WIFE DESERTION.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 48, 22 March 1909, Page 2

WIFE DESERTION.

A DIFFICULT SOCIAL QUESTION. ■DEPUTATION TO THE HON. DR. FINDLAY. Dunedin, Friday. Members of the Otago Benortilenl frustees met the Hon. Dr. Findlay (Minister for .Justice) at the Grand Hotel this monihig. and propounded In him a scheme to strike confusion anil [car into the callous heart of the wifedeserter. Mr. Sidey. M.P.. who introduced tlK' deputation.' said that the practice of husbands deserting their wives and families and escaping prosecution by going to Australia and elsewhere was becoming increasingly frequent. The trustees had thoroughly discussed the matter, and had decided to ask the

Minister to trv to arrange a reciprocal scheme between Australia and New Zealand whereby the practice might he checked and the expense of dealing with tlie deserter* lessened. The Minister said that not doubt the deputation appreciated the fact that the subject under discussion touched one or the most difficult social questions confronti-.ig unv Government or Minister. The enforcement of the domestic duties of a husband to his family was a difficultv in treating which very often mo n . harm Ulan good was done. The speaker had appealed to the Minister of Justice some years ago to bring back a husband. Til this case the police hail refused to tro to the expense of Bending -, mm over to identifv the husband and I orin'" 'him hack. The Minister pointed nut "that in quit'' a number of eases where special exception had been made and the State had borne the expense of

briii"iug back a deserter the wife was the "chief agent in having him released from custoilv. On account of this the police had advised that State money should not be squandered in that way. "Naturallv that sort of action on the part of'the wife would still continue, for human nature had not changed. The question was whether wifc-descr--1 firm should not be considered as a grave ' crime. The law was very jealous of 1 the rh'hts of property, and should it not ' ,ho equallv jealous ot the rights nf the 3 woman in one of her great social functions' Of course, thev must know that

t was impossible to legislate to give .fitcncv to laws outside their own connLvv ' Men were brought back from jllipr countries by an Imperial statute. [(« inferred, however, that the deputation suggested some mutual arrangement, between New Zealand and Australia whereby a deserter fronwme. plaee might be punished Vn'Tlie State to. which, lie had escaped. Tie agreed with the suggestion that as far as possible they should follow sons and dau"hters,'who, having means, deserted thei" awd parents, and he had no doubt that there was already sufficient machinery in the Act to admit of its being done. As for the request that the surplus of a prisoner's work over the *nsl of his lteep should be paid to his family he could answer that for the present ■with the statement that in no prison to New Zealand did the value ot the prisoners work exceed th■• cost of his keep. In Auckland, where the net cost of a prisoner was lowest. Ills keep exceeded his work by ClO a year, and in sonic prisons the excess was £3O.