Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1888-08-30
IN0ERsoLL ON DIVORCE.



Hard Sense ON the Question Of Diverse.
New York special: Col. lngersol
WAS asked to-day ii he had read ih,
account of n mans tearing his wife,
eye out ut Rockaway last Saturday
II read the account" he replied
land don't remember of ever haNin.
read anything more perfectly horrible
and cruel. II j. impossible for nn. tc
imagine such u monster. or to account
for such an inhuman being. How y
man could deprive n human being o
sight. except where some religion.
quest ion IL involved. is beyond my
comprehension. We kindly that for
many centuries Irightful pimishments
pious. by the tlrolO2ians. 10y the spir.
itual minded, and 10y those who loved
their neighhOrs as themselves ".
read the accounts of how the lids ol
mems eyes We're cut of and then the
poor victims tied where the sun would
shine upon their lidl,.ss Orbs. Mothrrs
who were buried alive. Of Others
stake,l out on the sands Of the sea, to
be drowned by the rising tide. Oi
Others put in sacks filled with snakes.
Yet these things appeared far away,
and We tlatter-l ourselves that. To u
great degree. the world had Outgrown
these atrOcities: and now. here. near
the close al the nineteenth century
we find n mana husband cruel
enough to put out the eyes Oi the
woman lc swOre To love, protect and
cherish. This man has probably been
taught that there is forgiveness for
every crime and now imagines that
when he relents there will he more 10Y
in Heaven over him than over ninety
and nine good and loving husbands
who have treated their wives in the
best possible manner, and who. in
stead of tearing out their eyes, have
filled their lives with content and COW
cred their faces with Kisses
''Nou told mo last week in n general
way what society should do with the
husband in such u ease as that. |
would like to ask you to-day what
you think society ought to do with
the wife IN such u ease? Orwliat ought
the wife to be permitted to do for
herseli?'
"Nhen We take into consideration
the crime of the man who blinded his
wife it iS impossible, not to think OF
the right Of divorce. Many people
insist that marriag. is an indiSsOlubl,'
tie, that nothing can break it. and
that nothing can release either party
from the bond. Now. take this ease
at Far Rockaway. tine year ago the
husband tore out one Of his wile's
az Had Sh, h., .oa.l g..
divorce? H. it possible that an inli-
on this poor. helpless woman remain
ing with the wild beast her husband?
Can any One imagine that such II
course would add to the Joy of para
disc, ar even tend to keep one harp in
tune? Can the good of socie, Y require
the woman to remain? She did re-
main, and the result j. that the other
eye has been torn from its socket by
the hands of the husband. l. sh-
entitled tn a divorce now? And ii she
rs granted one is virtue in danger aud
shall We lose the high ideal of home
life? Can anything he more Infamous
than 20 endeaNOr to make u woman. /
under such circumstances. remain with +
such n man? 1T may he said hat she
should leave him. that they should /
live separate and apart. That Is to .
say, that this woman should be de /
prlved oi a home; that she should not /
he ent titled to the love of n man; that /
she should remain ior the rest of her /
days worse than n widow That j. to
say, II wife hiding, keeping out oi the .
way, secreting herself from the hyena .
tn whom she was married. Nothing,
IN my judgment. can exceed the heart
le-snsss oi a law or Ot a creed that I
would compel this woman To remain
I he wiie al tins monster. And it IL
not only cruel, but immoral. low.
vulgar.
The ground has been taken that
woman would lose her dignity ii mar
lllgi.s Mi.re llssnluLli.- Is IL -neaa.ssnrA
to lose your freedom in order Is ret ain
your character. in order tn b. wonIanly
Dr manly Must u woman. IN order
10 retain her womanlood become n
slave, n seri. with a Wild beast ior II
master, or with society for a master.
pr with II phantom for n master?
Has not the married woman / lle right
ri seli-,ieIellsc? L. it not the duty oi
society to protect her from her hus-
''''' ~ Fib- oNt~ OtttN W lltT !
husband; il il is Impossible for her to
Iecl towards him any thrill oi aii,r-
ION. what ~ there Of marriage left
" hat part of the contract remains in
Iorcey She is not to live with him.
because she abl,Ors him. She is not
to remain in he same house with him.
Ior lear he may kill her. What. then,
are their relations, do they sustain
any relations except that of hunter
and h,inted-that is. Of tyrant and
vi,timy AMI is it desirable that this
relation should be rendered sacred by +
Il church? l. it desirable to have
families raised under such cirrum-
~tanresy Are we really in need OF ths
children born of such parents, Ii the
woman is not in fault. does society
insist that her life should be wreke,ly
AN the virtue Of Others he preserved
Dnly by the dest rirt ion OF her happi-
ness and by what might b- called her
I@rptnal imprisonment.