OCR Text |
Show EASY DIVORCES. This community may feel thankful that the Utah divorce business of a few years ago which brought the territory into such scandalous repute, has been stopped. We assune that it ia no longer carried on, because the law forbids it, and no complaints are heard nowadays, of the lenee and questionable proceediaga on the par'' of the probate courts. But Lther states and territories need a severe overhauling concerning divorce matters. The easts papera contain tbe usual number of advertisement to provide "legal divorces within thirty days," "scandals avoided," "without publicity," etc.; hence there must be courts and methods where and how the work can be performed. An employC of the New York Wrld was recently instructed to investigate and expose tbe practices of the advertising ad-vertising divorce lawyers. He wae an unmarried man, but presenting himself to ono Munro Adama, stated trut be was married, but wanted to get rid of his wifo. Adams waa ready to take the caee for a retaining fee ol $10, and a further sum of $30 when the divorce wis obtained. Bowes, tbe World reporter, said he had been married two yoara.aud his wife resided inS:, John, New Brunswick. "Incompatibility "Incom-patibility of temper," was to be the ground for separation, and Bjwea pre teudiug r queamishness about swearing swear-ing to the complaint the attorney agreed to arrange about the sworn complaint to be filed. One of tbe reporter's friends ia St. John per eonalcd tbe spurious wife, and from her Adama obtained an admission of service of papera upon a fraudulent statement, and later, in the same deceptive manner, a waiver of all other service of paperB. The first in torview with Adama took place on January 10ib, and on Maroh 12ih, the client received a decrso of divorce from the bonds of matrimony, purporting pur-porting lo have bsen granted by John T. Walworth, judge of the First Judicial circuit of Wisconsin. Thus, an unmarried man, to all appear ances, hai gone through a divorce Euit and obtained a decree. If ho had been actually married, and thus unmarried the record and proceedings would have permitted hia second marriage. In point of fact no one had appeared in person on either side. The affidavits were forged by the attorney, the summonses were not served, and the returns to them were fraudulent; and yet tbe proceedings pro-ceedings were complete and duly authenticated from the beginning of tbe case to the handiog over ol the decree. It may be that tbe decree itself was a forgery, though it is believed be-lieved to be genuine. An attorney would hardly dare go ao far aj to sign the judge's name to the paper, which1 act wuu'd probably lead him into the penitentiary. Nor is there occasion : for euch forgery. Aa there are lawyers so unscrupulous as to undertake buch: case?, m are there judges to devoid ot personal and judicial honor and! rectitude, aa to become a parly to the disgraceful proceedings. Tuo extent to wiiicb the business is carried on can to estimated when it is considered thtt iu every one of tbe targe- cities there s re a score or more attorneys who ntin a livelihood thereby. Ibe World remarks in its comments com-ments oo the reporter's developments, th;;l "the erne makes it frightfully cltiu that the methods which this lawyer in ibis c;ie successfully pursued pur-sued can bj pursued euccea; fully in any o'-htr caje, and there can be little doubt that many part kg are now really iu the position in which oar reporter re-porter was uisurued by his unscrupulous unscrupu-lous attorney lo be. Jt is even probable that wo shall be able- to produce, at no distant date, the stiris oi persons who! have b.'en practically deluded or defrauded de-frauded by the methods now exposed." i No one can tell the domestic misery! thai is caused by such practices, as few wnmen are disposed to parade their bc-ii t sufferings Leforo the world; but there ia encugh of unhappiueer , occasioned by these disreputable divorce sharps to nnko them worthy of soci-1 ootracietu, if net tbe peni- . lontiary. |