The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-11-16
ENGLAND BREAKS
DIVORCE RECORDS
Many Excuses Given for the
Alarming Increase Shown
in Divorce Courts
By CRossLEY DAVIES


| London, September 24-(Special)
| Divorce is growing rapidly in England.
And side by side with it there is an
alarming increase in bigamy cases.
For the coming session of the law
courts in London there is a record
number of divorce cases down for hear
ing. Even during the war the divorce
courts were kept busy. Since the
| ,armistice they have been worked hard
| Ter than ever.
Bfgamy which a London stipendiary
has aptly described as the poor mans
form of divorce" is also alarmingly
frequent.
1t is, of course. easy to explain this
winters record on the ground of hasty
war weddings, repented of in the leis-
ure-of the first peace year. 1t is easy,
say, but it is not a satisfactory ex
PLANTATION. 1t might account for the
heavy number of cases now. 1t does
not account for the regular and steady
growth of the work of the divorce
court
Admittedly, a large number of mar
riages were contracted during the fever
of war, which would not bear the strain
of the wear and tear of ordinary daily
life Thousands of young women, eager
to show their admiration for the boys
who enlisted, eager to give what they
could a a token of their APPRECIATION
or cars Many instances could be quoted
of marriages which succeeded an ac-
quaintanceship of only few days. The
weddings were often followed by
the bridegroom's departure for
France. In other cases the
bridegroom came home from France
an special leave to be married More
often than not these war alliances were
mere ceremonies legal union without
the reality. The bride left the church
to return home again Her groom left
the church to face death across the
channel These partings at the church
door became too common feature of
war life in England. The result was
that the couples did not know each
other, and had never had the chance
of finding out by living together, the
little corners that only mutual love and
liberation can rub off. Now that the
war is over these bridegrooms- have
come back to their wives, the wives
they hardly know. Here the housing
problem steps in. The wife had been
living with her parents. With no
houses to be got the husband when
he returned had to live with his wife's
parents too. That made the trying time
OF settling down much harder for both
When to that is added the extra trial
OF learning to know each other in the
new relationship, it is not matter
Tor wonder that many failed. That is
one cause of the present high divorce
rate.
There are others connected with the
same war problem. In most cases the |
husbands and wives knew at least ,
something of each other before marry !
ing Not by any means in all Nor /
was real affection always the motive of |
marriage Quite lot of young officers |
were married for their social status or |
wiz wv ci1
A third cause, certainly the least i'm
portant, is the discovery by many |
wives-and husbands-of undesirable |
facts about their partners. That such |
Inquiries should have been made before |
( marrying, and not after, does not af-
feet the point
These hasty wa weddings have led to !
many applications for dissolution or to !
bigamy.
Another war evil which is a factor In |
the divorce records. is the unhappy fact |
that some wives while their husbands |
were away, proved unfaithful On the |
other hand some husbands temporarily I
separated from their wives owing to mill /
tary duties, rendered themselves liable |
to divorce proceedings
Yet these unfortunate seuuels to TIE /
war do not account for the present dis !
turbing situation. Divorce was steadily |
growing before the war. 1t grew during /
the war It is increasing today 1t cannot !
be said that it is because divorce has |
been made easy in England On the con-
trary, it is difficult I'd get a dissolution I
of marriage. There is the case for ex-
ample, of a well known member of Par I
lament, who after many years of mar
ried life, complied with the requirements
of the law to provide his wife with suf-
ffcent evidence to obtain a decree in an
undefended suit. Cruelty or neglect or
long separation or incompatibility of tenn
permanent are not enough. There must be
proved infidelity. 1nfdelity is held TO be
proved husband registers at MOTEL +
with a woman not his wife and stays
the night. The member of Parliament |
refer 10 did this, but later published in
the press letter in which he explained
that, to meet the laws requirements, he
had registered, but that no infidelity had
been committed.
1t looks as If new morality is rapidly
gaining ground. There is pow erful body
in England, the Divorce Law Reform
union, which demands a revision of the
conditions for divorce The revision would
make t possible to get marriage dis
solved without proof of infidelity. The
changed view of marriage and divorce is
partly due. in my opinion, to the eman-
cipation of woman. Women ask
right the freedom to live their own lives.
They are no longer their husbands prop
erty. Marriage, they urge, is only sacred
as long love la1ts. When love goes
the marriage becomes mockery. Many
women's lives have teen spoiled, they say,
by their being obliged to continue living
with husbands they have learned to
loathe. Why shou.t they be condemned
to lifelong unhappiness? Why SHOULD not
men and women be able TO amend their
Ynistakes7 Where, they ask is the sane
tity of a loveless marriage? 1t is point
of view which claims, and gets wide pub
lie support. 1t explains more than any
other sinfle fact, the present divorce
sScord.
Copyright, 1872 \