Evening star., 1928-11-04

that the whole structure of homogeneous
marriage, so fundamental in Christian
civilization. is crumbling at its founda-
tons This condition has a distinct
significance, both sociological and re-
ligious, for a great deal of the social
structure rests upon the sanctity Of the
marriage bond, and there are express
biblical commands concerning it.
Naturally the churches are looking
with little favor on the drift and seek
ing means to check its progress. The
Episcopal Church has been concerned
over it for some years. The church
leaders came to the conclusion that any
action must be based on thorough un-
derstanding of the facts as to under
lying causes of divorce. Three years
ago a commission of bishops and promi-
nent laymen was appointed to make
thorough study of the question. This
commission worked hard for three
years, and it reported back to the Cen
eral Convention here the other day that
Il was baffled The only hope the men,
bers of this body saw of solving the
problem was for an intensive study by
cooperating social agencies for 10 years.
financed at approximately $5O.OOO
year. of the whole divorce situation.
ANY ecclesiastical action without thor
ough understanding might prove seri-
Gus mistake. the commission pointed out.
Everybody Has a Theory.
Nov. there are. of course hundreds of
thousands of persons who know exactly
why the divorce rate is increasing and
are ready to tell all about it. Every
Judge, every minister and avery amateur
philosopher has theory OF his own
fheories that range all the way from
failure of the churches to too many
automobiles. The commission took
some of these theories and looked into
them. None of them stands up very
yell under scientific examination.
Some say. for instance, that the
divorce rate is going up because OF the
rapid urbanization of the population.
People are drifting away from the
country with its healthy moral tnf1u-
ences into the great cities with their
rnultitudes of temptations, and with the
close proximity of great numbers OF
both sexes man has more women
to pick from and finds somebody he
likes better than his wife, and vice
versa But, says the commission, the
actual figures do not by any means
indicate that the case is SO much
worse in the city than the country,
because the cities are largely recruited
by people from the rural communities,
end the people who are likely to be
moral standards of the country are the
very ones that are most likely to go
10 cities and recruit the ranks of those
Who are divorced there" In other
words. the divorce bug isn't put into
the heads of men and women after they
move to the city. 1t is there already
end is what forces them to move from
the country.
Another rails against the apartment
house. How can a satisfactory home,
he asks. be built up in one room, kitch- |
enette and bath? True enough, an
swers the Episcopalian commission !
'there are many places where families |
ere huddled into space SO congested |
that it seems we'll nigh impossible to |
develop there the right sort of family |
life. A real home means much more |
freedom for the right sort of family
life which involves development of
sense of personal responsibility for the
welfare of the community. 1t is we'll
that children should have yards in
which they can play. Yet the solu-
ton Of the problem Of divorce is not
to be found in owning ones own home.
In mnay continental countries apart
ment house life has long been general
practice"
Doubtless it is true, the commission
concludes, that there are many more
divorces in the kitchenette- -and-bath
apartments than in the suburban cot
tages, but 1t also Is true that the kind
of people who live in clothes-closet
homes are the sort of people who are
most likely to treat the marriage bond
lightly The apartment isn't to blame.
They are that way before they move in.
Birth Figures Not Conclusive.
Another reforrner declares that lack
@ children is responsible for the
Flounting divorce wave. The birth rate
is declining Statistics indicate that
approximately three couples without
= children seek the divorce courts to
every two couples with children. Cen
eral experience" the commission re-
ports proves that children are often
the tie that keeps the family together.
It is a simple law of life that any
vital object of interest outside of them
selves tends to bind people together.
For husband and wife there can be
no interest so compelling as that of
their own children"
It admits, however. that the figures
are not conclusive. The sort of people
who have large families are the sort
of people constitutionally fitted to stick
together, and the sort of people who
don't have children are not. Lack of
children is the symptom rather than
the disease. Moreover. too many chill
dren frequently results in condition
that is as bad as divorce-desertion
The husband supports his increasing
family until the financial burden be-
comes too heavy for him. Then he
takes the poor mans divorce"-runs
away The harder the civil and ecclesi-
astical laws make divorce, the report
says. the greater is the tendency to de-
esrtion.
The commission did find in a great
many divorce cases history Of flnan-
cial troubles. Despite the old adage
two persons can't live as cheaply as one
and marriage on a moderate salary
makes necessary certain sacrifices which
60 against the grain of modern youth,
It is hard for a girl who has been
earning as much as her husband to give
up the fur coats and theater tickets she
could buy with this money and settle
down contentedlv to live on less than
half as much. Naturally she gets dis
satisfled-and il she hasn't strong
character is likely to rebel against laws
which bind her to this condition. This,
Of course. is comparatively recent de-
velopment. The working girl is a new
figure. 1t Is not many years since the
woman was glad 70 take what she could
get. Marriage was her only way to OBJ
tain meal ticket. and she guarded that
meal ticket jealousy Now she may
either kick over the traces altogether
or nag her husband to the point where
he can endure it no longer. and one day
takes the train out of town, to be seen
no more in his accustomed haunts.
But even here. the commission be-
lieves. it is far from the root Of the
problem. Divorce is prevalent among
couples with no financial troubles what
soever-where the wife who wants a
diamond necklace merely calls the jew
eler on the telephone and pays the bill
out Of her pocket money. In the course