Show rrose IN re a decision yesterday in a suit stilt for tor divorce in the third district C court durt in this city hishon or judge phillip JL E emerson stated that ho he had in tented to give his decision in writing but buthe he had devoted so much time to examining the question and authorities and had d been beel so closely engaged in his other judicial j duties that he lie had concluded to deliver a verbal decision he said the complainant filed her bill in that court and appeared by counsel to obtain a decree of divorce from the bonds of matrimony and obtained an order of or court for the defend defendant ant to s show how cause why alimony tito lito should not be allowed her in answer the defendant by counsel insisted that that court had no original jurisdiction in ix divorce cases when the cause or causes for which divorce was sought were statutory an act of tile the territorial terri legisla ture burein in 1852 entitled an act in in relation to bills bilm of divorce besides other provisions gave to the probate court of the county wherein the plaintiff resided jurisdiction ya in all case cases 4 of divorce and allmon alimony IV and declared foi for what causes decrees of divorce might be granted it was claimed for the complainant that the provision giving div ing probate courts jurisdiction in that class of cases was null and in of the organic act that the tile remaining rema i n in sections were valid but fa failed to create or appoint a tribunal for enforcement that therefore the jurisdiction devolved upon gome some of the tribunals of the coun that the equity side of the district court was the appio printe tribunal in the united states judgment in divorce cases was statutory it had been that chancery courts in virtue of thoin their inherent equity powers voiad had j jurisdiction to declara declare marriages null nuli for fraud mistake or mental incapacity that was as far as cases had ever over been carried there was a distinction between declaring marriages null ab inirio initio and decreeing divorces because of reasons held sufficient that matter was vas statutory the territorial legislature had created no judicial tribunal but had bad given to one already created the probate court jurisdiction in divorce cases patterning after the english eai pai li ament colonial and state legislatures had granted divorces but the practice had been modified as some of such emes cases were found foun to need judicial investigation in nearly all the states in this country the legislatures were constitutionally prohibited from granting divorces the legislature could prescribe the buffi sufficient clent grounds for granting gran tinga a divorce bo so far as the court officially knew the complainant sought divorce upon statutory grounds solely the tile statute had declared on what grounds divorce should bo be granted and had committed the trial of those cases to a tribunal most intimately connected wih with the domestic relations of or the people his honor lionor refe referred to the ne new W divorce court of england the researches which his honor had made in connection with the subject and the mature deliberation i and study which ho he had bad dev devoted doted to it compelled him to tho the conclusion that the third judicial district court had no original jurisdiction in divorce cases and the question on 0 of f alimony depended upon the application tor for divorce in consider considering hig the case his honor had carefully endeavored to separate it from its extraneous surroundings in 9 s and he had bad full fuli confide confidence nce nee in the correctness of his opinions A judge of probate should be well versed in the jaw law as the probate court had so much to do with the domestic relations |