In 1928, B.C. led the country in divorces.
With a total of 567 between 1926 and 1928 it was far ahead of most other provinces; Ontario had the second-most over the same period with 508.
As a way to address the issue, the Metchosin Farmers' Institute (MFI) took action by recreating an English tradition: awarding couples who happily married couples a whole flitch of bacon (flitch being a term for a side of bacon). The contest is still held in Dunmow; it happened in 2024 and another is scheduled for 2028.
The contest was open to married couples in Victoria, Vancouver and beyond, according to archived newspapers.
"On May 18 (the MFI) will stage the first public domestic and fidelity trials ever held In Canada for husbands and wives," reads an article from May 15, 1928 in the Victoria Daily Times.
To prove their worthiness for bacon, the couples couldn't just say they were happy, they had to be judged by six bachelors and six spinsters (or maidens, depending on the article) and—in public—prove that they hadn't had a fight for "a year and a day."
Three couples ending up submitting their names and themselves: the Frudds, the Browns and the Fullaloves.
Yes, the Fullaloves, from Sayward, competed to prove they were a happily married couple.
The event went down on May 18, with a specially cured flitch of bacon just for the event ready and hanging for everyone to see. A dance was also planned.
According to a recap article issued in the next day's paper, evidence was brought forth and the court spent two hours discussing the three couples' relationships, with each couple going pair by pair in front of the group.
In the case of the Browns, the husband proudly stated he did the laundry and cooking while his wife had "several business affairs."
"I handle laundry as good as any married man in the hall," he said. "In fact, I took a 10-year course at Sprott-Shaw in laundry work and cooking."
The Frudds also satisfied the jury easily enough, discussing the wife's interest in insects and acting.
The final case was the Fullaloves.
The article doesn't go into too much detail on the Fullaloves' case, but does mention the husband said his wife had a bad temper.
"As a result of this admission, his wife's temper rose in court and the 'happy' couple left the court," reads the article.
In the end the Browns and the Frudds shared the flitch of bacon and "a dance followed."
While the contest was expected to become an annual event, there doesn't appear to be any mention of it happening again in B.C.
