The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-02-03
DAZZLING In DIVORCE STATISTICS.
Mr. Wright Asks For an Extra Appropria-
tion for a Useless Inquiry.

BJr. Wright Asks For Extra Appropria-
ton for a Useless Inquiry.
Washington Special.
Last March Congress appropriated SlOOOO to
be expended by the Bureau of Labor for an in
vestIgation of the statistics OF divorce for the
past twenty years throughout the United States.
This was done at the instance of Carroll d.
Wright, the mugwump Labor Commissioner,
who, having dabblsd little in divorce in Massa-
chusetts, was ambitious Of the credit attached
to a national investigation. Having secured his
APPROPRIATION from Congress, he took it q
warrant to divert a large part of the yearly ap-
preparation for the Bureau, amounting to
500, GOO, into this channel. He claims to have
performed this arbitrary act as public officer,
under what he asserts to have been the admission
of the Senate judiciary committee that his 'posi-
tion,H as be terms it. was correct" In fact he
contends that he has the right to undertake this
or any other investigation in his discretion at
pleasure. Thus he might. with the arbitrary
authority he believes to be lntrusted TO him as
Chief of the National Labor Bureau, undertake
an investigation Of the condition of the Samoide
or any other absurd thing, but not without final
responsibility Of his act to the public
This divorce business certainly was as foreign
to the purpose and object of the Labor Bureau as
it was possible To be. At the present moment
Mr.. Wright has expended not only the $4,000
appropriated for the work of collecting the di-
vorce statistics, but nearly $40. 900 besides for
the mere work of agents in che field. The i'm
nense amount of useless statistics which they
have gathered is now piled up at his office In
this city still to be digested, arranged, printed
and reported upon At the expense of the govern
ment from the regular fund for the proper
work of the bureau. Toward the end of last
November, finding that the work was far out
running his calculation of time and necessary
expenditure, and was also endangering the run
ming expenses of the Labor Office in Washing
ton Mr.. Wright recalled the thirty-rwo agents
appointed by him, and is now applicant be-
fore Congress for an additional appropriation
for the divorce business.
Congress might have justified his arbitrary
action in the diversion of the regular funds of
his Office for this eccentric inquistion, but in
view of the fact that the line of his investigation
has been a perfectly useless one. it IS doubtful
whether 1t will do AS he has planned the
investigation il IS considered by experts in stat
istics to be farce pure and simple. 1t appears
that he sent out into the field his agents armed
with a schedule which among other facts called
for the locality and the year of the occurrence,
dissolution alleged formal cause of di-
vorce whether absolute PARTIAL the number
of children, and the designation OF husband and
wife of complainant This schedule. it is I'M
derstood, was prepared by the Rev. MIR. Dixie, of
the National Divorce Association.
The most casual examination of the schedule
may convince thoughtful persons that they
hardly serve any purpose more dignihed than
that OF idle curiosity The locality OF q we'd
ding ceremony is scarcely pertinent to the ques-
ton of the well-spring of connubial fecities;
the number of children born of finally dis
rupted marriage even if greatly important, is,
as is well known, ascertainabe factor only
forming an iuconsiderable proportion of divorce
libes. Finally the attempts of Mr.. Wright to
ascertain the causes of divorce is reduced to a
minimum of pertnence by the notorious fact
that divorce courts prone for well known
reasons to render their decisions of annulment,
not on the most serious best ustained
charges, but under the most available charges
recited in the libel
One hundred and sixty thousand there
abouts of these worthless schedules are now filed
up in the labor Office in this city awaiting the
slow process of tabulatiOn or digestion at the
governments expense, while the commissioner
himself is applying to Congress for fresh appro-
priations to forward this useless work. The
advocates of a really thorough Investigation of
this important question entertain the hope that
Secretary Villas will see to it that if any money
is Appropriated by Congress for this purpose it
will be expended under direction of men more
fitted for the work than Mr.. Wright seems to
have proven himself 10 be.