 Under this category, the prime function of the SPCA between 1880 and 1900 was the provision of marriage counseling and legal aid for estranged couples and harassed spouses, usually at the instigation of the wife.In 1906 the Nova Scotia Department of Social Services took over the actual care of helpless persons.However, for the next 25 years, the Society continued to be empowered to care for Nova Scotia's citizens