The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-07-19
MARRIAGE LICENSE QUESTIONS
Designed to Illegal Unions
They Are Needgessly Intrusive.

They Are NeedJessIy Intrusive.
IFrom the Newark Evening News."]
The State Board Of Health, sensibly and
In accord with the English language and
the plain intent Of the Marriage License
Law, interprets 1t as requiring the license
to be taken out only when both parties
are non-residents Of the State. The Off
Gals of some of the counties interested
in obtaining ffty-eent fees are trying to
stretch its provisions to cover cases In
which a marriage Is contemplated be-
tween a resident and a nonresident of
New Jersey.
The prime purpose Of a law of this
character Is to tend to prevent people le-
gally incompetent to marry from con-
tracing alliances by disappearing
their position before the law. The law
and the questions prepared by the Attor-
ney General carry public inquiry into
needless intrusion upon private affairs,
The law provides that the Attorney
General shall draw up questions which
shall include inquiries concerning the
name, age, parentage, birthplace, occupa-
ton and residence of each of the persons
to be married, and the condition of each
OF them, whether single, widowed or di-
yorced, to be printed and supplied to the
several County Clerks
Inquiry in regard to age may be prop
erly made-to ascertain whether the par
ties are of the age necessary to legal
marriage. But non-residents seeking to
be married in New Jersey cannot stop
with giving this information. They have
to take afidayits and place upon public
records statements telling when and
where they were born. Some people have
no objection TO telling their age. Others
have such an objection. If non-residents
seeking to get married in New Jersey are
old enough to qualify them to lawfully
enter into the contract, what business
is it of the States to ask them to de-
clare under oath how much older they
are than they need be to meet the laws
requirements?
Here are three more questions
What is the full name Of your father?"
What is the full name of your mother,
and what is her maiden name?n
What is YOU occupation, and how
long have you been pursuing you present
occupation?"
Thu great majority of people would have
no objection to the recording Of the
names of their parents. Some might
AoN OOJSCliOA W SlF1IS tIQtllul W II
and serious objection at that. Some peo-
pie may object to giving defnite public
~afidayits to their occupations. The fact
that people are about to get married
ought not to deprive them of the right
to mind their own business.
But the questions addressed to the
would-be bride and groom are not to be
compared with some of those to be adj
dressed to the identifying witness. That
individual, for instance. is to reply to
these inqEiries:-
How long has he {or she) eontemplat-
"Has that fact been known to his Tor
herr parents cor guardian, if any)?'
Also he is 20 be asked this question::
San you tel what his COR herr occupa-
years 2"
Now, if the object of this Marriage Lii
cense law was to collect vital statistics
o. pile up evidence of identity for posi-
bic future law suits, something could be
said in favor of these Inquiries, but those
are not its purposes. If they were, it
dents alone. It's purpose is simply to les
sen the danger of marriage of those not
lawfully able to enter upon the marriage
relation. With that as its only proper
purpose it forces intrusive inquiry into
affairs which are the business of the par
l1CS CVIlCtIllGQ. M
OF course, it is easy to say that people
VINO object to telling their age or disclos-
ing the facts about their parentage can
lie about these matters and that they can
evade inquiries in regard to their past and
present occupations. If they do not want
to tell the truth about them. But it is no
justification of intrusive questions that a
man or a woman may answer them by ly-
ing. And some of these questions are in
trusive. 1t can make no difference to a
County Clerk in issuing a license whether
persons lawfully competent to enter into
Wedlock have contemplated marriage for
ten years or ten minutes. Whether their
parents were honored philanthropists or
criminals cannot affect his sanction in re-
gard to the license. If a man and woman
are lawfully able to marry they haze as
good a title to claim a certificate if they
have spent the last five years in Sing Sing
Prison as they would nave If he We're a
minister of the gospel and she a mission
airy just returned from India. 1t is the
business of the parties concerned TO them
selves decide whether or not they want
to get married. The State of New Jersey
is quite powerless to regulate marriages
of non~-residents with the idea of expert
ments in advanced s~tirpieulture. 1t does
not assume the power to decide that the
ages of bride Inc groom shall bear any
certain relation to each other or to forbid
persons in occupations not honored in
facts admitted, some of the questions re-
quired by the law and expressed in the
Attorney Generals form of inquiries in
terpreting it are simply unnecessary n
impairment.