DIVORCE FIGURES SOAR

Chronicle (Levin), 9 August 1946, Page 5

DIVORCE FIGURES SOAR

(Spccial Correspondent).

EFFORT TQ AWAKEN FUBLIC CONSCIENCE

Reeeived Thursday, 7 p.m. SYDNEY, August 8. Though many share alarm and distress at the soaring diA oree ligures expressed by Mr. C. E. Martin, Attorney j General for XTew 8011th Wales, few seem j to have been aroused to the extent of j doing sometliing about eombating the [ 'increase. Expressing his determination to I arouse the conseience of the Btate inan approach to matrimonial eoneilia-| tiou, Mr. Martin said that the only' pieee of work in that field done in New South Wales, which nierited considera- : iion, was that earried out by the Fain-j ily Welfare Bureau established in Sydney as an activity'of the Australian1 Comforts Fund. Tlie connection of this with the problems of ex-servicemen is sigiiificant. 1 A leading Sydney lawyer pointed outthat the liling of petitions duriug thej war years had a direet relaiionship toi Ihe movements of the Australian j divisions. Petitious by husbands seek-i ing divorce 011 grounds of adultery and lesertion soon outnumbered tliose by wives and year after year inatters have j stayed in thig unbalanced state. Thisi lawyer predicts tliat this year aml next will lie lioom years for di\ orces because| of the return of prisoners of war of tlie Highth Australian Division. ; Supporting this coiitcutiou he states llial in 1943, by vvhieli time the Divis- ; 1011s which had been serving in the, Middle East had all passed through1 Australia 011 their way to New Cuinea, i divorces skyvocketed. Ilusliands took l lie lead in all States, the total figures 1 of petitions filed beiug 3482 by hus- \ bands and 2955 by wives. Last year in New South Wales aloue 518(1 liuslrands and 22(i3 wives pelitioued 011 various grounds and 641 liusbaiids and only 292 1 wives were granted divorces 011 tlie grounds of adultery. Tliroughout the war officers were j amazed at the numlier of men in their units v ho came to them for advice on niatriinoiiiiil questions or requests l'or ] army legal ai(i. That 'is t lie Army angle only. An ex- 1 amination of State ligures of petitions j lodged indicates that though most fain- 1 ily trouble occurred in war years, there I has been a sfeady increase since the ; tuni of) the century. Immediately after] tlie World War J, the ligures almost j trebled themselves. Now history has re- ; peated itself and they have trebled j again. M r. Martin demands the experimental j adoption of matrimonial conciliation. I11 ' his view it is necessary to endeavour j to ellect conciliation liefore the matter j reached the courts because experience i proves tliat once g legal step is taken, i both parties are often eager to go ! through with it. ■' He is intrigued by the svstem now i operating in New Zealand and inten.ls. to investigate it personally, G possibk-, j but regards it as yet unproved. At : present he is tinding that the most dif- j ficult part of the task is to eonvin*e the public of the serious nature of the posi tion. I11 this he is not. lielped by a section of the press which regards tui situation as excellent material for '•omic" cartoons and humorous artieles.