Evening star., 1927-03-30

are united in the civil bonds of matrl'
| mony each year by City Clerk Michaei
J. Cruise and his deputy at the Mu'
nicipal Building in New York City.
If Mr. Cruise had his way, every
pair of them would be followed up "
see If they are acting on the decalogue
~ nractical suggestions he puts into
their hands as soon as the KNOT ID
| tied. Mr.. Cruise wrote them MIN
self-1O don'ts for wives and lo IoI
| husbands. He has had them printed
| in a tiny leafiet called, Guide 10
Hanpv Married Life" and he insists
| If thew were scrupulously lived up 10
there would be no such thing as
| divorce. ho
of course, the good clerk may be
unduly optimistic, but consider Una,
he and Mrs. Cruise have been maTrieo
| 25 years, and never clouo pel"eei
| them!
divorce" he asserts with whang oi
| his substantial hand upon the desk
and the conviction of long experience
and observation in his blue Irish eye:
"I knew all about my wife before J
married her, and you can just beiieVe
she knew all about me-and little
more than I knew myself!
"People say you can't know persons
till Won live with them. All tommy
rot, You can. If they change with
the years and turn into something
! terrible, then the thing. to do is sep
arate and live a bachelor life after
that. That's what I'd do. I'd be jolly
glad to get out and stay out. I'd want
no more experiments. II you take
plenty of time to study your mate
| beforehand you won't go wrong.
"I prevented hundreds of marriages
during the war by demanding cef-
| tificates of birth, work, character, ETC.,
| that took time to get. A lot of things
can happen in two or three days
even "a hours, time--to get the notion
| of marriage out Of their heads when
| it's been put there by a mere dance
hall acquaintance or pickup In the
| street.
"Poor, lonely sailor lads from the
prairies and girls who smiled pretty at
, them would come in here by dozens,
make out their application for a
license and want to get married right
away. I'd talk to them a while, ask
questions, and finally send the boys
to their ships for papers from the
commander or something like that.
Not one in so ever came back for
the license"
Clerk Cruise and his predecessor,
Mr.. Scully, have brought influence to
bear for years in getting amendments
TO the marriage laws which would
| work for the protection OF very young
girls and tend to delay the marriage
ceremony for a. few days after the
license is obtained
forbidding in New York State any
marriage in which the bridegroom is
under 16 and the bride under IA. 1t
seems incredibly juvenile at that, but
| before this law was enacted there was
no age limit whatsoever, so long as the
parents consented. This consent" was
easily got in many cases where it
should not have been given, and faxed
in still more cases.
! Clerk Cruise finds tendency
throughout the country to make the
entrance into marriage less slipshod,
and divorce. in consequence, less prev
alent. BY law passed in 1925, three
States-Connecticut, Michigan and
Vermont-forbid marriage until five
days after the license is issued.
In the State of Oregon both parties
must submit to physical examination
on applying for marriage license,
| and New Jersey, New Hampshire
Louisiana and Vermont make rigid
| inquiry regarding communicable
disease. and question regarding it
Is also Incorporated in the applica-
ton for license in New York State.
In 1925 Iowa made it illegal for
insane or feebleminded persons 10
marry. In New Hampshire marriage
is not allowed il either party has
Joined any religious sect or society
| which processes to regard the relation
Of husband and wife unlawful. Penn
| sylvania since 1925 does not require a
| husband who gets a divorce because
| Of the Wife's ''cruel and barbarous
treatment" to pay her alimony.
There Is no doubt" said Mr..
Cruise, that our divorce laws need
untangling and Strengthening out
But divorce is a bad thing at best and
certainly l don't believe in two people
throwing each other over on account
of such trivial things as incompati-
bility of temper or bad dispositions.
You'd be surprised to know how
many couples I've remarked, after
they had been separated or divorced
for. three or four years. They get to
thinking things over; they see how
out being subject to the control Of the
one who contracts with him."