Sir, - Mary Maher's statement (The Irish Times, November 2nd) that before "the Married Women's Status Act of 1957, a wife had no real right to own property, sue or be sued, or enter contracts" is most impressively wrong. All these things had been granted by the Married Women's Property Act 1882. Even after that Act though, married women remained privileged in that they were liable only to the extent of their own property, i.e. they could not be made well and truly bankrupt. The 1957 Act opened up this opportunity to them; in fact, it was the main thing it did. - Yours, etc., Patrick Ussher,
Wellington Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.
Mary Maher writes: The 1882 Act granted property rights to those married women who had property in their own names. It was not concerned with the rights of wives as partners in marriage. The 1957 Act was; it established a simplified procedure whereby a wife could have her share of the property held in her husband's name determined. I think the difference is significant.