San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1926-04-11
By RUPERT HUGHES

1--WE million dollars a year is the
4 income tax the city of Chicae
imposes on such of its husbands a.
do not live with their wives.
To many of them the liberty Il
cheap at any price. but, on the other
hand, it seems hardly fair for a won
an to be allowed TO collect larg:
salary for not living with a man who
docs not want to live with her.
There is some reason for paying ali
mony to a wife who goes on enduring
an unwilling husband. She earns her
salary. But he is mulcted doubly. He
has to pay her a high price for misery
when the same sum would purchase
him no end Of fun outside the Jail.
Five million dollars in alimony is
paid to the free women of Chicago.
What is more, the city is going to
collect it for them. Not long ago in
New York if a man did not want t.
pay alimony, all be had to do was II
go to Ludlow Street Jail and take
six months rest from household aud
office cares at the city's expense.
When he came out, the debt was paid.
CITY TO AID.
But Chicago will have none Of that.
Her judges not only mulct the male
citizens five million dollars year,
but are organizing = bureau to collect
it and disburse il. The county is to
be asked to appropriate enough money
to pay the expenses of the bureau SO
that Its services may be free.
The next thing for these chivalric
judges to do is to Organize q day nur-
sery 10 take care Of the children for
the abandoned wives. Other modern
Improvements will make divorce so
comfortable that no family will dream
OF being without one.
But already the wife who takes ali.
mony Is becoming obsolete. Sh. must
eventually join the dodo and that
other relic Of the past, the woman
who sues man for breach Of promise
and is usually awarded , fortune
in lump sum.
The courts are filled with cases Of
women who claim that men won Their
affections and then cast them adrift,
leaving an ache that can only be as
suaged by an amount of cash equal
10 most Of the mans life savings.
This form Of damages is known as
heart balm or simply balm"
EXPENSIVE FEELINGS.
The other days paper blooms with
these head lines: "Girl Sues Rich
Clothier for 100000" He broke his
promise to wed her. He bought the
ring and changed his mind, and she
puts the damages to her feelings at
500, 600.
She must have expensive feelings.
IL she would only capitalize them she
would be worth a billion dollars
year.
IL the man had run over her, brok-
en- all her bones and crippled her for
life she might have received $4,000.
But he bruised her pride and she
must bankrupt him, for what? For
spite? Impossible! For example 70
other rash men who whisper sweet
nothings? Undoubtedly.
The plain implication Is that be
was the only man Oh earth who would
marry her and that when he failed to
DO his duty, be condemned her 10
life Of helpless eelibacy, DESTROYED her
aarning capacity forever and made il
impossible for any other man to mar.
~ her. Therefore, since she is
woman and marriage is her only Ca
reer, the man who bligbted her fu-
-Hre, must support her. II she puts
that money out on first mortgages
'he can get $1,000 a year for life. And
be loses that amount, the blighter!
SHAMELESS WOMEN.
The sbamelessness Of some Of the
women Is 50 appalling that they would
be locked up for highway robbery if
hey could not appeal to a jury. And,
Is everybody knows, a jury in the
presence Of a woman is almost abso-
utely imbecile, reduced 70 q duodeci-