Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-06
MARRIAGE ANDD|VORCE
Subject Just Now of Great
Interest in France.
A WEDDING IN PARIS
TO MAKE THE BONDS OF MATRI-
MoNY LESS STRONG.
What Three Men Are Trying to Do
New Causes for Separa-
ton.
A WEDDING IN PARIS
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star

head OF the procession, clinging to the
bridegrooms arm, had, doubtless, the great
moment of ner life.
1t was IL am. The ceremony in the
church was over And the bride, say, as
she descended those broad steps, stood at
the pinnacle of earthly glory in the dreams
of every young French girl.
The Madeleine. you see. is more than a
swell church. 1t is a monument of high
publicity. Situated at the top of the Rue
Royale, it points to the Elysian fields
Champs Elysees) and Paris beautiful,
while on its left it marks the entrance to
the famous boulevard, the center of the
brilliant cosmopolitan whirl.
The bright morning sunlight fell upon the
bride in her white bride dress and great
veil. 1t fell upon the groom-in evening
clothes! 1t fell upon the best man and the
other men; and all Of them were dressed
in evening clothes! Two young men only
wore frock coats, while half dozen others,
who had in their secret hearts the English
and American ideals, had buttoned up their
light overcoats. The ladies wore gay call
ing costumes, as is right; but the men, in
spite of the late example of Paul Deschenel,
dared not infringe on the old Paris custom
of the evening suit for morning weddings
and funeralS
Long Drawn-Out Ceremony.
out, with carpets hangings, candles, flow
ers, orchestra and opera stars, and Swiss
in uniform. The father of the bride led
forward his daughter; the groom had his
own mother his arm; then followed the
mother of the bride accompanied by the
father of the groom, while the organ and
the orchestra played Bach's prelude" and
the "Fruehlingsklage" of Mendelssohn.
Harps and violins We're the favorite orches-
trail instruments.
The head Swiss in his gorgeous court
turnkey uniform, hat on head and band
masters staff in hand told the bridal party
what to do at each turn-kneel, rise, take
the candle, advance toward the altar; and
he whispered to the groom to push the we'd
ding ring carefully down over the brides
second joint otherwise the marriage
might turn out unhappily! He also kept
the bride from getting tangled in her train
Roll on, music! The bride is weeping in
the sacristy, where every one signs the big
book. Roll on, music! for the gay and
chattering procession to stand on the
Greek porch of the Madeleine while all the
carriages roll up, one by one, to take them
to the wedding breakfast Nevertheless
this wedding at the Madeleine has taken
place at queer epoch in the history of the
marriage institution in the pleasant land of
Francei
The Real Wedding.
In the first place, this church wedding is
no wedding. According to the present laws
of France it does not marry the young
people any more than going to the Moulin
Rouge would marry them. The legal mar
rage took place earlier this morning, at
the mayors office There, in bare wait
ing room, dozen other marriage parties
had assembled. When a good batch had
collected they were ranged in line.
The mayor of the ward then entered He
stepped up to the first couple.
''J)O Won take this woman for your
he asked the groom, who answered:
Yes
do you take this man for your hus-
band?"
yes"
Then the groom, slipping a ring over the
brides finger, said:
This ring is the sign of the marriage
we have here contracted
They then sign the register and walk out.
That is all-the documents piled on the sec
retary's desk have done the rest.
These documents are:
Documents in the Case.
l. The formal acts Of consent of all four
parents. if living, or the death certificates
of such as are deceased. Without these no
Frenchman under thirty-five or French girl
under thirty may contract marriage; and
even later, when parents are stubborn, they
can put their middle-aged children to i'm
mense trouble in lawsuit against them
caIIed the respectful summons.
2. The certificates of birth of both par
ties, which are Indispensable. When dur
ing the Franco Prussian war and commune,
records were destroyed enabling acts had
to be passed to make great number of
marriages possible. l know an Austrian
young man in Paris who desires to marry
and-cannot because he is refused COPY of
his birth certificate by the chancellerie of
his government in the Rue Laffitte
g. The certificate of the legal publica tiop
of the banns
4. The groom's certificate that he has
done his military service Now note at
home or abroad, no Frenchman can be mar
ried legally in France without fulfilling
every one of these formalities. Abroad the
French consul takes the mayors place; and
that is the only difference American girls
take notice! All over the world French
men are going through solemn local mar
riage ceremonies which they are free to
repudiate in France.
Now for Divorce.
have said that this wedding at the
Madeleine took place at a queer epoch.
Doubtless neither bride nor bridegroom
thought about it: but on this same day
appeared the new book of Alfred Naouet,
called 1.-The Father of Divorce" in France
And at the same hour hundred deputies
were being buttonholed by advocates of the
proposed enlarged divorce law of the Mar
gueritte brothers and President-Judge Mag
maud
1t is curious thing that the divorce law
as it stands in France is the work of one
man, 1.-THE Father of Divorce already
mentioned, Alfred Naquet. Having need
for a divorce himself this great man. by
his perseverance, had a law put on the
statute books not differing greatly from the
moderate systems of New York or Penn
sylvania. This was in 1884, after the ire
mendous battle of the radicals and con-
servatives of 1881.
At that time there was no divorce in
France. Under the old kings marriages
were now and then declared null in power
full families, by the pope The French
revolution brought wide-open divorce
law. 1t was "mutilated' in the consular
reaction; and Napoleon, as emperor left
1t as he found it. Then when the monarch
lists came back in 1915 it was quite abol-
ished and till Alfred Naquet's work in
1884, the French family continued to have
Its solid basis in tie that might not be
dissolved for any reason whatsoever.
To enlarge" Divorce.
Now again one manor, rather three
are on the point of bringing an immense
change to the customs of their country
The Marguerite brothers are two thought
full novelists who write as one. with tend
encies that are extremely broad and liber-
ating. In no sense are they either states
~~-lsk l<.s., Cr,6 ta<>x, 1<.~<~k L