ft
P
he Omaha
A Woman Observer Plan
to Apply the Methods of
Science to America's Great
est Social Problem, and
by Creating a College of
Observation in Nevada V
Notorious Divorce Colony,
Make Its Graduates
Divorce Proof-
By Leslie Curtis,
Former Atioelate Editor of tho R
Gazette, Author of "Reno
Reverie)," Etc.
EVERYBODY haB agreed that di
vorce is ono of tbQ most se
rious problems of modern
America. TUo law bos dealt with It.
society has dealt with It. and tho
church Is perpetually struggling with
IU No ono has yet found any of
fectlvo remedy for tho steady growth
of marital shipwreck. 1 havo at
last found the remody. , , ,
Tho only ti&V progress In, tho
world of Bolonco has been rondo
slnco the microscope waa dlscov
erod. Only Ih'lho fields of chemis
try, -Tilology and physics has tro
mendoun progress boon mado, and
tho reason Is that In these fields
tho mlcroscopu Is available.
Science lins discovered that wo
learn from observation. If wo can
see with tho oye, wo can loarn.
I would apply tile mothoda of
Bdoncii to thd scandal of divorce.
1 would, so to speak, put under the
microscope the wholo wretched,
uilsernblo story of matrimonial mis
ery, iiitd by seelnjf nnd studying
would leurh tho remedy.
My plan Is to' establish a colioge
of observation hero at Reno, whore
the sad panorama of dotnostlo mis
ery and misfits unfolds Itself 'In
every possible phase and color
Every expectant bridegroom and
every prospective bride should be
Riven a Course in my School ol
Applied Domestic Research. 1 nn
certain that a six. months' caurs
of lecturei and dally attendance at
thp divorce courts of Reno would
make my graduates divorce proof
Under present conditions, women
marry more or Iosb blindly, live
blindly, and ofton end up In Rono
or Its fiqulvalent with "nncholor-esi
of- Failure" written afdr orh tmnn
and a past full of knotholes "r- h
diploma. Why not rovurm the im
ual-ordor and place Hetm HtHi"'
Happiness woujd then Mn- hint- in
follow, based on n di-tlnu Uihm
edge of wljut marrlHiii- iniui- mni
what dlvorc-o cost a
1 am perfectly Hcrlmib m my
Idea. The utility of It bus uitvnd
befu tested, beciww. I hi.
noted by Interested luiopli- Muh h
second marrlntfw) oi U- i;nJu
ates" are Invariant) niiivnfiii
This becauHC six nuintha obwita
tlon of riilinix Iiiik taught Iticiii to
cbooso mure carefully AtiO'lie
Instance Ht- tit the fuel that few.
If any. iMUn'cea art- audited by
home pt-opiu. Iloyn and eirlt. mlu
gllns with lite hmnun dlsuptiulnt
mnnlH fruiii thn Katt. learn luvalu
ub'w 'i's.miuh and onier matrimony
with a MjrloiiuiicxH worthy of ma
turity. I bellevo In divorce, but not the .
abuse of It. pud two years In Reno
cs nn olwrver convinced me that
wnniHh uio to blame for tho ma
jority of unhappy marriages. Three
fourths pf Ujq women who go. to
Nevada du mt frtwic divurcin, nl
though they are evidently sincere
In thinking themselves abused. ' Th mnit im
Tbey seek freedom becnuso their inemosiim
idea, of marriage Is fundamentally Doriam cours
wrong. This Is not true In all cases, but be the study
In many.
Everybody knows good women of actual cases
who b'avp suffered agonies as tho
Vlves of drug fiends and drunkards in the court,
and who are oerfectly Justified In
seeking freedom. Men who marry The bride will
for money are also despicable, but
it always takes two to mako u bar
gain, and if girls know bow to
choose intelligently before mar
riage the drunkard, tho drug (lend
and fortune-hunter would bo over
stocked with mittens.
Husbands, in my opinion, aro less
to blame for the prevalence of di
vorco tbaa their vrives. Women
rourry; for any number of reasons,
but ea. usually for lovo, becauso
their tela of choice Is unlimited
and they always pick the ono girl
MU Leslie Curtis, Who, Afer Four Year.; Observation at Keno, Evolved the idea
of Starting v-ullcge of Observation There to Study the Causes of
the Divorce Evil. '
be given a
m i c r o copic
view ef all their
phase.1' ' '
4
Sunday Bee Magazine
Copyright, ltlf, tr
Every day
the Star Company. Great Britain
the prospective brides and bridegrooms would receive lessons in the subtler
divorce. The ever-saddening sight of Reno's divorce mill through the
would stimulate their eagerness to learn." , .
who spemB superior to nil tho rest.0
Almost overy mun desires to bo a
Inodol luiBbnnd when ho does set
tie down with hla Ideal, and jias no
lutontloa;Qtpromotlng discord. Rut
whoni hftj.dlRCovors that his wife's
llluslbns and Ideas aro foreign to
all tho toneta of sune living, he
soon losos interest In thn partner
ship. VJflo goes to Rono, eventu
ally, and hubby pays alimony a)l .
ilio rest of his life.
My school for brides would pre
vent such tragedies. "Forewarned
Is forearmed" In an excellent motto.
With Reno for a" location, Ufa's
lessons could be Illustrated with
living examples,, n.' .far more Im
prosslvo method' than' dry lectures,
or legislative cures.
I would, have .Rono kopt, by an
act of Congress, just as It Is, with
spcll 'iriiv.4lon against nmUlu
It any harder to get a divorce. Tho
Government would maintain' Rono
qB a dlvorcd reserve, paying all
bills Incurred :by those seeking di
vorce, Then t, woqld havo nil the States
passa special set providing funds
for Mm unilnto
nance of my
College of Ob
urvn,tlnu. AH
ihe brides nnd
b r l (t o grooms
would have to
do would be to
PiiV for their
keep nnd a
nominal tuition
hiivsf.
Course Num
ber Ono would
bt to dispel the
il that beau
ty alone will
Ji"!d u hus
band. It Is n
fact that tlirec
fourths of
no's visitors
tiiu really bo
allied benuti
fa, Men rnvi
ovqc tbem. wtk
t h u ir society
nnd b.ot-nuiH
uiudly lufatu
it ted yet they
c n il no t hold
: husband
Right Rcierved.
for any length or time. What Is"
tho reason?
Acquaintance with these daz
zling ladles would soon teach" my
pupils that beauty usually eSrrlo
with It an ovor-devnloped vhnlty
nnd love of admiration, which, In
the close companionship of mar
riage, counteracts the advantage of
comeliness. The pretty womnn I?
sfaccuRtomod to compliments that
she fools neglected If her huabnnd
falls to rave over her beauty every
tlmo he comeB Into, hor presence
No matter how much a man np
proclatCB the, ood looks or nis
wife, ho cannot bp always talking
about It, becauso there are more
vital tblnts to occupy his thoughts
In those days of keen business com
petition. The wise wfn will understand
this seeming Indifference; the un
wise will find joy In attracting 4he
admiration of .othor men.- This,
no matter ho.w harmless at first,
will lend to the divorce court
snonef or later. Rono Is full of
beautiful, vain creatures, whose
greatest Joy In life Is to hear a
masculine voice whispering, "You
are so beautiful!"
After my pupils, had been given
thin general view, export psycholo
gists would take up certain appli
cants for dlvorco In detail nnd dis
sect her character as thoroughly
at n tuibJoct g dissected In a clinic.
Course Numbor Two would be
takon evory aftornoon' at thn Uni
versity of Nevada, for, while my
pupils aro using human models In
finding ''What not to do." they
must also be absorbing, in n prac
tical way, "What to do and how to
do It." In the DomoHtlc Science
class not only do they teach cook
ing bo that It becomes n plensure
rather than drudgery, but also ocon
nmy In buying, measuring nnd util
izing food stuffs with tho least pos
sble waHto, All those things In
spire n young women tho desiro to
uo things right whon they have
homes of their own.
Course Numbor three would con
sist of observation In the cottages
and npartments of divorcees.
Ufn Is unconventional among col
ony members, and we would be- able
to find untidy kitchens and dis
ordered boudoirs with tousled dress
ers and n thousand nnd one cos
motlcs in plain view. Kxpenslve
I In serin thrown carelessly about
Indicates several characteristics of
the owner, especially If laundry de
vastation goes unmnnded nnd loops
of torn lace aro held with pins.
Such Investigations offer unlimited
How Fish Families in Layers
tttt HENtidlMstoroccursatsea,
J and people read that some
' leviathan vessel has gone
down to tho utmost depth of tho
ocea'n. iniaglnutlon is stirred in
wondering what conditions sur
round her.
According to Sir John Murray,
one of vthe greatest authorities on
oceanography, the bottom is a
divert of pltch-blnck darkness,
penetrating cold, and eternal
Mk-ncu. Vorm. a puidlngJ. una
coral polyps sluggishly crawl or
way In the almost currentloss
depths, nnd ouly two xjiecU'S of tisti,
bqth of them finiill. with much head
nnd little body, lmv- been tuiui'l
dcoper than a mile aud a quarter
down.
possibilities. "
Course Number Four Is merely a
Btudy of folly. Occasionally m,y pu
pils Bhould dine nt tho Colony, Cafe
nnd other haunts of tho husbarid
loss ollto. Surrounded by merry
parties of lovely women nnd tholr
admirers, lulled by soductlv'o music
nnd served with cholcost viands,
they could bask In tho atmosphoro
which starts many a pretty travoler
on the rond to Reno. The clnifiour
of white lights In tho great cities
'becomes n mania with some women
nnd makes them forget the homely
thlnga of life that really count.
No doubt my brldqlels rvi
"Drive- men to run away with
their ttenographert and other
who havo a more 'accurate and
lei lofty view of their character."
letB would comment qn tho beauty
of this sccno and see no causn for
consuro or alarm. Later, when
frcquont libations had flushed the
faces of flov, cr-llka women and
loosened tip hilarious tongues, they
would be assigned to join some
party bound for a joy ride.
After a wild ride through the
mountains my pupils would be so
disgusted that they would beg to be
taken home.
The rango of llsheB in the sea is
ns though It were divided lulu
layers, ono above tho otner, and no
flan can live above or below this
layer. Thus many of the deeper
fish three-quarters of a mile be
low the surface havo been found
floating at the top; they had
swallowed a tlsh as large or larger
than themselves and Its buoyancy
bad lifted them out of tho strata
to which thoy- were accustomed.
The physiology of a bottonAflsh
is n I uius ( luiH.-slble to kuuw, be
cause they are built to resist a
a iremendou pressure of wntcr.anl
when this pressure Is released as
whim they are brought to the sur
face in u not sometimes the tlsh
has buret: the or tuns are critsbed
beyond reconstruction
Similarly. If u tlsb of a higher
straiuiii attacks n bottom fish io
Page
phases of marriage arid
window
Course Number Five, nerhaps the
most Important, la a series of morn
ings at tho court, There will be
utudled the workings of tho famous
"dlvorco mill." Here, on tho raw
testhnony of husband and wife, my
piiDils would be ablo to absorb tho
subtler and most corroding horrors
of divorce. Stenographic ivpnrts
would bb f'kon and used later for
analysis by our college psycholo
gist. I would depend more, for
real educational value, however,
upon the actual slpbt of the "mis
mated" onec upon tho stand.
Course dumber Six would bo di
rected Rolely against Jealousy. How
to avoid oven tho appearance of evil
would bo ono part of It. Learning
to discount tho value of gossip, an
other. The suspicious mind Is aK
ways ready to discolor tho mo3t
Innocent action, nnd tho wife who
continually harps on her fears will
drivo a man into JuBt what sho de
plores. Every session of Reno's dl
vorco court la n record of potty
Jealousies, founZ?d on hearsay and
little blocks of nnMnc. Nnculnsr.
largely n fault of women. Is closely
allied but Bhould not he confused
with fault finding. The latter ap
ponrs to belong to the masculine
side.
Last, but not least, would come
Course Seven, dealing entirely with
tho mental conception of marriage.
Many modorn maids marry with tho
idea that tbry are conferring a
great honor on mre man, and ho
Is never allowed tj forget It. Tho
fault here Is In exaggerated ego.
A good woman certainly honors tho
man sho marries, but tho honoring
Is not altogether on her side.' She
has chosen him from a small num
ber of suitors, while he picked her
fro-a an unlimited field. In ab
sence of anything bettor, she ac
cepts his offer and spends tho rest
of her llfo Impressing him with the
fact that sho Is far too good for
him and has done him an honor
which can never bo repaid.
Such a mnrrlage. founded on the
Invlslblo superiority 0f the bride.
Is bound to drive the unappreciated
worm to tho society of his stenog
rapher or some other human crea
ture, whoso estlmato of character is
more accurate and leas lofty.
I havo only briefly outlined the
qlgb lights or tho college I have
In mind, The clan Is perfectly
practicable, and I am euro there
would always be enough applicant
for divorce at Reno to keep tho
students busy.
Why not let science have a trial
at divorce?
Fill Ocean Deeps
the noutral zone whern hnfh ran
live, and as sometimes happens
his teeth become entangled so that
he cannot let go. and he la dragged
Into deeper water, ho strangles
Instantly, for his breathing ar
rangements aro of no use to 'blm
under the pressure of water la
lower strata of the Bea.' As a rulo.
owever, the fish of the various
dopthp rarely feed fin those nbove
or oelow them.
There have beon'brought to light
an astonishing number or forms of
flf i. nnd especially of prawns or a
brilliantly red color, living In tho
owin at a depth or 3.000 reef But.
nh,,,?,"U1l,ns Rs u Ulay ecm. these
orlllluiilly colwvd (tab nnd prnwn.
Instead or being conspicuous la the
water .u ihat depth, tre almost
Invisible, wheu a,Hi . 0wlul
color could be easily seen.