ry legislation than in this. The marriage contract should be
recognized in our laws as one which cannot be made and broken so lightly
as it now is. It should be annulled only for the most serious offenses.
The contrary course now pursued so frequently is most detrimental to
morals. Our divorce laws virtually offer a premium for unchastity.

Not infrequently we see among the advertisements in the newspapers
notices like the following: "The undersigned is prepared to furnish
divorces to parties desiring the same at moderate rates, in short time,
and without publicity. ---- ----."

The animus of these advertisements is fraud. The parties so engaged
are the vilest scoundrels; and that they are allowed to continue to
ply their nefarious vocation is a foul blot upon the enlightened
civilization of a so-called Christian country. A publisher who will
insert such a notice in his journal, would advertise a brothel if he
dared. While there is so much interest in the suppression of obscene
literature, we would suggest that the proper authorities should direct
their attention to the suppression of unlawful divorces, and the proper
punishment of the villains engaged in forwarding this nefarious
business.

Who May not Marry.--Many writers devote much space in laying down rules
which are to be implicitly followed by those seeking life partners.
We have attempted nothing of the sort, both from its impracticability,
and from the fact that such rules are never followed; and if the attempt
should be made to follow the prescribed rules, we are not sure that
more good than harm would be the result. Hence, we shall content
ourselves with calling attention to a few facts of great importance
respecting the conditions which imperatively forbid marriage, and
which cannot be violated without the certain entailment of great
suffering.

_1. Persons suffering with serious disease of a character communicable
to others by contagion or by hereditary transmission._

Many people wonder why it is that diseases are so much more numerous
and varied in modern times than in the earlier ages of the race. There
has been an evident increase within a few centuries. While there are,
undoubtedly, numerous influencing causes, one which cannot be
overlooked is the hereditary transmission of disease, which preserves
those disorders which already exist, and adds new ones which originate
from new exciting causes. By this means, the human race is undoubtedly
being w