The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-12-10


/ ing over the columns Of the morning
| papers | observed that DIR. Alison bad
/ announced that he would speak on The
Divorce Court. It's Cause and Cure" LIS
/ bsing q subject of to-day felt al interest
/ in IL, as / do in ail living Questions,
especially such ss concern the welfare OF
the community. / was, however. quite
disappointed with the treatment OF the
subject which / heard. Mr.. Alison stated
that his examination OF the subject OF
/ divorce IN this country made him quite an
/ optiuist, the statistics making so much
/ better showing than be had supposed, and
/ he could hardly see how the question us
/ Marriage q Failure" could be seriously
considered.
| | had occasion 10 write on the subject OF
marriage and divorce some seven or eight
/ years ago. and as the statistics we're given
| on Sunday morning could not help but
feel that something was wrong, either |
| had wholly forgotten or else the statistics
! l was hearing were not correct. Ii Was
| stated that out of G. 600 600 population in
the United State. 100000 were married.
| This shows large percentage when,
/ believe. five is the usual number compos-
/ ing the family, while this makes less than
| three 70 the family, making no allowance
| for unmarried adults. But if this is cor
| rect. which have not verified. IL must be
remembered that q coco married people
| make only IL, o00, 600 couples, which fact
| Is quite important in getting the percent
| age of divorces. Ii was stated there were
| only l20 S96 divorces for the same year,
as shown by United States census OF
| 1890, and that this made one divorce for
every 500 married couples. According to
| my arithmetic 10. 996 divorces in I,ooo-
| 90 couples would be one divorce 10
| fraction less than ninsty-one. Further
statistics were given as follows: New
York. in 1900; Nevada. In 1000; Ore
| .on. and traction; California, and
| fraction; Washington, SAC; Utah, S.A
| each in 1000.
Ii only one in 500 ever applies for
| divorce. I thought, how could timld
| woman ever apply to divorce courtF
| Then / remembered the divorce calendar
| of our court each week and l thought /
| would look into the matter. / have not
| examined our own records IN King
| county, but believe when examined the
| percentage of divorces to the number of
| marriages each year would be quite large.
| did look into my cyclopedia and found
| the following:
4
| the commissioner of labor TO collect the
| statistics of marriage and divorce
throughout the country; the work was
| completed and given 10 the country in
| 1889. The period embraced Was from 1867
| TO 1856, inclusive. The report was not
| complete in all the United States, but
| showed 32s, 7l6 divorces during the period.
| In six states in which the report was
| complete, the ratio is given as follows:
Rhode Island, divorce to ILL mar
| riages; Connecticut, / divorce TO lL32
| marriages; Vermont, 1 divorce TO 1896
| marriages; Ohio, divorce to 20.65 mar
| riages; District OF Columbia, divorce to
| 80 So marriages; Massachusetts,, divorce
| to % marriages
| In view of the above / hardly under
| stand how the census for 1870 aud 1850
| gives one divorce for 664 married couples
| in 1870 and one divorce for ASH married
| couples in 1850. The per cent of increase
| in population and divorces between 1870
| and 1880 is as follows: Population So2.
| divorces IA Evidently the statistics
| gathered by the commissioner OF labor are
the more reliable. The causes for divorce
are classified in the report of the commits
| sioner of labor: Adultery, 3S,lS4 TO hus-
| bands, and e, 500 to wives; cruelty, 6, 10
1 10 ~ WIVES ocsCAt4OAs
| 81, ass 10 husbands, and 5,l9l to
| wives; drunkenness, l,434 to hus-
| bands, and 1892 to wives; neglect
| to provide, 1856 to wives only. While
| the above shows 170a53 divorces granted
| to wives to s7,225 granted to hus-
| bands, almost twice as many. it shows a
| larger number granted to husbands on the
| ground of adultery than to wives, and al
| though the husband is usually considered
| the bread winner, two-thirds of the num-
| Der deserving are wives.
These statistics give Us an important
| study as to the duration of married life.
| The average duration of married life is 8 IL
years. During this period of twenty years
| the divorces after one year of marriage
| were 1902; after two years, q. SIS; after
| three years, q, 270; after four years, 1890,
| aud after twsnty-one years or more of
| married life, 25,37L The statistics further
| show that children do not greatly intlu-
| ence the question of divorce.
The most startling figures are those given
| in the annual StGtistician for ls92, being
| 223 per ], 900 marriages in San Francisco.
| am an optimist also. but | derive differ
| emit lesson from these and the facts all
| about Us than the one heard on Sunday.
| These figures do not tell one-ha1 the story.
| IL is impossible to know how many just
| causes of divorce are never known to the
| divorce court. 1t will never be known how
many suffer long after patience ceases 10
| be a virtue rather than air their infelicities
before an unsympsthizing public.
The erection Of the family altar, as We
were advised on Sunday, and Christians
| marrying Christians, will not always in
| sure happiness in the marriage relation.
| | have read Of one who wss said 10 be a
| man after Gods own heart, one who fur
nished many OF the psalms for church
ehoirs. who place 1 man In the front OF
| the battle that hs might secure his wife.
| remember couple who for twenty years
| were punctilious In their observance of
| family prayers, bus were not happy In
| their marriage relations. Earth contains
| no happier scene for heaven 20 smile upon
| than two hearts plighted TO each other in
| Young manhood and womanhood, jour
neying along the pathway OF our common
| humanity, mutually bearing one snothsr's
| burdens and sharing one another's Joys
| until grsy hair adorns their heads, until
| tie ere sTows dim and the hearing dali,
1 even untu the messenger comes 10 call
| them hence, living in mutual confidence
| and mutual love. But the attainment Of
| this most desirable end has only been real
| lied By ths comparatively few.
Let nothing, not even the traditions OF
| the fathers, stand in the way Of our learn
| ing ANYTHING and everything that may TO