though some wives extract the
sweets of revenge from doing just this. Few courts of domestic relations
are without some wives as regular patrons who pursue their husbands not
for gain but for sport. For the most part, however, the wives of such
men are philosophical. "I only wash for meself now," said one of them.

These men, and the unreclaimed deserters, doubtless make up a large part
of the floating population of homeless men in our large cities. How
large a part it is impossible to say, for they are likely to give
assumed names and deny the possession of families. Mrs. Solenberger[43]
has noted, however, that if they are asked, not "Are you married?" but a
less direct question such as "Where is your wife now?" a story of
unfortunate married life will often be elicited. Until we have some
better method of inter-city registration of homeless men, many of these
who otherwise might be identified and in suitable cases brought back,
will continue to slip through our fingers.

With non-support in an incipient stage,[44] it is sometimes possible to
deal so suddenly and effectively that the man is shocked into a better
realization of his responsibilities.

A young Irish rigger, with a capable wife and two pretty babies,
lost his job after a quarrel with his boss rigger. He was a genial,
popular chap, always "the life of the party" in his circle; and his
companions encouraged him to feel that he was a much injured man.
They also helped him to fill his enforced leisure with too much
beer. When the family received a dispossess notice the wife's
patience was at an end, and acting on the advice of a society
engaged in family case work, she put the furniture in storage and
went to a shelter where she could leave her children in the daytime,
while she was at work, and have them with her at night. The man was
told to shift for himself until he could get together sufficient
money to re-establish the home. The arrangement continued for nearly
two months, during which the man lived in lodging houses, had an
attack of stomach trouble, and was altogether thoroughly miserable.
Every night he waited for a word with his wife on a corner that she
had to pass in coming from work. Finally, when it seemed to the
social worker and to the wife that his lesson had gone far enough,
the home was re-established, with only a small amount of help from
the society. During the