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Show Carrie Nation, the woman with the hatchet, has been with us in the flesh at last. There seems to be method in her madness, judging by the way she fathered in the coin in return for sou-i sou-i venir hatchets. Her style of reform has I? done nothing beyond filling her own purse. She has gained unenviable notoriety no-toriety at the expense of her own do-j do-j mestic happiness, her husband having I recently divorced her for deserting him. Sensible girls do not often get their names in the daly papers in connection connec-tion with their personal affairs, but it has happened to one young lady whose good sense cannot be too highly praised. A telegraph story in the daily papers says two young men fought to a finish to settle which one i should pay attention to the lady, but ! she cut both from the list of her ac quaintances as soon as she heard the story. That girl is worth fighting for because she will not allow it. The Salt Lake Telegram recently printed a table of statistics showing that this city has the highest per cent of divorces to marriages in the Union, the proportion being one divorce to six marriages. This appalling demonstration demonstra-tion of the rottenness of society is enough to make any one shudder. Ill considered unions between immature boys and girls seem to be the prime cause of this public scandal. Such as these marry without a thought of the morrow, merely to gratify a passing fancy, knowing only too well that the law will set them free whenever they tire of the nuptial bond. The law should throw around those contemplating contem-plating matrimony Borne such safeguards safe-guards against hasty action as the Catholic church, in her wisdom, imposes im-poses upon her children. The figures prove the necessity thereof, to say nothing of the notorious laxity of morals existing In our midst which makes Salt Lake a byword throughout the length and breadth of the land. ' Through lack of funds it is probable the public schools of Salt Lake City will be closed about the 1st of May. Some one has blundered, that such a condition of affairs should exist in this wealthy community. It means the !loss, not of two, but of several months to every child. The seriousness of this may be measured by considering what it would mean to a working man to lose six months of his time; and, in the end, this is what it v.l cost every pupil who has to work for his living after his education is completed. The glaring injustice so inflicted upon the children of the poor will be further emphasized if the schools are I kept open for the benefit of those who can pay private tuition fees to the teachers, as is proposed by some. It is not claimed that this should not be done. Those who can afford it have the right to give their children all possible advantages, and would be neglecting their duties if they allowed them to go without schooling because the public schools are to be closed. Still the handicap under which the poor struggle is heavy enough without with-out the extra burden imposed by such municipal mismanagnient. Mrs. Barbara Niederkorn of Idaho Falls writes an interesting and instructive instruc-tive letter to The Intermountain Catholic Cath-olic on the great good and many blessings bless-ings that may be done and obtained through Catholic fraternal organizations. organiza-tions. As expressed by our correspondent, correspond-ent, "Tbfcy are the protection of the j """" widow and orphan, help the sick and needy, and unite members In one bond, social and religious." For Catholics, she insists on the necessity of Catholic organization, in as much as they possess, pos-sess, in addition to temporal advantages, advan-tages, many spiritual advantages also. She relates her own experience In visiting visit-ing sick members, and tells how she was instrumental in obtaining for dying members all the consolations of the church. Mrs. Niederkorn is deeply interested in-terested in establishing branches of the women's Catholic Order of Foresters in all the western states. She was a charter member of the first branch organized or-ganized in Chicago twelve years ago. Like the mustard seed, it had a small beginning fourteen Catholic women. Today it has a membership of 46,000, and is incorporated in the state of Illinois, Illi-nois, and had the approval of the late Archbishop Feehan. She traces the workings of the society since its inception, incep-tion, and shows how it has been instrumental instru-mental in acting the part of the "Good Samaritan." "The object of the Catholic Cath-olic Foresters," 6he writes, "is to promote pro-mote Friendship, Unity and true Christian Chris-tian Charity among its members: friendship, by assisting each other by honorable and laudable means; unity, by associating together to mutually assist as-sist in case of sickness; and true Christian Chris-tian charity by doing, to. another what we would have others do unto us." The aim and object of the society are praiseworthy, praise-worthy, the zeal of our correspondent is commendable. |