The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-01-07
Prince of Tonight
WHISPERING TO BROKEN FAMILIES
nN JAMEs r. nEAToN

Exclusive service. The Survey Press
 bureau1
 Is there little row in a family in ! your neighborhood? It would be, of
 course mpolitic to ask if there is tiny rift in your own married flute The ali-
 sWer In New York, Chicago and Wash | ington is not a trip to Reno but a trip
 To the domestic relations court, even
 though the time for arbitration seems
 long past
 The New York domestic relations court which was established 15 months ago taken it's place as an accepted permanent | institution of tho metropolis of the Elm
 hire state This tribunal performs an im-
 portant work which in scope differs some what even from that of the similar courts in Chicago and Washington. In New York there are two of these courts of conciliation. one for the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx and one. in Brooklyn.
 The domestic relations court is pri- marily a poor mans court The judges
 are chosen for their tact, patience and
 understanding of the fraities of men and women They try to settle every ease | that comes before them without recourse l to formal legal action.
 But. perhaps. it should be said that f the domestic relations court is the poor | WDmanS fflD0nHl lOf dluipal siiNfftA" 'ii'
 compliments are women or the agents | of charitable societies interested in de- | serted or otherwise wronged women and | children This is because men are not | usually financially dependent upon their | wives and even if deserted they are sel- | dom exposed to such hardships as wom- | en- Then too, the court cannot grant divorces. It simply smooths over diff 1 entities. punishes abandoning husbands
 and advises seperaton if that seems to l be for the best In such cases 1t de- | cides how much the man must give week 1 ly for his wife and children | When d woman comes to this court
 the judge listens to her story ana II l the whole matter. is not trivial and
 he believes that there is need for off l cial action on his part he issues summons which requests the husband | to be present on a certain day If he will not come willinglY warrant is i made out for his arrest. Al the trial | the woman is put on the witness stand | and after being sworn tells or her ! grievances without interruption. Then | the magistrate questions her kindly To ] bring out all the pertinent facts if the | corporation counsel s not there 10 take 1 her part The defendant also Is ques- tioned in the same way.
 If the case is fragrant the man may | be sentenced to the workhouse for six months Many women urge this pen- 1 alty for their husbands but sending a | man to prison in New York does not | furnish his wife anc children with ! bread, hutter and money for an im- patient landlord. For this reason many social workers urge that the state pay
 a prisoner for the work he does and
 that then tie money due him be given
 to his family.
 More often the court decrees that
 a man earning 80 or SIC a week must
 give $3.50 or $f for the benefit of his
 family. The husband is paroled either 1 to one of the probation officers of | the court or to the department Of char
 ities, through which the sum which tho 1 judge orders is to be given to the fam fly is paid
 The judges waste no time. are not commonly deceived by plays for sym-
 pathy and often phrase their decisions in fatherly kind of blowing up" that lis usually without effort. Occasionally a judge forgets himself a little. An lundersized defendant came in who earn Led SS q week and wouldn't pay any lthing to support his children, although llhe had signed an agreement extracted | by a charitable society to do so. Asked | if he could not live on S. week and I give $3 10 his children he shrugged his shoulders. apparently uuinterested I in the question. The judge gave piece | of his mind" to that father, saying Get out of here and pay that money tregularly or 1 will tend 10 you. You've got 10 support your children-youve 1 simply got to, and I'll see that you do. too" Whereupon the defendant lost his nonchalant attitude and departed inn
 pressed with the fact that the court ! was in earnest.
 Many of the cases brought by Jewish ! women are hard to handle, for often the
 --~~~~-~~~~O~~-~-~- | than any other actor on the American stage. Birmingham theatregoers will | remember his appearance at the La | Sale theatre, Chicago, in the original production of .srhe Royal Chef" where l the play ran for almost two years. Mr
 Lewis comes to the Bijou shortly in a new musical play entitled Don't Lie l to Your Wife" The exact date win be i announced later.
 1 Ward and Vokes will soon have a ! hearing in Birmingham in their great 1 est hit, a new musical comedy by the authors who have made these famous ! fellows a household word all over the | English speaking world. Coming with | them Is Lucy Daily and all the old fa- vorltes, including chorus of typical 1 Ward and Vokes comediennes.
 
 An carly attraction at the Bijou is the Charles Klein play of intense in lterest, The Third Degree" with the original Henry E. Harris cast and pro- s1n ion