, 1876-03-12
CHICAGO DIVORCE STATISTICS,

An examination of the court records dur
| ing the year 1875 Of applications for divorces
| show that 5o6 cases have been commenced ia
TINT time. Of these cases, 295 DEGREES have
been granted, or less than one day. There
| ire 100 not disposed Of There have been
10 decroes denied, and cases have been
transferred from one court to the other. The
causes have been as follows: Descrtion, LII !;
cruelty, 1877; adultery, Ill; drunkenness, 60;
miscellaneous, II.
Upon the surface this has bnd looE, but
when tie figures arc analyzed little the re-
. suits will show that marriage is Just
es binding in Chicago as anywhere else,
and that tie two or more souls
with but single thought and the
two or more hearts that bent as one ere
just as likely to hang together till ''death do
us part in Chicago as in other cities which
make boast Of marital constancy. It will
be observed that I'll told, 526 cnscs hare been
instituted. Of these, 70 hare been denied,
SO that at least these 70 couples will have
to stay hitched and travel in single or double
harness, as they prefer. There have been
but 2S5 DEGREES granted, which is less than
one for each day in the year, which is not
bed showing, considering the manner in
which the iu-assortel and nliserab]y- y-nated
couples from other cities come here to get
unspliced. OF the whole number Of cases,
o5S only were Chicago marriages. and 26S
were from St. Louis, Cincinnati, Milwaukee,
New York, Boston, and other outlying sub
T,ok L-It
cases were instituted by peoplewho have only
made temporary residence here in order to
bring suits
It appears, therefore, that during the year
there have been 25S wretched couples, out Of
e population of nearly half q million people,
who are Disconnected with their marriage
state, and who are ready to throw up their
wedding rings, marry soma one else. or go it
alone the rest OF their days This is very
small proportion; and how much smaller it
appears when compared with the great army
of martyrs who are ready to place the yoke
upon their shoulders to assume tho RESPONSE |
bilities, cares, pleasures, and sorrows Of we'd |
lock, and to pay for the support Of some
youngwoman and prospective oive-b branches |
While 25s Chicago couples have stepped for |
ward to have their shackles struck off, 5,004. |
OF nearly twenty times as many, couples have !
heroical1y up to the minister and de- !
manded that they beSfettered While ass |
couples stand ready to sell ont the whole
bridal outfit, rings, orange-nowers, trous-
seaus,-and all for two cents,-5.oo4 couples
nave paid handsomely for the privilege Of
wearing them, and are ready, even in these
light times, to risk the expense Of house,
Keeping
It is time, therefore, that this sense
ess affirmation OF the looseness of the mar
iage tie in Chicago should stop. The
7ery figures We have quoted show that the
lie is as long and as strong here rs anywhere.
+ it were as long and as strong in other
:ities, VIC should not be troubled with their
,otched work rs We are. Marriage in Chi
ago, like everything else in Chicago, is war;
anted to wash. Our men are just as brave
nd strong, and our women as tender and
rue, as in other cities (and great deal pret-
ier). Even Of the small number of Chicago
ouples who have sought for divorce, the
raat majority are foreigners who have not
ct fallen into the ways Of Chicago devotion
nd constancy. Tho great trouble in the
latter is, as We have said before, the
7etched people come here from St. Louis
nd other suburbs "not half made up,"
nd never fitted to be married to each other ,
r to be married at all. To break the bonds I
f such creatures is kindness to animals.
ut we protest against having to bear any 6
niger the notoriety arising from foreign t
otching in the union OF souls.