The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1911-07-25
TIMES BUREAU,
AT STATE CAPITAL.

Indianapolis. Ind, July 25.-Scarcely
a day passes in Indiana without word
being received from some county in
the state that some marriage license
clerk has issued a marriage license
without the marriage law having been
complied with by the applicants for the
license In fact the practice of ignor-
ing the marriage laws has become so
prevalent as to cause comment and
anxiety on the part of officials whose
duty 1t is to see to the observance of
the law. 1t frequently happens tina. 4
license is issued when the woman in
the case is not a resident of the county
in which the application for the license
is made. This is a violation of the
marriage laws of the state. County
clerks seem TO have little knowledge
of what the law requires. In one
county, for instance, the clerk said II
was the custom to Issue a license
whenever the woman lived in the state
He knew nothing about any require
ment that the woman must live in the
, county In Marion county the clerk
says he issues licenses even when the
woman comes from some other state
He said his predecessor told him ii wa
all right for him to do so. but he did
not know what the law said about It.
There have been many cases where
the couple has eloped from one county
to another in Indiana obtained mar
riage licenses and have been married.
Frequently 1t happens that the girl is
under age and not entitled to a ma :
rage license without the conset of
parent or guardian. but littre a,,.-
| is paid by clerks or their deputies to
! this feature of the law.
| The Indiana marriage law requires
that verified statement be filed with
the clerk giving full information in
Iregard to the applicants for the license
and without this statement no license
can legally be issued, though they are
issued just the same
! Few persons seem to understand
fully the marriage laws of Indiana and
the legal process which must be fol-
lowed in obtaining a marriage license
It may be that this lack of knowledge
is responsible for some of the evasions
and violations of the law, but since
Ignorance of the law does not excuse a
person from punishment for it's viola
tion such plea could not be accepted
from any one In any manner connected
with the Illegal issuance of maria &c
i license.
The statutes governing marriage:
are contained in section 90 of Burns
revised statutes of 1908. running from
section 1857 to $3.50 The first section
defines marriage and fixes the mini
mum age limits of marriageable per-
sons. 1t says:
/ Marriage is declared to be a civil
contract into which males of the ags
of eighteen and fenals of the age O,
sixteen not nearer Of kin than seconc
cousins. and not having a husband o.
wife living, are capable of entering
Section 1852 is the one which re
qEires the license to be issued in the
county in which the female resides i
reads as follows:
Before any person, except members
of the Society of Friends, shall be join
ed in marriage, they shall produce
license from the clerk of the circus
court of the county in which the fe
male resides. directed to any person
empowered by law to solemnize mar
riages. and authorizing him to join to