The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1915-05-29

desire to discuss one of the most
serious problems confronting the
American people-the problem of di
vorce. For many years have given
the deepest thought to this subject
and am firmly convinced that the only
way to cure the evil is by absolute
prohibition of divorce. with the right
to remarry, though there is no objec
tion, in extreme cases, to legal separa
tion from bed and board without per
mission to remarry. 1t was my privi
lege on the 4th of February, 1914, to
introduce in the senate Of the United
States a proposed amendment to the
Constitution, to accomplish this pur
pose, and earnestly hope that may
live to see 1t adopted. Very many
good people are opposed to absolute
prohibition, us they contend that the
Scriptures authorize a dissolution of
the marriage when one of the spouses
is unfaithful, and they urge that for
the cause of adultery alone, divorce
should be permitted with the right of
remarriage to the innocent party
alone. There has been much advocacy
of uniform divorce laws, some insist
ing that there should be a Constitu-
tional provision authorizing congress
to legislate in all matters relating to
marriage and divorce, while others
contend that the proper way is for the
states themselves by some kind of
concerted action to adopt a system of
uniform laws on this very important
subject.
Personally, believe the wisest and
best plan Is to adopt the amendment
/ have proposed, prohibiting absolute
divorce entirely, though granting sep.
aration from bed and board without
the right to remarry.
Perhaps as much as can be expect
ed in this line of legislatures, would
be the enactment in each state of g
law prohibiting. under penalty of .nul
lity, the remarriage of a divorced per
son, unless permitted by the law o
the state where the divorce was
granted.
Such law would prevent great
many divorces, for the desire tc
marry someone else is the moving
cause in most cases. and the more
difficult we can make it for the di
vorcees to marry again, the fewer viii
be the number of marriages dissolved
A striking instance in point that
would have been prevented by such 8
law and one which shocked public
decency throughout the union, was
that Of the New York multimilllonaire
who married again in another state
shortly after his first wife had OBJ
tanned divorce in New York dis
solving their marriage, and forbiddinf
him to marry again, because of hi
unfaithfulness. The best Of this
mans life seemed to have been it,
close on the ill-fated Titanic, whe1
he cheerfully met death in order tha
his new wife and other women nigh
be saved.
Nearly everyone who has given th'
divorce problem the slightest stud,
admits that 1t is one which must b.
solved, and that promptly. In tn
United States divorce is spreading
with alarming raDidity. 1t has per
meated every walk of life, and i
prevalent among every class of pee
pie.
The total number of divorces grant
ed in 1867 was 9.937, or q per 100
900 population. Forty years later, il
1906, there were 72,O62 divorces, o
86 per 100000; thus, in actual nun
bers, there were more than seve
times as mary divorces granted i
1906 as in 1867, or allowing for tn
increased population, divorce has IL
creased 319 per cent. To put it
another way, in 1867 there was on
. divorce for every 1866 people, Will
in 1906 there was one for every 1,16
II divorces multiply at the sam
. rate in the future as in the past-an
, there is every indication that the
will increase faster-then, before til
, middle of this century, we will ha,
; annually in the United States. .275 d
! vorces per 100000 population, or OF
1 divorce for every five marriages.
1887 there was one divorce for evel
; II marriages; in 1906, for every
!. marriages, and at the same rate v
, will have in 1916 the appalling figu
Of / divorce for every marriages.
, Our closest competitors in Eurol
!, are Switzerland, with Al divorces a
nauully per 100000 population; Hi
3 gary, with IS, and France, with 8
E according to the statistics for 19
h and 1911, while Japan has 1922 {
vorces to our sc.
. To make most striking compal
y SON, during 1901 the total number
3 divorces granted in the United Stat
}. was more than twice as great as