The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1915-04-27
Mississippi News

and divorce in general.
Humber was bachelor when he
married Mrs. Lolita Edison, 3S years OF
age, at Mount Vernon, Ind, following
courtship chiefly by correspondence,
for some months. Mr.. Humber lives
in Coahoma county, Miss. The bliss
of married life seems to have been
short lived, for after the bridal tour
of two months, and the couple reach.
ed the home of Mr.. Humber there was
separation and divorce proceedings
The original bill was fined by the hus-
band, who relied upon the ground in
the statute of habitual cruel and in
human treatment. The wife filed an
: answer to the bill, denying the allega-
tons thereof, and made her answer a
cross bill, in which she asked for di-
vorce on the ground of habitual and
inhuman treatment, praying for ali.
mony and counsel fees, to enable her
to defend the suit, also for permanent
alimony and for general relief In
equity.
The chancellor in Coahoma county
ordered the husband to pay alimony
at the rate of $50 a month, and 800
on her court expense account and $3.50
on account of fees to her solicitors
in the case From this decree an ap-
peal was prosecuted. In his final de-
cree the chancellor refused to dis
solve the bonds of matrimony, as pray
ed for by both husband and wife. By
agreement of counsel for both parties
the appeals to the supreme court were
considered together as one, and Judge
Reed, with Judges Smith and Cook
concurring, declined to disturb the YER
dict of the chancellor.
From the proof introduced by the
husband it appears the "cruel treat
ment' complained of consisted chief
ly in the wife's conduct during the
bridal trip, in which she displayed
temper and dissatisfaction with him
and his provisions for her comfort,
was inconsiderate of his feelings,
abusive to him, and discourteous and
rude to his friends and relatives. Mr..
Humber charged that his wife claimed
he fiirted upon various occasions, re-
fused to wait on him while he was
sick, that she was frequently sullen
and mad. According to Numbers tes-
timony the unhappiness of this bridal
couple reached its climax when they
left the train at the railroad station,
and were about to proceed to his plan
tation home at Paradise, which liter
ally was anything but paradise judg-
ing from the records in this case. The
wife refused to eat or drink, cried, de-
manded money of him and "eVen
threatened his life"
Mrs. Humber denied many of the
claims of her husband. She accounts
for her conduct at the railroad station
where they disembarked to go to the
plantation of the Mississippi farmer by
saying she was nervous, had never
ridden behind a mule before and was
very much disappointed and displeased
because she was going to Paradise in
such rig drawn by such an animal.
In affirming the decree of the chan
cellor declining a divorce Judge Reed
says:
"The proof presents a case where
there has been sad failure after
short trial of a venture in marriage"
He then goes on to say that no facts
adduced showed anything to sustain
a charge of habitual cruelty on the
part of either husband or wife. He
then branches off into a little discus
sion on matrimony and divorce saying:
1T is beyond question that there is
decided incompatibility between the
married paid, but incompatibility is
not a ground for divorce in MISSISSIPPI