Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-29
SPEAKING OF DIVORCE

BY ZOE BECKLEY

right given to woman to put the man
| away A man could have as many
wives or women as he pleased, but no
redress was allowed to the woman.
1t is reasonable to assume Christ
never intended to impose the con-
! dltlon of SerVitude upon women or
hold them irrevocably to a marriage
that was cruel and inhumane. The
| exception He made as to- a husband
divorcing his wife for unfathfulness
would undoubtedly be broadened, il
we could get at His true meaning,
to permit the wife to free herself for
causes of brutality, blood diseases.
depraved habits. degeneracy. insanity
and the use of alcohol and narcotics
in excess.
Knowing Christ's character. whcr
| ever His expressions are susceptible
of more than one Interpretation, the
one which conforms with happiness
peace and usefulness is the one to
take.
THE effect is the same whether
called annulment or divorce, as in.
stanced recently in the case of a
certain family socially prominent on
two continents where. after 90 years
of married life and the birth of two
children, the church sanctioned in
effect the divorce obtained by the wife
when it approved the divorce and re-
marriage of the parties under the
term annulment'
| Everywhere is seen tendency to-
ward freedom and normality. WON
an has been emancipated by law and
| common consent and she has now
equal chances with men to seek and
obtain happiness and useful service
on this EARTH
Miss Pugh, being a good lawyer
as well as good feminist. sees ways
in which the mixed and clouded mar
riage laws of the various States can
be cleared up, Strengthened out and
adjusted for smoother working.
! I'VE ought to have learned by now
she says, that prohibiting certain
things by law does not do away with
| them. Yet we must have law and
order, and the better the law, the
more order.
Our State laws are not all good
and so they make for disorder. South
Carolina, next neighbor to my native
State, permits no divorce for any
cause. Nevada, California. New
Jersey and several other States per
init it for a vast number of causes.
New York has had one cause, which
consequently forces people to break
the law.
| lCSS laws COIlIuSIDIl anu III
justice. To say they cannot be rem
edied because OF difficulties is to beg
the question. Great progress has been
made by conferences by the bars of
different States to bring about CON
formity in the statutes in relation to
business.
THE same plan can be made effec-
tive for unified divorce laws by the
joint convention of delegates from
each State who shall come to similar
agreement. The same exactions and
exemptions could be demanded and
the same penalties imposed fer infrac.
ton.
This might take time, but the
achievement would be so beneficial to
generations to come that it is a goal
well worth the effort to reach.
THE same result might be obtained
| by amendments to the Constitution
of the United States. The only OBJ.
lection to this Is that it takes out of
the hands Of the States and places In
the hands of the Federal authorities
solutions which are an invasion of
States rights. AS present sentiment is
toward decentralizinS rather than
adding to Federal governing. This
method is probably not as good as
conforming to State Legislation by mu-
tual agreement after conferences.
/ Mosaic laws, no doubt, applied
wholesomely." says she, ito the con-
ditions of those times. But we are
now 1000 years from that age, and
conditions of life and environment are
SO entirely different that marital laws,
as well as other laws, should change
with conditions.
1.-THE happier people are, the more
useful they are, l don't care what
people say to the contrary. Give
us right ways of being happy, make
laws that uplift instead of de-
grade. educate instead Of enslave. and
regard the body as the temple of the
soul rather than as something to
| ignore or mortify-and Wen all DE
happier, and therefore better and
more useful so long as we inhabit this
| imperfect world