In 1893 there was much legislation concerning the powers of the mother over the children, and the liability of the husband to support both wife and children under penalty as for the crime of desertion.  This legislation has now become pretty general throughout the country; that is, it is made a criminal offence for a man to desert his wife or children, or, being able, to fail to support them.  One State declared the husband and wife joint guardians of the children.  In 1894 one State prohibited marriage between first cousins, and one between uncle and niece.  One declared that marriage removed nonage.  One made it a misdemeanor for a married man to make an offer of marriage.  The laws for support of wife and children continue, and there were laws passed giving alimony to the wife, even in case the divorce were for her fault.  One State made both husband and wife competent witnesses against each other in either civil or criminal cases.  One found it necessary to declare that a woman might practise medicine, and another that she might be a guardian; the statute in both cases would seem to have been unnecessary.  Two States provided that she might not serve liquor in saloons or restaurants, the statute already referred to.  Louisiana adopted the intelligent statute, already mentioned, permitting the right of suffrage to women in cases of votes on loans or taxes by cities, counties, or towns; and Utah first enacted the much-mooted statute that female school-teachers should be paid like wages as males for the same services.  It would be most interesting to hear how this statute, which was passed in 1896, turned out to work.[1] One State provided that women might be masters in chancery, and another carried out the idea of equality by enacting that women should no longer be excepted in the laws against tramps and vagrants.  Constitutional amendments proposing women’s suffrage were defeated this year (1895) in no less than nine States.  Connecticut passed a law that no man or woman should marry who was epileptic or imbecile, if the wife be under forty-five, and another State for the first time awards divorce to the husband for cruelty or indignities suffered at the hands of the wife, while another State still repeals altogether its law permitting divorces for cruelty or intoxication.  One other makes insanity a cause of divorce.  One other, non-support.  Two or three adopt the notion of joint guardianship of children.

[Footnote 1:  A State official informs me that the law is evaded, see above, p. 212.]

In 1897 one State prohibits the remarriage of divorced parties during the life of the innocent plaintiff; the Uniformity of Law Commissioners came to the conclusion that any limitation upon remarriage was unwise and led both to immorality and to wrong against innocent third persons.  Divorces should either not be granted at all, or be granted absolutely.  This is the better opinion; though, of course, it does not apply to mere orders of separation.  Much confusion