proved amount to legal cruelty, rests with a male judge who is apt to take a lenient view of a fellow-man's shortcomings.
The right to the control of the children of a marriage belongs to the father alone. He has sole authority over them and can, if he pleases, entirely disregard the wishes of the mother as to the manner of their education and training. The Guardianship of Infants Act, 1886, has increased the rights of mothers by providing that the Court, in making an order as to the custody of an infant and the right of access thereto of either parent, shall have regard to the welfare of the infants, to the conduct of the parents, and to the wishes as well of the mother as of the father.
Formerly a father could, by will, appoint a guardian for his children who had the same absolute control over them as he himself had possessed while living. The mother of the child did not occupy the position of guardian unless she had been expressly appointed by her husband's will. Since the Guardianship of Infants Act, 1886, a mother is in all cases the guardian of her children after the death of their father, and can act jointly with any other guardian whom the father may have appointed. A mother, on the other hand, can only nominate a guardian to act jointly with her husband after her death, and her nomination does not take effect unless the Court confirms it. This the Court does only under exceptional circumstances.
From what appears above, it will be seen that the list of women's disabilities is shorter than of
