Daily Arizona silver belt., 1907-03-09
s7 R% FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF GLOBE :=:-s-===
DIVORCE WANTED
 0N QUEER POINT
Phoenix Woman Sues for Divorce Al though She Had not Been Party to Marriage-old Arizona Statute Con tains Interesting Legal Point.

A strange suit for diverce has beer filed in Phoenix, of which the Repub lican says:
 Attorney J. B. Woodward for Pompi De Bernal yesterday filed suit in tn, district court against Amado Bernal praying for the dissolution of the bond, of matrimony between them; for ali mony of $50 per month during pendeney of the suit; for $l00 attorney s fees, foi an order restraining defendant from dis posing of lots Is and l6 in block 23 of Montgomery s addition until the settle ment of the suit and for final order in which the title to that property shall be vested in the plaintiff, who alleges 1t is community property.
 This suit is one of general interest, because of the principles involved and not because of the prominence of the principals. The defendant is ostensibly acting on a theory that he was never married to the plaintiff. The latter makes no allegation of ceremony, but insists that they were man and wife under the provisions of the eommor law, as set forth in the following para. graph in the complaint:
 That prior to August 18th, 1894, she was an unmarried woman of lawful age, her name being Pompa Vasquez, that on or about said date at the in stance and request of defendant, who was then an unmarried man of lawful age, she entered into an agreement with him to thereafter live and cohabit with him in the relation of wife, and plaintiff and defendant did thereafter sustain the relation of husband and wife to each other and to their social acquaint- ances and friends and to the world, in the city of Phoenix, county of Mari copa, and territory of Arizona. That said relation of husband and wife as aforesaid and living together as such continued from on or about the said 18th day of August, 1894, until on or about the 25th day of November, 1906, and they were and ever since have been and now are husband and wife under the provisions of section 13 of Act No. v of the legislative assembly of Ari- zona, approved March l9, 1891, and par agraph 309s of the revised statutes of Arizona, 1901.
 'That on or about the 25th day of November, 1906, defendant without cause deserted plaintiff for a woman by the name of Ramona Magnsini and has since been and is now living with her in adultery in the city of Tucson, county of Pima and territory of 'Ari- zona
 "That no children were born. the is- sue of said marriage as aforesaid. v
 Paragraph 3OOs, referred to above, is an old statute having been in the Ari- zona statutes for the last thirty years. The importance of this suit lies in the fact that it calls attention to this par agraph, which from the statements of attorneys, is constant menace to other Arizonans, whose family relations years ago were rather uneeremonious and who may or may not now be aware that they are still amenable 10 law, some having long since departed from their former irregular methods and complicated matters by regular mar riage with other and innocent parties, when in truth, if the common law holds good, later alliances are technically bigamous. It is not likely that ancient alliances harmoniously settled will be revived for criminal prosecution, but they might be resorted to by those go disposed for violating property titles, or in an effort of the aggrieved to re- cover interests in alleged community property. Paragraph 300S reads as fol lows:
 All persons who at any time hereto. fore have lived together as husband and wife for period of one year or more, and who shall continue to live together for the period of one year from and after the time this chapter takes effect, shall be considered as hay ing been legally married, and the chil dren heretofore or hereafter born of such cohabitations ar edeclared legiti mate '
 In this particular suit the plaintiff claims the property in question was acquired by the joint efforts of hott and for the purpose of their mntua home.