Omaha daily bee., 1908-07-05
FAMED NORCUE OF ROMANCE
Life in the Clearing House Of Matri.
monial Mishts.
NoUx FALLS DIVORCE INDUSTRY
IhAdy Business Conducted without
Unnecessary Publicity and Moral
sObs smothered By
the Coin.

The chief clearing house Of matrimonial
romances gone wrong IL Sioux Falls, the
granite rooted town in the land Of the
Dakotas, where the mismated gather from
many quarters Of the land. Divorces are
not now granted while you wait" recent
laws requiring sufficient residence so that
hotel keepers and lawyers get fairly we'll
acquainted with the plaintiffs and size up
them up as a business asset. How the
industry thrives and what 1t thrives on
is sketched by J. w. Foley. a Dakota
newspaper man. in the New York Times.
Some Of his statement are instructive If
not e%difying. A few are appended;
A great many families prefer to send
the washing out to doing It at home.
II spares us the steam and smell about
the house. 30 a great many unhappily
married couples. learning that the Da-
kotas had set up d washery for soiled
linen. preferred to send their linen over
for cleansing and airing. II spared
them unpleasant notoriety at home.
The ninety-day divorce law brought
in transient matrimonial misfits, first
by the dozens, then by the scores, and
then by the hundreds. The business
grew because the system gave perfect
satisfaction to customers. Ninety days
was barely more than an outing, and
the cost of 1t could be made to FIT the
purse. 1t was almost as cheap to get a
divorce as to remain married. There
were rumors of wealthy applicants and
big fees, easily earned.
An attorney Of the old ninety-day period.
who had obtained a decree for a wealthy
woman. was called upon at the end Of the
case to fix his fee. He turned his face
away, as II in study, tapped upon his desk
with his fingers, wrinkled up mis- forehead
as II recalling the quantity and difficulty of
his labors, and suggested $4,000. He said
afterward that his heart beat wildly and
came up in his throat. So magnificent a
sum seemed impossible Of gaining in one
case. He expected fully his client would
grew pale and sick at the infamous sug-
gestioin OF a $4,000 fee. She drew her check
for the sum as though she were paying
the WEEKLY milk bill. To her it was a
trif1e, NO more than a months income.
All kinds of business shares in the
financial profits Of the system. The num-
Der Cf colonists in Sioux Falls reaches as
high as 400 or SEQ a year. Their average
expenditures are more than $1,000. Various
estimates are placed upon the total annual
eApenditures-from $3O0o00 to $4,000. The
fotel keeper sells rooms, hot and cold
water, baths, table d'hote, and such otheg
things as are kept in stock. The hotel hat
sells various liquors, including liberal
quantities of champagne for high rollers"
The lady with the boarding house sells hall
bedrooms, prunes. advice, and eminent
responsibility of association at dinner. The
attorney sells typewriter documents, lore,
loquence, and legal services. The dry
goods merchants sells quantities of mer-
'handise. For the divorce col~onists-those
( the wealthier class - are prone to dress
Htravagantly. stylishly. and stunningly.
md tho women of Sioux Falls, they say.
ire better gowned than those Of their
listers Of other smaller towns IN the west.
or the reason that Divorces bring out the
'eIy newest in styles and fabrics. and the
initiative capabilities Of women are proven
,al
The local garages and automobile liveries
Irott from this transient business. One
- ;arage at Sioux Falls numbered at one
line seven customers Of the divorce col
ony whose monthly bills averaged each
more than $3.50 for livery and repairs. Local
>,abmen are alive TO the opportunities, and
get n s. fare where the real resident Is
transported for a quarter. What cabman,
summing himself on his box at 81 an hous,
which is the sum cheerfully paid by the
divorcee Of the richer class, does not see
the merits of the system?
They are what are known as good
spenders' these wealthy persons who seek
freedom from unhappy alliances. They
pay the best prices for lodging, for accom-
modations OF all kinds, for cab hire. for
whatever is desired. Some of them may
be q bit noisy o. nights, but this is ex-
cused from the readiness with which they
draw checks. Money in hand is a great
sedative.
When a few wealthy members Of the col.
ony took charge of the bar at a local
earavansary one night, discharged the bar
lenders, constituted themselves an enter
tainment committee. and served all sorts
OF liquors TO all sorts Of corners without
price, they footed the bill to the house"
without complaint or inquiry. 1t was only
one OF many little nights out. the desire
of ennui for real Entertainment. and money
was plentiful, The time must be passed
somehow for six months, What's the use?
All sorts and conditions OF men and
women have been numbered at one time