New-York tribune., 1922-09-10
IJpholding Divorce
1t Makes for Human Happiness, Says
Former Reno Lawyer

IG the Editor OF The Tribune.
Sir. In your issue of the sth inst,
Mr.. Hiram r. Bennett has com
anunieaticn which reads In part:
s.Dr. Grant thinks that divorce
and successive remarriages do not
harm the home. Peghaps he has
not seen, asI have seen and know
only too well, the unfortunate chill
dren who become fotsam and jetsani,
missing the care and love of q
father and mother"
The Rev. DR., Grant Tin an interview
reported in The Tribune of September
~, makes the statement:
Marrow minded ecclesiastics say
that divorce has brought chaos to
the American home. 1t has not"
DR.. Grant is right Divorce, despite
the ever increasing number, has not
brought chaos to the American home,
and never will. On the contrary. the
vast majority of divorces result in
good and make for human happiness.
II was my good fortune to have been
in the practice of the law at Reno
for many years, both befo@ and after
the laws of New York and the people
Of New York made Reno famous, SO
have had considerable opportunity for
studying divorce and it's results. While
we may deplcre the bnneful effect upon
the ehildreK, still a decree of divorce
is nothing more than the. sanction of
the law and the courts for something
the parties have already done for them
selves. They never get into the divorce
courts until the marriage has already
been dissolved, in SO far as living to-
gether is con&erned. and the obliga-
tions of marriage have been hopeless
ly severed.
In the words of Ellen Key: "A
child has often--in moments of great
crisis--blocked the way which led
from the door Of the home. But the
home within that door did not for
that reason become warmer or brighter
for the child"
1t is unquestionably better for the
children that they be brought up in
peace by either parent, rather than in
an atmosphere Of strife and unhappi-
ness with both. But it is the mother,
in the large majority of cases, as it
should be in practically every case,
VINO is given their care and custody
either by private agreement or court
order--so their status remains much
the same. They have the mothers
care, which is the most important.
But DR.. Grants main argument is
that the Episcopal Church should
recognize the laws Of the land and
judgments Of the civil courts, and that
if those permit the remarriage of
divorced persons the Church should do
likewise. The Church has no monopoly
Of the marriage ceremony, and if peo-
pie cannot be married in the Church
they will be married out of it. For
all practical purposes the Church is
heipiess.
However. we must deal with condi-
tions as we fiAd them and bear in mind
that, despite all opposition, the divorce
rate in the United States has increased
from 2s fer each 100000 of population,
20 lc2 for each 100000 in the fifty years
between 1870 and 1920, and there will be
approximately l2s,o00 divorces in 1922,
involving a quarter of a million hus-
bands and wives and thousands upon
thousands Of children. What is to be
done about It? After working on the
problem for some sixteen years I am
as far from solution to-day as was
when I first gave it thought.
OSCAR J. SMITH.
! New York. Sept. Z, 1922