Love free or die
Time to check into the Motel New Hampshire
AFTER 223 years New Hampshire is about to make adultery legal. A law in 1791 called for convicted adulterers to be paraded on the gallows for an hour and then “publicly whipped not exceeding 39 stripes” before being sent to prison and fined £100 (probably more than a year’s wages in those days).
The penalty has grown milder since then. Adulterers now face a $1,200 fine, which is not enforced. New Hampshire’s state House of Representatives voted to repeal the law in February; the state Senate is expected to follow soon. Not everyone is happy. A letter to the Concord Monitor huffed that adultery was “repugnant” and should remain a crime.
This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline "Love free or die"
From the April 19th 2014 edition
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