"DELUGE OF DIVORCES."

Mt Benger Mail, 15 April 1914, Page 4

"DELUGE OF DIVORCES."

Sir A. Conaii Doyle, speaking at Bayswater on divorce reform, said there were no less t'i;an 20U.UUU men and women Ln tin gland separaii-!. C'ompukoiy celibacy was not the way to encourage morality. He was toid Ln magistrates xhat the lower classes were rotted through and through by that law. The ingenuity ol man could not possibly have be< n used to indent a more demoralising thing than thoAets ol separation had been. I'hey must remembea' that it \\ us not com] ui&ory to Ikj divorced. He was >ure. that half the opposition to the Deceased Wife's Sifter Bill was owing to the idea that it was compulsorv. (Laughter.) The divorce laws were the shame of the country, liny congratulated themselves that their divoire statistics were not so great as those oi Germany, but il they added their separation .statistics they were worse than Germany. Divorce was not an evil but a cure; a deplorable euro for a deplorable .state of affairs. He had no doubt that if all these suggested reforms camo about there would be a deluge of divorces for some little time, and everyone would hold up their hands. It would be the opening of an ulcer which had got to be opened and after opening it they would see what was below the surface. *