The New Orleans daily Democrat., 1878-03-25
. learned Dogberry, Judge Rice, Q


4 Western Circuit of Georgia, has just rendered
remarkable decision remarkable for the
I learned acumen it betrays and the terrible
effect that it will have on love-sick maidens
elopements and all the incidents Of love. A
man In Gwinnett county, Ga, some weeks
ago married a girl sixteen years Of age, much
4 against the wishes of her parents. The young
brides father pursued the fleeing pair and cap
turing them just after the happy ceremony
had been performed, carried off his daughter
from the arms Of her husband locked her up
4 as In prison and refused to allow her to leave
home, or even see her husband, on the ground
that, she being a minor, he was her natural
protector and gua1 dian. The unfortunate hus-
band, not satisfied, sued out writ of habeas
corpus at once, and the case came up a few
days ago before the Circuit Court Of the
Western Circuit Of Georgia. It was on the
trial of this case that Judge Rice rendered
that decision which has made him famous
throughout Georgia. Notwithstanding the
Il fact that the girl had been married without
the consent Of her father and that the license
under which she was married had been OBJ
tanned under false pretenses, the judge did
not see exactly how he could go back on the
marriage and annul it, He accordingly,
though reluctantly, declared the marriage
good, and the girl the legitimate wife of the
plaintiff. "But,'' the court continued the
law gives the parent the custody and the
right to the services Of his child until major
ity, unless he voluntarily loses it. The de-
fendant therefore has the right to his
daughters services until she is twenty-one
and is entitled to her custody until that
time" In accordance with this view, the
writ OF habeas corpus was dismissed and the
girl remanded to the custody of her father.
Whether sound in law or not, such a deci-
sion is alarming indeed, to the cause of
matrimony. 1t will have the effect Of destroy
ing half the romance of courtship; it will
give undue power to the father, and prevent
that charming, sentimental and popular style
OF marriage-by elopement Who will care
to run off with girl, when her father can
carry her off from the successful lover and
keep her locked up for years from his sight
Who will marry girl under age when he
thinks of the miserable and unfortunate posi-
tion of this man from Gwinnett-married
but without wife ? married to beautiful
girl-that is undoubtee- will not have an
opportunity of seeing her again for, five long,
weary years. In five years he can go to the
father and demand his wife, but not I'LL then
As might be expected, this outrageous de-
cision has aroused an intense feeling among
the girls Of West Georgia. They are wild
with anger and vexation at judicial de-
cision that practically forbids marriage before
they are twenty-one. In these hard times
offers are so scarce, they say, that girls
ought to be encouraged to marry, to accept
the first man who presents himself, as they
would do, did not the nasty law step
in and forbid them. If other courts follow in
the footsteps of this tyrannical Judge Rice,
and interfere in the domains of love and |
romance; If the law ranges itself as an enemy
to courtship and matrimony, we predict that |
1t will not be many years before the women of |
this country will rise in their might and |
sweep these pigmies from the land. They
have no love for the law as it is, but have |
generally tolerated it because it protects them
with divorces and breaches of promise but
when it threatens to invade their kingdom,
and take from them their rights submission
10 the law will cease to be virtue.