THE MORNING OREGOXIAX, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1920 . i V DEEURED SHAME OF SEATTLE Lax State Laws Open Way for Fraud and Perjury. COLLUSION ALSO INDUCED Puget Sound City Outstrips Reno In X umber or Decrees Granted and Moral Collapse. SEATTLE, Wash., Dec. 7. (Spe cial.) Fraud, perjury and collusion ero amazingly large and successful factors in obtaining divorces in Se attle, declared Judge Frater of the King county superior court today. This combination of fraud, perjury nd collusion, coupled with what popularly is known as the easiest divorce law of any state in the union. Is responsible, in the opinion of the veteran Jurist, for the fact that Seat tle has attained the leading position among cities of the land in the matter of marriage annulments. This assertion of pre-eminence is tiased upon the fact that Seattle beat Eeno, for years holding the reputa tion of being the divorce center of the country, by more than two to one for divorces granted in 1920, with 2430 divorces from January 1 to December 1 in King county, as compared with 991 in the Nevada city In the same period. Law Permits Flagrant Fraud. T"raud and perjury are practiced, declared Judge Frater, by maintain ing a local residence only to establish a 12 months' residence as the divorce law provides. Many of them merely rent a room and go about their busi ness elsewhere, returning to their Se attle "home" occasionally to keep up the fraud. Collusion appeared, the Jurist said. In the perfunctory defense offered to actions in divorce, in the failure of contradictory affidavits to appear, and in various other ways which, Judge Frater said, leave the court with only its plain duty to sign the decree- of divorce. The statement of Judqre Frater Tras voked by the official statistics given in a local newspaper yesterday, in which it was shown that 2430 divorces were granted in King county the Jirst 11 months of this year. Children Deprived of Parents. These same statistics, incidentally, liad shown that 1600 children had been deprived of one or both parents; that four of the eight defendants in murder cases now pending here were either divorced or principals in pend ing divorce actions; that the city and county records were filled with cases of kidnapings growing out of divorce; that scores of divorcees had turned "police characters," and that 26 per cent of the delinquents and depend ents arraigned in juvenile court were children of divorced parents. 'Once in a thousand or so cases the courts will .revoke a decree In divorce where fraud, perjury or collusion afterward is established, said a coun ty official today, "but, while the courts may be morally certain that they are being imposed upon by liars, frauds and conspirators, yet they can not prove it, or it is not established tor them." "Blanket" Statute Is Vicious. The ease with which fraud and perjury are perpetrated in respect to establishing the prescribed year's- res idence in the state, and the "blanket" provision of the state's divorce law as the tail-end of the statute, are referred to by county officials as spelling- the enormity of Seattle's di vorce shame. The provision Indicated was written into the state law when it was en acted in 1S93. It is the appendix to eight specific grounds of divorce- and It reads as follows: "... or for any other cause which in the opinion of the court may be just." Residence Easily Established. In Reno where 991 divorces have been granted this year, as against ."0 in Seattle a si3c months' real- HOL IDA Y ' BARGAINS Reductions in every department! Lowered prices that will make your Christmas shopping easy! Avoid the crush of the Department stores shop here in comfort! Men's Silk Neckwear ALL REDUCED! Thousands of Ties from which to choose for gifts, T $1.50 and $2 Ties $2.50 and $4 Ties 95c $1.55 Men's Knitted Silk Ties Regularly $4 and $5 Reduced to $2.95 Shop for Men in a Man's Store ' A, Men's Silk Shirts Regularly $10.00 and 412.00 Men's Silk Shirts, Qn Qf? reduced to DU.7cJ Three for $20 Men's Woven Madras and Silk Stripe Madras Shirts Regularly $5.00 and $6.00 Men's Woven Madras and Q9 A K Silk Stripe Madras Shirts, reduced to OO.ttJ Three for JglO Lounging Robes and House Coats $8 50 House g Q 4Q SEu..-.S 9.40 $15.00 House "I QC Coats "511.I7U Hr.e... si5.oo $30.00 House GfOO KA Coats O.tJU Men's Fine Pajamas $12.50 Silk QQ OK Pajamas O7.0t $10.00 Fiber Silk 07 OP Pajamas D 00 $5.00 Soisette QQ QC Pajamas iDO.OO $4.50 and $5 Flan- C0 K nelette Pajamas.. DO.UtI $3.50 and $4 Flan- CJO A r neleUe Pajamas.. K1A 4 All Men's Fine Mufflers at Re- N duced Prices! BEN SELLING Leading Clothier " MORRISON AT FOURTH Suit Cases and Bags A splendid selection, suitable for Christmas gifts. 315 Bags reduced to. $11.85 $20 Bags reduced to. . . . .$15.85 $25 Bags reduced to w . $19.85 $30 Bags reduced to. . . .t.- .$24.85 $50 Bags reduced to. ,c.; - $39.85 deuce must be sworn to In court by the plaintiff. In Seattle a 12 months' residence must be testified to. "A mere formality that," said Judge Frater, "when one is willing1 to per jure one's self, for they come here from other countries and other states where less 'reasonable' divorce laws exist and establish a nominal resi dence only. ' "Today divorces are being granted here to persons who, under oath, will declare they have been residing with in the state or city 12 months con tinuously; whereas, I am morally cer tain they merely have rented a room, or a house, for the period described, and may not occupy it but a few hours or days of the 12 months." Delphian Literary Society Elects. OREGON NORMAL. SCHOOL Mon mouth, Dec- 7. (Special.1) The elec tion of Delphian Literary society of ficers resulted i-s follows: President, Helen Brande; vice-president. Eun ice Tichenor; secretary, Sarah "Wil liamson; treasurer, Mary Donaldson; sergeant-at-arms, Gladys Lursen; and reporter, Florence Davis. The offi cers will be installed by special exercises. NOTE LEFT, WRITER GONE "Homeless, friendless, Sick," Says Missing Man's Message. ABERDEEN, Wash,, Dec 7. (Spe cial.) "I have committed no crime, but I am homeless, friendless and sick," was the brief note found in Charles Donnell's room at the Hotel Snyder "Wednesday and given to the police. A neatly folded overcoat and a gray slouch hat, identified as Don nell's, were found Sunday morning in a secluded nook on the dock at the foot of H street. Police believe Don nell drowned himself in the Chehalis river. A $450 check made payable to a brother, W. M. Donnell of Madeira, Cal., also was found in Donnell's room. To the check was attached a message presumably addressed to his brother, saying: "This will probably take care of me and leave a little for you." The coat and hat were identi fled as belonging to th-e missing man by fellow lodgers. His age was esti mated at about 65 years. No trace has been found of the body. THOMAS MEIGHAN CONRAD IN QUEST OF HIS YOUTH Columbia Picture Players Vincent Knowles, Director NOW TODAY J r, " . . - ' a X . 4 Ji" ; - -- I ! ; . - V -XU V.- y ; . t'Hi J '- i - 1(1 "-' 1 ; : , . - x - i 11 ,, , ,' , If: APW" ol v -.Trywjgyw- ' ' -j1 111 l I 1 l I l) I ll, nn nil ll ilim rm-rMgm I lliiiniiwini ipni iwim ijh i f 'h'vV s ' kMLw i; CONSTANCE TALMADGE in "Good References" Now Playing A Dtor,CT:ijN jtN.,7:N-voN McnriHiT 1 Coming Dorothy Dalton ..x. Let your Victrola this Christmas be indeed a genuine VICTROLA . . HRISTMAS thoughts and Christ mas giving invariably bring to mind the Victrola. But why, among all talking machines, this particular instrument? Why has this instru ment already been welcomed into more than a million homes? Because a million music lovers consider the Victrola the greatest talking machine ever built! How can one be sure that he is getting a genu ine VICTROLA? By looking for the famous trademark of the Victor Talking Machine Company! What dealer, in merchandise and in experi ence, is best equipped to serve the purchaser of the Victrola and its matchless Victor records? The retailer who specializes in the Victrola and Victor products! Would it be well to search him out how, be fore the Christmas rush? Absolutely! GVictrolas$25to$1500 cArty Vi&or dealer will gladly arrange convenient payment terms VICTROLA ' Y V'- gja Backwoods ' prS NOW PLAYING NORTH . ril mB1-. -M-!ii By James Oliver Ctxrwood Atmospheric Set- I Wltk - sr.Jir.TSS: lonchaney which . m it-' BETTY BLYTHE meLt." actieve- p - LEWIS STONE This is one of a series of advertisements by Sherman. 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