The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-03-05
A Cause for Divorce,

This may be called the age of divorce.
AT one time it was so extremely difficult
to break marriage bond, legally, that it
might be considered lasting, in one res
pect at least. virtually until death did it
part. When once this rigidity was re-
lapsed and laws were framed more in ac-
cordance with the spirit OF the times, the
other extreme of looseness became the
rule. and it seemed as though the object
of reformers was to encourage and facili-
tate the separation of married persons.
There is now a very general desire to
promote moderation on this very serious
subject. While the most sensible people
have no wish to return to the old cast
iron policy of the past, they think
there should be more care exercised in the
passage OF divorce laws, so that the
matrimonial knot may not be Embossed
for every trivial excuse, nor Invested of
OF that sanctity which should surround
the marriage relation.
There is one cause for divorce that has
been decided sufficient which some may
regard as in the nature of joke, but
which others will agree to as very seri-
Gus and proper reason for judicial
decree. it occurred in a western state
and is reported as the case of H1GGIN-
BoTHAM VS.. HIGGINBoTHAM in which the
plaintiff alleged that his wife, from whom
he sought divorce, began from the start
of their union course of procedure
which rendered life insupportable.
The particulars were that even about
the arrangements of the wedding break
fast she fdgeted and fused and nothing
pleased her, and that was the commence
ment of course of idgeting that had
been kept up continuously. All this was
destructive to the peace OF a well ordered
family, and the learned judge decided it
was good ground for the application.
He said it was evident and was not de-
MED, that the defendant was nervous, for
which she deserved sympathy, but it was
no good reason why she should give way
to the fidgets so as to deprive the plaintiff
OF his right to live in peace. Most of her
troubles were imaginary and this had
been repeatedly pointed out to her by the
plaintiff, but she made life burden to
herself and him by her fancies about
things that never happened, and some of
which could not happen in the ma
ture of things. This she had
done with criminal disregard of
the husbands rights. He therefore gave
Judgment for the decree, but did not
allow costs.
1t will appear to many people that
though this may look like an extreme
case, there was more real ground IN it for
judicial separation than is apparent in
many cases that come before the courts.
A fit of ''the nerves. may and ought to
be sympathized with. But the perpetual
s'fidgets" that some people, both male
and female, suffer from, which they
might overcome, and the everlasting
faults findings to which they become adj
dicted and which they might put stop
to, are worse to bear than more serious
grievances and render the condition of the
rest of the household truly deplorable.
The moral is that everybody ought not
to be compelled to endure the super-sensa-
tive and comfortable infirmities of one
person, and that the good of the many is
more to be considered than the fads of the