The daily gazette., 1883-03-12
wHN1INGTorV. DE-. u. nAorNDAY. MARCH H. 1888
A MATRIMONIAL PROBLEM.
The Earl of DalhOusie Seeking American
Experience Upon the Question OF Mar
riage With a Deceased Wifs's Sister.

The Earl of DalhOusie Seeking American
Experience Upon the Question of Mar
riage With a Deceased Wifo's Sister.
The following communication has been
received by the Editor of the GAZETTE:
10, CHARLES ST., BERKELEY SQUARE, w,
LONDON, Feb. %, 1SS3.-To the Editor of the
Gazette The Earl of Dahousie presents
his compliments to the editor, and begs the
favor of the publication OF the enclosed cor
respondence, a copy of which has been ad
dressed to the Governor of each State:
10, CHARLEs STREET, BERRLEY SQUARE,
LONDON, W, February Is, 1885 Your Err
cellency; In the last session of the Parlia-
ment of Great Britain and ireland, bill for
legalizing marriage with deceased wite's
sister was defeated in the House of Lords
by majority of 132-12S.
II am rightly informed, these marriages
have now for many years been legal in every
part of the United States of America, and
you bave therefore had ample experience of
their effect on social aud domestic life, and
can say from practical knowledge whether
morality has suffered from the fact that In
the State Of Delaware marriage with u de
ceased wife's sister is permitted by law.
The opponents of the legalization of mar
rage with a deceased wifes sister in the
United Kingdom are fond of referring to
America as illustrating in marked degree
the baneful evils which 1t is alleged must
follow If these marriages are recognized as
legal
In order TO give your Excellency an
example of the statements that are
made, | enclose an extract from
letter quoted in an article which has
recently appeared In one of our leading
periodicals, The Church Quarterly Re0ieaC,
which is being extensively circulated. l am
nm Ions 10 arto In hath har
as those contained in this letter are gener-
ally supported by facts, or whether the
writer has drawn his startling differences
from an isolated case.
May ] ask that your Excellency will
kindly honor me with such information as
you can conveniently give as to how the
law which permits marriage with deceased
wife's sister has worked In the State of Del
ware. My reason for making this request
is, that hope to introduce into the House
of Lords again this year a bill similar to the
one which so nearly became law during the
last session of Parliament, and am naturally
concerned to have all the knowledge of the
practical working in America of
law similar to the one which
| am anxious to persuade the Leg
islature to adopt In this country. l
trust, therefore, your Excellency will for
give me for troubling you in the matter.
have the honour to be,
Your Excellency,
Very faithfully and obediently yours,
DALHOUsJE.
To His Excellency, Hon, Charles C.
StOckley, the Governor of the State of Della
ware.
The extract referred to by the Earl of Dal-
bousie 10 as follows:
"It is evident" writes an American cler-
gyman, ito those of us who are old enough
to remember the state of things previous to
these innovations, that a change for the
worse has been brought about. | can well
recollect when ladies, in the liftime of their
husbands used to feel as ii their brothers in
law were their own brothers, and to treat
them accordingly, in all the unreserve of
domestic intercourse; when a brother-in-
law, after an absence, would kis his brothers
wife In all purity as his own sister, and she
would confide in him without thought of
evil, or a feeling of embarrassment; and
when, too, in case of a wife dying, her sister
would remain in charge of her family, or
would remove to the bereaved home, to live
with the widoWer, and take care of his chill
dren as a thing of course, without a whisper
of SANDER, or any occasion for it; when the
children, too, knowing that their aunt could
never be in any nearer relation to them,
loved and reverenccd her, and conflded in
influence to her.
But since such increased nearness of
connection has been deemed not improper
and even desirable, there has grown up in
families painful and perceptibe constraint
the children learning to look with appre-
hension on their mothers sisters, and the
wives becoming jealous of their influence
with their husbands, while familiarities
which formerly were thought to be, aud
really were, innocent, have come TO possess
consciousness of evil tendency which
itself is the nature of sin.
Il know of wife whose health was gradu-
ally declining, woman of the world. with
husband as worldly as herself and in
their house was young and attractive sister
of hers, between whom and her husband
there had grown up gradually degree of
affectionate intercourse which in the days
of the wife's health had been thought only
natural. But as her end drew near, it be-
came on his part more pointed, and drew to
it her attention so agonizingly that it became
the one engros sed feeling of her soul for the
last few weeks OF her life, exciting in her an
| undsguised dread of what she forsaw would,
as it did, take place, and SO absorbed her as
to shut out all thought of religion, and
make her miserable to her very death"