The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1882-11-24
Ouriosities of Divorce.

A tendency to render divorce easy
has marked the legislation of the United
States from the beginning. Adultery,
the prime and everywhere all sufficient
ground for divorce, has been more and
more lenently treated every half CEN
fury or so. illusions has been made at
various times, in a general way, to the
diversity of divorce laws in the different
States and Territories of the United
States. In Alabama, for example. not
only does adultery committed after mar
riage afford ground for divorce, but
adultery or immortality committed be-
fore marriage can, when discovered and
proved after marriage, vitiate and dis
solve the marriage. In Georgia not on
ly insanity, but mere mental incapacity
Is legal ground for divorce. In Ken
lucky certain forms of disease afford
legal cause for divorce for more
''causes" than any other State in the
Union or country in the world. A man
and wife can obtain divorce from each
other on sixteen different causes in
Kentucky.
In Maine the saying of the wag holds
good, that ''though it is hard to get a
drink, it is easy to get divorce" The
law there reads: divorce may be de-
creed when the judge deems it reason
able and proper, conducive to domestic
harmony and consistent with the wei
fare of society,"" In Illinois also large
discretionary divorcing powers are
granted to the judges, in addition to the
seven legal causes allowed for divorce.
In Delaware adultery itself does not ne
cessitate the granting of divorce. 1t
depends upon the party committing the
crime. II the wife sins then the husband
can legally demand an absolute divorce;
but if the husband is the offender then
the wife is only legally entitled to par
tial divorce or separation. This may
at first glance seem unfair. Yet it is
based upon one sound argument and
conceded fact. The sin of the husband
and father cannot effect the status Of
the children of family, but the sin of
the wife and mother can and does. In
Nevada failure or neglect upon the
part of the head Of family to provide
the '.necessaries'' of life for said family
constitutes legal ground for divorce.
..Lunacy at the time of marriage" is
specified in the laws of Nevada as vitiat-
ing the union. If '.love is lunacy," as
some philosophers hold, how can any
any marriage he legal? Besides the mo-
mentous question arises, under the
laws of Nevada, are ''new bonnets"
counted under the head of "necessa-
RESP
North Carolina, theoretically at least,
must be "a State of easy divorce. y
"Any just cause, at the discretion of the
Judge" is allowed to dissolve the mar
rage tie. Rhode Island allows gross
misbehavior or wickedness in either
party to constitute ground for divorce.
In Connecticut the famous-or. rs
some hold, the infamous -"omnibus
clause" became part of the code. This
somnibus clause" provides that any
.'such mischief or misbehavior as per-
manently destroys happiness and de-
feats the purposes Of marriage" shall
constitute legal ground for DIVORCE
Such provision as this would be con-
veniently sensible if it could only be
settled beyond peradventure what such
mischief or misbehauiOr was in each
particular case. In Tennessee an at
tempt against the life of one party was
held a full and sufficient legal ground
But in u recent case in New York City,
where the wife attempted one night tc
strangle her husband in his sleep, the
husband was advised that he had no lie.
gal grounds for divorce, adultery be.
ing more matrimonially available than
murder. In Virginia if woman is dis.
covered after marriage TO have borne O
bad character deservedly before mar.
riage, without her husband becoming
aware of that fact till after marriage,
then the husband becomes legally en-.
titled to divorce. In this case the man
is held as having been married by the
woman under the false pretence of 9
good character. And if either husband
or wife has committed crime. before
marriage, and said commission of crime
is not discovered by the other party till
after marriage, then the innocent party
is held to be entitled to divorce from
the guilty party.-Nes0 York Herald.