ofhis partner, and
; of The world. II is tabled that once
upon a time, q rooster crowed rs fol
lows: "Wcmen rule here,' and anoth-
err one at an adjoining house replied
$50 they do here" while still anothcI
one Gar off chimed in by say ing, $50
they do everywhere" and this inter
, probation will become literally true
: wherever women fall under the opera
, ton Of this law.
This section viii change entirely
, our laws of pleading, practice, evI.
dence. domestic relations, and indeed
throw confusion into every branch
1t is n piece Of civil law engraitcd up
on the common law, with the whole OF
which it is utterly inconsistent. il
strikes deep among first principles
we have no precedcnts or decisions to
guide US i'm the mattcr--no man can
ascertain how 10 transact his business
correctly, take what counsel he may,
for il perplexes all lawyers; and ] pre-
dict that If the constitution is adopted,
more questions Of constitutional law
will be taken to the Supreme Court on
thi. and the exemption section than
upon all the rest Of the instrument.
There have been hard cases, un-
doubtcdly, where the wifc's property
has been taken for the husbands debts,
.l.Lo,,,,h ha,,a nayar hoard of one