lowance may be
diminished or suspended, it makes no corresponding provision for
increase of the allowance if the husband's means increase; nor,
apparently, does it permit of an allowance in addition to, but only in
substitution for, a settlement. The act makes no provision for allowance
to a guilty wife, and it certainly is a serious defect that the power to
grant an allowance does not extend to cases of nullity. In 1868 an
appeal to the House of Lords was given in cases of decree for
dissolution or nullity of marriage.

The great changes effected by the Judicature Acts included the court for
divorce and matrimonial causes. Under their operation a division of the
high court of justice was constituted, under the designation of the
probate division and admiralty division, to which was assigned that
class of legal administration governed mainly by the principles and
practice of the canon and civil law. The division consists of a
president, and a justice of the high court, with registrars
representing each branch of the jurisdiction. Appeals lie to the court
of appeal, and thence to the House of Lords.

In 1884 the legislature interfered to prevent imprisonment being the
result of disobedience to an order for restitution of conjugal rights.
That mode of enforcing the order of the court was abolished, and the
matter was left to a proper adjustment of the pecuniary relations of the
husband and wife; and a respondent disobeying such an order was held to
be guilty of desertion without reasonable cause, such desertion having
further given to it a similar effect to that assigned to desertion for
two years or upwards. The effect of this provision has been that the
suit for restitution of conjugal rights is most frequently brought for
the purpose of shortening the time within which a wife can obtain a
decree for dissolution of marriage.

Proceedings in the divorce court have shown the improvement in the law
of evidence which has been effected with regard to other legal
proceedings. The act of 1857 made an inroad on the former law, which
prohibited evidence being given by parties interested in the
proceedings, by allowing a petitioner (sec. 43) to be called and
examined by order of the court, absolving such petitioner, however, from
the necessity of answering any question tending to show that he or she
had been guilty of adultery. In the next year power was given to the
court to dismiss any person, with whom a party to the suit w