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that particular law, archaic as it is, is practically non-operating, because the courts have given in a contest between father and mother the mother equal guardianship rights, or superior guardianship rights. But most States have wiped it out by a State law. It used to be that the male was the head of the family and he had the control of the property of his wife, of the earnings of his minor children, of all family decisions. He selected the domicile. In case of separation of the parent $she had full guardianship rights. There was no such thing as custody of the children by the mother. Even in States like Louisiana, South Carolina and Georgia, which were very backward in these matters, those laws have been practically wiped out by court decisions.

Nevertheless, this group of fanatics have been at it for years, and still are at it, (1954). It has been handled by compromises and then the compromise never gets through. It never will get through probably, but at that time it was a hot question. The women in the Democratic Party were very disturbed about it. They had a big hearing on it. The platform committee was very distracted by the division in the ranks of the Democratic women, Emma Guffey Miller being very vociferous for her view, and I, and others with me, being