Mountain Home bulletin. (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1888-1889, 1888-09-15
ODD SET or BOOKS.
bookkeeping Tor Deserted WIves-H1ars
tai Troubles IN New York City.

tcOH&eepIug Tor UeserVeO Wbvoo-NIort
tai Troubles In new Yort City.
To be q sergeant In police court In
solves q peculiar and somewhat burden
some duty. that OF acting as banker for
the receipt and disbursement OF the
weekly stipends paid by husbands to de
serted wives. A sergeant Is fortunate "
he has not above thirty such bookkeeping
accounts on his list. and N q busy court
the number may run up to 1901 or l15
The obligation Of the husband to srpror,
his wife assumes not romantic aspect IN
q police court. The obligation IL not to
the woman as her deser, for services rem
dered or for affections sake. but TO the
city. that II may not have II pauper on it,
hands This attitude OF sell defense O:
the community as against the husband
colors the proceedings which a woman
must go through before she can com,,el
her husband TO provide foi her The frs,
step involved Is visit to the commission
ers of charities and correction and an ap
pication for a reQuisition from them OIL
the police justice in her district requiring
him to issue All abandonment warrant ton
the arrest OF the delinquent husband
The law being framed directly to pre-
vent the increase OF paupers and not to
punish the man the wife is called upon
to swear on the tece OF the warrant that
size will be charge on the public unless
her husband supports bet Thrt Ii al.
she has to do with the matter AZ a prin
cipal In the police court II Is the city
against the husband with the aife merely
as witness She Is called upon TO testify
a second time that she Is In the position
4 OF a pauper and that the city will have tc
support her II he, husband does not
Under such circumstance, the amour,
awarded the woman Is seldom large the
object being simply TO keep ber out Of the
poor house The weekly sum which the
husband Ia put under bonds to pay her
varies according to his wages but NOR,
closely according to the ages Of her chill
dren. whether they can work and hely
support her or whether she can get worl
and support herself Four dollars weel
or 80 is as high as It often gets am
sometimes It Ii not above $2 80 or u,
Women who brace themselves for week
to submit to the mortuyiug ordeal o
swearing out such warrants against thei
husbands are soipetlmes surprised l.
learn the exact basis Of the law
II a man has beaten woman and mad
her life an almost insupportable burdel
to her. but asserts that he has not aban
doned her. that be will 60 home with he
and live with her. then that woman Is no
in danger OF becoming pauper. and tn
police justice, though he may feel the vi
most compassion for her, can only tell be
to 60 home with him. and have him up 70
assault II he beats her The woman ofte
will not venture TO appeal to the cour
again. for an assault complaint. she hay
ing learned that any other Is useless wi
mean her husbands imprisonmep. az
stoppage OF the family income the ma
very naturally comes to the conclusio
that whatever he does his wife will ha Y
to put up with It. and acts for the futut
very much as he pleases Aman who hn
decent income has his wife even more i
his power She imagines she can secui
bis punishment for deserting her for
prettier face than her own. She trie.
She opens her eyes when she finds III
abandonment warrants open the door ,
, 80 many dollars a week only II he ea
, support two women that Is his business
, not the courts lie gives bonds to sec,,l
her bread. with not too much butter, all
goes back to his newer flame 1t
couples Of this sort largely for whom IL
police sergeant is banker They don
care to meet personally and the cou,
official collects. pays and takes the II
ceipts. 1t Is getting to be qrite bus
ness In Its way