Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-02-06

Divorces cannot now be obtained in
South Dakota by a casual sojOurn
there Of six months. The new law re-
uuires bona nde residence for six
months. The proceedings must be- bee
fore the open court and not BOO
chambers as hefetoforc
The last issue of Law Notes maiu-
ains that this principle OF publicity
o. OF the utmost Importance not
wlthstandIng the tendency of sensa-
tlonal papers to parade before tho
public gaze the most obnoxious de-
tails of such suits. u argues that
while class OF newspapers report
divorce trials. and feature under
prominent headlines the most inn
moral details of the lives OF the par
ties. people are inclined in dis
gust 20 say that such matters ought
not 10 be made public. yet since news
papers are not bound TO give details,
and Ia fact self-respecting and decent
journals do not 1T Is better that the
principle Of publicity should be occasi-
onally abused than that the law should
afford facilities 20 husbands and wives
for quietly exchanging their partners
without their acts and motives being
brought to the open bar Of public
opinion" For the public verdict
though uncnforced by legal compul-
sion. may have most salutary i'm
nuencc. Judges OF large experience
have pronounced unqualihedly IA fa-
vor of publicity
a leading woman lawyer Ia Chi
cago says that she ascrbes the grow
Ing frequency Of divorces I'm recent
years TO two causes: The growing
economic independence of woman and
the relaxation OF religious restric-
tions She says that it is now possible
for a woman TO make her way I'm the
world. asd she is not obliged to sub
NIT to the kind OF domination that was
once her portion THE better educa-
ton OF women also has undoubtedly
played Us part in establishing them
upon a more independent plane and
increasing their freedom Of action"
BE this as e may. IL Is certain that
throughout the whole country tho
rate Of divorce has doubled IN the last
twenty years.
The last census bulletin dealing with
this subject shows that the rate per
100, 600 of the population in 1850 was
IS; in 1900 81 was 70, and since 1900
It S. estimated that while population
has Increased but 1915 per cent
divorces have increased 2e.8 per cent.
Whereas during the first decade Of
tho investigation GS7O 10 $500
divorces increased two and two-thirds
| times as fast as population, now they
are increasing three times as fast.
Analysis Of the returns shows that the
most conservative region Of the coun-
! try. relatively, "a the North Atlantic
section. The most conservative region
/ absolutely is the South Atlantic That
| Is to say while In the latter section
/ the rate per 100000 0f population in
1900 was only 83. as over against the
| North Auautic's 3S, the gain I'm the
South Atlantic from 1850 20 1880 had
been from % 10 33, while in the North
/ Atlantic IL had only been from 2g 90
3s.
The explanation OF the variations
in the different sections is. according
90 the Boston Morning Herald, that
while the South is lust beginning 90
Doe touched by radical influences that
the North has known for some limo,
the northern states have begun 90
feel conservative influences that have
been aroused I'm the north central
the south central and the western
states the increase of divorces durins
the decade tsS0-lS90 was very mark.
ed. from SO 20 l2o per 100000 Of the
| population In the western group