The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-01-26
WHAT WILL THEY Do.


The ever-present divorce quest on prom
ises this winter to stir up anew the
moral sentiment Of the people of t e
two Dakotas. Already the c1us ace
against the present condition of the
laws has been opened in each state, AMI
the church people are locking forwsrI
to success in their efforts to modify ex-
listing provisions
The narrow margin of three months,
as representing the period of lsga1 resi-
dence necessary to the Dakota courts ac-
curing Jurisdiction in actions CT divorce,
was established in great meas ure. as The
result of commercial rivalry amcng Il g
cities of the two states. 1t orera.el
so as to give the communities OF Nor. h
Dakota, which first established it, &C.
cisive advantage in the volume of b 1si-
ness done. Divorces poured in from al
over the country, and South Dakota
communities were soon left far te:inI
in the race for trade enhancement But
the advantage was of course short-lived,
and, at the earliest moment possible,
South Dakota business men insisted on
their rights, and the two STATES were
once more on an equality in TIE extreme
liberality of their divorce legislation.
Looking back at the results, it is net
at all surprising that the reaction soon
came, and that both states retu ned TO
the six months period of residence, al
though it is not quite pain VII re tie
moral difference is as between the two
periods, in view of the granting CT Gi-
vorces in both states to men and women
who did not even make decent pre-ense
of intending to stay within the state che
moment longer than the entry of the
decree.
Ideed it is this scandalcu5 incentive
arouse the bitter feelings Of the moral
elements of South Dakoa society To
them it does not matter whether the Pc
Rod of residence is three or six mont 5,
so long as it is notorious that 50 FER cent
of those applying for divorce swear that
they have taken up their resiGen per-
manently in the state, when, as a mat
ter of fact in many cases, Their b g.
gage is at the moment Of the'r per-.
jury checked and ready for tTansporta-
ton to their real homes.
Men and women of the world are not
looking for any marked success on
the part of those who are en-
deavoring to secure an improve
ment in the situation in the d.
vorce industry in the Dakotas. They do
not see wherein any moral question is
involved in the mere proposition of
frightening or shortening the period Of
residence. AS long as it is possible for
man or woman to come into a given state.
without any real intention Of remaining
and by virtue of temporary sojourn
there,t to bring himself within the iurisdic-
ton of the courts, when the courts would
be perfectly justified in taking judicial
ccgnizance of the fact that no residence
whatever has been acquired in the true
legal significance of the term, it is mere
ly idle to talk of making change for
better or worse
If the period of residence were ad-
vanced to one year in the Dakotas the
evil might perforce find remedy, since
that is the period of residence establish
ed in many other states far more Access
sible than either of the Dakotas to the
Eastern candidate for decree Eut the
courts of every state in the Union where
SO brief period Of residence IS establish
ed as the legal requirement are UNDER
stood TO take the pains which is absent
in the Dakotas to assure themselves that
the residence has not been acquired for
the purpose of securing a divorce.
1t will be interesting to watch the
conflict between pecuniary and moral