THE LEGAL POSITION OF MARRIED WOMEN. 651 



on divorce the support of the children is still a mutual burden, and 

 custody of the children is decreed to either parent on discretion of 

 the Court. 



We come now to our last division, viz., practical considerations 

 arising from the study of these facts of history, and of present con- 

 dition. 



I have tried to give the more important laws as they stand upon 

 the statute-books. They mark an enormous increase of personal 

 power in the married woman's condition during the last thirty years. 

 But probably her actual legal position is more restricted still than 

 these statutes would indicate. The average man wishes to do justice, 

 as fast as he can see it. So the legislator responds to petitions to 

 change laws deemed offensive. But the lawyer, accustomed to be 

 guided by precedent, and fearful that decisions under the law of his 

 State may be overruled by an appeal to a higher court, is shy of 

 taking full advantage of a new statute. Thus it comes about that a 

 woman must not place full reliance upon the " acts and resolves " of 

 the General Assembly of her State. She must find out what is the 

 actual practice among lawyers and judges. For instance, in Massa- 

 chusetts, the law declares that woman owns her own property, and may 

 manage it free from all interference ; yet so many troublesome con- 

 ditions are to be complied with, and in important cases there are so 

 many possible risks from technical barriers, that many women still 

 find it to their advantage to empower some man-friend with a trus- 

 tee's external rights, that she may really control her own, through 

 him in his capacity of agent. For instance, again, in California, 

 where the " common property " of husband and wife is wholly under 

 his control, and although her estate is called " separate," and she is 

 declared to be legally protected in its control, the profits of both 

 her and his separate estate are called " common property," and he 

 has full disposal of them, unless by special arrangement otherwise. 

 These, and many other instances, prove that the legal powers 

 conferred on married women are often so executed and interpreted as 

 to fall far short of their apparent scope. The first thing, therefore, 

 for every married woman to do is to find out the statutes of her 

 own State respecting her position, and then learn the actual prac- 

 tical bearing of the laws in any point that touches her. It may be 

 that some movement for national legislation on the legal position of 

 married women will be fovmd necessary. Certainly, it ought not to 

 be possible for men and women to assume the solemn obligation of 

 marriage in one State, under one set of legal conditions, and one or 

 the other party to the contract throw off those obligations in another 

 State, under another set of legal conditions. There should be some 

 uniformity of law, as to marriage contract and its dissolution by 

 divorce, in the different States. Another practical consideration is 

 this : women must be prepared to assume personal responsibilities as 



