The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-04-17
SUNDAY, APRIL IT, 1904.
A BADLY TANGLED AFFAIR.

About the most complicated and alto gether mixed marriage and divorce bus mess that we have yet heard of has been going on in New York-and is still go- ing on, as we'll as we can understand it. It began by the marriage of Charles F. Dodge number of years ago. About five years ago Mrs. Dodge secured di- vorce. which Is not a hard thing to do in some places. Afterwards she was mar ried to Charles W. Morse, legally and properly, as she believed.
 Lately the trouble began. Dodge, the first Charley in the combination; turns up after remaining quiet for five years and queers the game. We are not in- formed what his object was in keeping himself in the background, or what in duced him to come forward in the Enoch Arden style, but he did come and at once got busy. He went before the prop CT court and swore that his former wifs had obtained her divorce from him with out his knowledge, and that he had new CT received notice of her suit or appli- decided that she had never been divorced from Dodge. and consequently had new CT been legally married to Morse.
 That left the unfortunate woman up in the air. so to speak. At one time she was the wife of two men. with no inten- ton of doing wrong. Then before she could brace herself she found herself di- vorced from both of them, so far as she could make it out. That is, she was the wife of two men and was divorced from two men, and couldn't tell which was her husband or which wasn't. She was not sure whether she was two wives or two divorced women. or both or neither. In short, she was on the, matrimonial fence in several respects.
 But that isn't the worst of it. If 1t had been a fact that she was never le- galiy divorced from Dodge she would still be his wife. Her marriage to Morse was null and void. though without wrongful intent on her part. and she would have gone back to be Mrs. Dodge again, so far as the laws and the courts are concerned, and her conjugal experi- ence with Morse would have been an ep- isode, somewhat embarrassing but not criminal, m intent 6L Aedst
 But now evidence is brought up that muddles matters worse than ever. for 1t is proven that Dodge lied when he swore that he had never been served with mo- tice of his wifes divorce suit. That be- ing, true, the divorce was legal, the wo. her marriage to Morse was lawful and right, according to the laws of New York, and she had committed no crime, either knowingly or ignorantly.
 But this new evidence fails to exhaust the complications, for when the court de- cided and proclaimed that she had not been legally divorced from Dodge 1t also held that she was not legally married to Morse, and that the ceremony was void. That leaves her in the air some more She has been married and divorced go- ing and coming. She has been the wife of two men at the same time and the di- vorced wife of both.
 The next step fin this modern comedy of errors will be watched with interest. but surely something should be done to straighten out matters and get this much married and divorced woman on safe ground. We presume the court which abrogated or set aside her mar riage with Morse can back-step and over rule Its former decision. That would make her last marriage legal and thus relieve her of wrong doing, but We sus- pect that she will be unable to sleep soundIy for some time, and will live in continual dread Of some new .complica. tion that will leave her at sea again sha bs antitlad to sympathy