repeat, every husband should carry some life insurance. And the
habit of the bridegroom presenting the bride with a substantial life
insurance policy is a very good one. It is not only a financial
protection to the wife; it is also more or less a guarantee of the
husband's fair health.

=Making a Will.= Another point. Every husband should make a will. This
is a delicate point about which most wives would hesitate to speak to
their husbands, but the husband should attend to the matter himself. A
will doesn't shorten anybody's life, but is very convenient in case of
a sudden taking off. This is, of course, particularly important if
there is some property. If the husband dies without a will, there is
endless trouble and red tape for the wife. An executor has to be
appointed, she has to give bonds, etc., etc. If the husband leaves a
will making his wife sole executrix, without a bond, all trouble is
avoided. I assume, of course, that the husband has perfect confidence
in his wife's wisdom and integrity. If he has not and there are
children, it is just as well to designate some outside executor or
executors. But whichever may be the case, it is a good and sensible
thing always to have a will properly made out and witnessed.

CHAPTER FORTY-NINE

A RATIONAL DIVORCE SYSTEM

A Rational Divorce System--Storms and Squalls--Two Sides of the
Divorce Question--Outside Help and Marital Tangles--A Husband who
was a Paragon of Virtue--The Case of the Sweet Wife--The Proper
Untangling of Domestic Tangles.

Of course, I am in favor of a rational divorce system. The
difficulties, the obstacles, the expense, with which divorce is now
surrounded in most civilized countries is simply disgraceful. Make
marriage harder and divorce easier, has always been my motto. When
life together becomes unbearable then it is better for both husband
and wife to cut the tie and to get divorced. Divorce is preferable to
separation, because both spouses may be able to lead a new and happier
life. Where there are no children to be taken care of a simple
declaration of husband and wife repeated perhaps after a lapse of
three or six months should be quite sufficient for the granting of a
divorce. Where there are children the state should make sure that they
will be properly taken care of before a divorce is granted. Where only
one party demands a divorce the case should be carefully studied by a
commission which should include in its personnel