Page:Every Woman's Encyclopedia Volume 1.djvu/573

 A marriage when either party is restrained by force or error is invalid, and a marriage may be rendered void on the ground of fraud, but no deception concerning the fortune, condition in Hfe, or personal qualities of the parties will invalidate the marriage. The Marriage of Fiction As alread}^ pointed out, consent is neces- sary, therefore a marriage cannot be con- tracted in error. This destroys one of the favourite situations in fiction where the I heroine, to escape a marriage which is j obnoxious to her, gets some friend to imper- I sonate her at the altar. The bridegroom, generally represented as a person of ob- jectionable character who is tied to the wrong person for life, by way of punishment for his misdeeds, would have little difficulty in having such a marriage annulled. Restraint of Marriage A condition imposing a general restraint of marriage is void, and so also is a con- dition amounting to a probable prohibition. If, therefore, a legacy is left to a daughter on condition that she remains unmarried, the condition would be set aside and she would receive her legacy free from all restrictions. In a case where a legacy >vas left to a girl conditional on her not marrying a man with an estate less than ;^500 a year, it was held that the condition practically deprived her of any chance of getting married, and the court refused to enforce it. But restraint is allowable if it does not import an absolute injunction to celibacy. Therefore conditions prohibiting people from marrying under a certain age, or marrying a certain person, or altering their religion, or marrying below their station in life are valid. Where a marriage is prohibited without the consent of a trustee, such consent must not be corruptly or unreasonably withheld, and iif the marriage appears to be a proper one it will be allowed to take place. A restraint imposed on a second marriage is good ; a man can make the enjoyment of his fortune by his widow conditional On her not marry- ing again. Marriage Brolcerage A marriage brokerage contract is a con- tract to bring about the marriage of certain parties, in the event of which one of the parties to the marriage brokerage contract is to receive some pecuniary recompense by way of commission or reward. Such con- I tracts have always been regarded with dis- favour and are not enforceable at law. CO T] ° m r Valuable Consideration Marriage is regarded in law as a valuable consideration sufficient to support a promise. Therefore if a man promises before marriage to leave certain property by will to his wife and then attempts to dispose of it in another manner, that is a distinct breach of contract. In a case where an old gentleman when writ- hing to congratulate his nephew on his intended narriage, promised to pay him an annual 549 LAW allowance until his nephew's practice at the Bar reached a certain figure, it was held that his letter amounted to a request that his nephew should marry the lady and afforded good consideration for his promise. Wife Acting Under Coercion A wife cannot be convicted of any larceny, burglary, forgery, or for uttering forged notes or base coin if the offence is com- mitted in the presence of her husband, as she is presumed to have acted under his coercion and is held excused. But the presumption may be rebutted by showing that in fact she was not acting under coercion. In treason, murder, homicide, perjury, and in misdemeanours generally the presence and coercion of her husband will not excuse her. On a charge against husband and wife for stealing, the wife may be found guilty as well as the husband, if the evidence shows that she was not acting under his control. On a charge of receiving stolen goods jointly with her husband it must be made clear whethei she received the property from her husband, or if not, whether she received it in his absence. Future Separation A contract for the future separation of a married couple cannot be enforced because it is illegal and void, such a state of things ought not to be in contemplation and may give inducements to the parties not to per- form duties in the fulfilment of which society has an interest. But a contract providing for the separation of husband and wife is valid if made in prospect of an immediate separation. If, after the separation deed has been executed, the separation does not take place, the deed becomes worthless. It is usual in a separation deed to insert a duni casta clause, but it is not absolutely necessary that it should be inserted, and when not inserted will not be implied. Wife Prosecuting Husband Once the wife of a comic singer attempted to prosecute her husband for libel because he had inserted an advertisement in the " Daily Telegraph " suggesting that she was not his wife but his mistress ; the summons was refused, and it was held that the Married Women's Property Acts do not enable a married woman to take criminal proceedings against her husband for libel. Breacli of Promise of Marriage There appears to be little room for doubt that previous to the Reformation a solemn promise between competent parties to marry each other, either then and there or at some future time, when followed by cohabitation, constituted a valid marriage, and that in cases where connubial relations did not follow on the promise, the agreement was sufficient to render a subsequent marriage by either party to another person voidable. To be continited.