The Washington times., 1922-08-13
Sir Hall Caine Says Divorce
Necessity Of Our Modern Life


But In that case the civil law
(which had never done anything for
her) would probably have arrested
and Imprisoned her for bigamy and
sent her motherless children to the
workhouse.
The most powerful argument, not
only for divorce but for an extension
of the grounds OF II. was provided by
Charlotte Bronte, In Jane Eyre"
In that great but Illogical novel the
principal male character is seen
dragging behind him throughout life
the living carcass of violent and
incurably mad woman. ~
Rochester had never loved his wife
and he had been tricked into marry.
ing her, but when. after years OF sc.
cret suffering with his partner" he
tried to marry another woman who
would have brought happiness into
his life, he was stopped by the law
which said: ''The marriage cannot
go on; Mr.. Rochester has a wife now
living"
r.. Divorce Is Necessary.
The argument cuts even deeper
than that. When Jane Eyre, plying
the man In his unnatural position
and aflame with love for him, wished
TO throw herself into his arms, In
spite of II all, the ~subconscious Puri
tan in her author the daughter OF
the Yorkshire clergyman, compelled
her to fly away from him and not TO
return until his mad wife was dead
and, buried. o..
Why? Because Rochester had
gone through a ceremony Of mar.
riage with another woman, and II,
under the ban Of the law, she had
taken up conjugal relations with
him while his mad wife still lived,
she would have been cut off from
society as a woman who had forfeited
the respect OF her sex. and her
church would have excommunicated
her., ~ Er
Then what is the present position
of the world I'm relation to divorce!
The majority of Instructed persons
IN all the forward countries are salts
fled that divorce is necessary. For
years have resisted this conclusion,
but I can do 80 no longer.
As a sequel to novels dealing with
the problems of marriage I have had
hundreds, perhaps thousands, OF
letters from women In all countries
obviously sincere and Infinitely pitt.
full, describing the hard lot Of some
who have been long years deserted
and left to the mercy Of the world,
without any legal right to seek
refuge In happier unions. and the
still harder lot of others who have
had TO cling TO their unfaithful
drunken, and brutal husbands for the
sake Of their homes and children.
have had letters from men, toe
ffor II Is Gar from my experience
that in the hardships Of the marriage
laws women are the only suffercrs)
describing the ruin Of their lives BY
marriages with unworthy women
who dragged them down. down
down. until they have utterly de
stroyed them.
Charges Against Churches.
Even II Christ's words mean what
the churches say. II would be Q
terrible edict. which, under any reli
gious principles, however exalted
would doom large part Of the
human family to an existence that
is little better than life-in-death.
The civil law does not do so. By
a sinister irony It only reduces tc
that hard fate the people who are
too poor, too patient or too religious
to escape from II. For those wht
are rich or restless or irreligious II
provides in some countries a relief
which in its promiscuity narrowly
borders on prostitution.
In q cosmopolitan health resort ir
the middle of Europe IL has more
than once occurred to me to be pre-
sented by the q same American
woman to three different husband.
In ten years. the others being still
alive.
The numbers Of persons seekins
divorce are large and constantly in
creasing, but the plain truth Is that
the majority OF so-calfed divorces
are merely the breaking of bar
gains which have no right to bt
called marriages at all, though
they have been registered by Law
and solme nized by religion.
Many supposed marriages begin
to end badly because they are made
In violation of natural law.
~ Every marriage for the sake oi
money begins to end badly.
Every marriage for the sake OF
rank begins to end badly.
When a woman marries for q
home her marriage begins to. end
badly.
Even when a rich man marries
a poor woman to remedy a wrons
he has done her his marriage gen
orally begins to end badly.
, Keep Courts Busy.
These, are the marriages which
keep the divorce courts busy.
In the majority Of cases the de,
crees dissolving them are not divorces
in any moral sense. but merely the
cancellation OF legal and ecclesiasti.
cal licenses to live in temporary con.
cubinage.
Here lies half the evil of modern
marriage. The law and the church
which claim to make marriages, take
next to no care that they should be
good ones.
Per sons desiring to marry have
only, to satisfy the State or the
Church that their minor regulations
as citizens have been observed on
their duty to their faith as Catholics
or Protestants discharged. and the
State or the Church Is ready to mar
ry them as fast as they come along
With the much more important