1 MAY 1920, Page 2

When the House of Lords considered the Matrimonial Cameo Bill

in Committee on Tuesday, attempts were made to reduce the number of grounds on which divorce might be granted. The House insisted on "incurable insanity" as a ground for divorce by 77 votes to 37. It also insisted on "incurable drunkenness" by 75 votes to 42. But Lord Cave induced the House to omit the proposal that "imprisonment under a commuted death- sentence" should be legally regarded as a reason for granting a divorce to the husband or wife of the convict. The clause permitting the defendant in a suit for judicial separation to claim a divorce, whether the plaintiff agrees or not, was retained by 52 votes to 45, but it may be modified at the Report stage. The House of Lords is evidently resolved to pass the Bill.