Coeur d'Alene evening press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1907-1929, 1908-12-24
or DIVORCES
One For Every Twelve Marriages
IN the United States.
ANNUAL RATE 5000 NOW,

Mere Than Twice as Common - Forty
NsaFs Age, csns1s Bureau Reports.
Divorces Now Iasrsasins Three
Timss a. Fast as Population.
That divorce h two and one-half
times a. common IN the United States
an It was forty years ago and that one
marriage In twelve nowadays ends in
divoEce are conclusions reached By Of
Acials Of the census hnreau at Wash
ingtOn in a new compilation Of stats
tics Of marriage and divorce covering
the twenty years from 1887 to 1906, i'm
elusive.
A previous Investigation covering
the twenty year period from 1867 70
! 1886. inclusive, had been carried out
by the department Of labor. and Mr..
Carroll ID. Wright, who was then com
missioner OF labor, has been associ-
ated with the present inquiry as an
expert special agent Of the census bu-
reau.
In the twenty year period covered by
the latter investigation there have
been 1880. 044 marriages recorded. In
the same time there have been 945, 1923
divorces. For the previous twenty
years there had been reported 32a116
divorces, little more than a third Of
the number for the second twenty
year period When the first investiga-
ton was Instituted. forty years ago.
divorces occurred at the rate Of 10000
year. Now the annual rate il 66.000.
This increase. however. ID to be con-
sldered in connection with increase in
population.
The report adduces statistics to
show that divorces are now Increasing
4 about three times as fast as popula-
ton, while during the decade 1870
1880 they increased only about two
and two-thirds as fast The divorce
rate for each 100000 Of population In
creased from twenty-nine In 1870 to
eIghty-two In 1905. In the former year
there was one divorce for every 3.441
persons and In the latter year one for
every 1,21S.
But q more significant divorce rate
Is that which Is based not upon totai
population. but upon married popula-
ton. The rate for each 100000 mar
ried population was 81 In the year 1850
and 200 in the year 1900.
Geographically Illinois leads In total
divorces granted for the last twenty
year period, with 5000. and Ohio n
second, with 63,9s2. other states being
close up.
New York's list Of divorces for the
twenty years ended and inclusive OF
1905 was 20,126, whereas for the pre-
vious twenty years 1t had been Is,
855. The rate In 1900 was twenty
three for each 100000 population. II
1850 Il was sixteen.
pennsylvanias total for the las
twenty years was 39.6s6 and that o.
Massachusetts, 22,940. The highes
rate In the eastern states Is that d
Maine, 1T for each 100000 popula
ton.
Wives obtain two-thirds Of the di
yOrces. Desertion constitutes $50 PEI
cent Of the grounds for all divorces
and neglect to provide, unfaithfulness
cruelty and drunkenness are Othe
EEOuuOS. five uifOECts hEe kIanAG'
the wife for cruelty to one for tn
husband. Alimony was asked by tire
wives out Of sixteen and obtained b.
two out OF sixteen.
An odd feature Of the report is tina
the proportion Of husbands who aske'
for alimony was % per cent and tina
4 2 per cent obtained It, In Utah 81.
4 husbands obtained divorces for non
L support.
Y The fifth year Of married life seem
: to have been the most dangerous an
: most likely to bring the matrimonia
r ship upon the rocks. From the frs
| to the flfth year the ratio increases
o but after the fifth year there Is les
a tendency to separation. although tn
! number Of divorces does not fall b.
. low that Of the first year.
n The average duration OF marriage
terminated by divorce il about te
- years. Sixty per cent. or three-fifthi