The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1879-08-12 00:00:00

REV 14KWMAN HALLS DIVORCE SUIT.

Thu Divorce Division was on Thursday again oat-nail
with Mo. suit. Mr. Willis concluded his reply on
of Mrs. HAL thus :

" Mr. Hall should rather seek to be saved from the
imjending shame and diagram of swims in his suit He
h described Kr. Hall as he was—kind, alectionath and
tender—but there had been sign, during that case of sad
deterioration of character. At dil years of age, and if
his story area true after if years during which he had
lad able of celibacy, he had thought At to prosecute this
suit. Nothing would prevent him, as be stated, from
proceeding with it; not even the terrible thane and
embitterment which might fall upon tin aged mother.
That consideration. and the other points which he bad
brought before them, should hare made him bring him.
self under control, and not bring that action at inch
terrible expense to his wife. Mr. Hall had said that it he
should die immediately after the conclusion of the mit
he should not regret it; but was there • man among tin jury
who would nth death to surprise him at the close of such
• suit OA that/ Mr. Hall was forgetting what had been
mid by one, not of his own Church, but of tho national
establishment—Tilloteon. "A good men would be loth to
be taken out of the world racking hot front contention,
and not • little out of countenance to and himself in this
temper translated into the calm and peaceful regions of
the hawed, where nothing but perfect charity and good-
will rano foe ever. Ha asked the jury to son Kr. Hall
from that encases which would he fatal to his character,
to bia spiritual indoence. and to his position. He asked
them to spare his client, who had told Kr. Hall year, ago
that his success in rending the marriage-tie would bring
him no light and relieve him from no burden; and he
asked them also to sore that mother, who had bat the
OW child whom the had nursed through years°, difficulty.
If anything should have kept Newman Hall from such •
day as that, it should have been the memory of that man
who, with loving sympathy, gave him his child thirty-six
years ago, and whose saintly life Mr. Hall had said should
ever be his guiding spirit through life. In oonclasion he
begged the Airy to give the facts of the case their careful
nonsideratioa, end, union they were thoroughly con-
vinced of her guilt, to acquit his cheat of the grave charge
•
made against her.
Kr. Lamm QO, on rising to address the jury for the
occ said : The two cases are so mired up to-
gether
:614k Kra Hall is innocent it follows that
my client must be innocent also, and vice versa.
Sat there were ons or two circumstances, the learned
counted said, to which be desired to draw the attention of
the Jury, with ale. to placing before them the theory
which he had formed of the conduct of his client. He did
not disguise the feeling in his own mind that much of the
conduct of Yr. Richardson had been blameable, in bad
taste, and most improper. Bat the &Waimea which
existed between lead new and impropriety and crimin-
ality was very wide indeed. He could not 0011 A MS him-
self that anything beyond indiscretion had ever e.t.a
pia°e between three two persons. A comparison might be
drawn between the conduct of Richardson towards llrs.
Hall and that of Mr. Newman Hall towards the lady
called Mary Wyatt. Mr. Richardson was on terms of the
clown intimacy with Kra : Mr. Hall was on *Nally
intimate terms with Nary Wyatt. Richardaon correspon-
ded with Kra Hall against the will of her husband
while Kr. Hall corresponded in cypher with llarytat
against the will of his wife. Kra Hall kneed Rich
in times of excitement or of unusual occurrarces ; and
11r. Hall kneed Mary Wyatt more frequently, and eo on.
Yet the conduct of Kr. Hall towards limy Wyatt was
said to be innocent, and that of On lady guilty. Mrs. Hall had and she loved Kr. Richardson ;'but he very
much doubted it, Kra. Hell was • lady win in all pro-
bability liked to have someone dangling about her and
constantly attending her. There were many women who
liked to be treated lilts that, and there were also many
men who were content to follow in that way without
making anything in return but kindness. He could under-
stand that there were strong man who, having obtained •
certain Boma, would have &dud for and obtained •
indulgance; but Sichardsx' had been there, and
greater
had the opportunity of seeing that he was not •
strong, sellniesrting man—be was evidently • weak in-
dividual under the indoore of a strong- willed woman,
and probably • women partially diseased in mind. He
followed her about like • lap dog
Sir Henry James then arldrened the jury as the leading
COWLS' for Mr. Newman Hall, and, speaking of his wife,
he and Mn, Hall had condemned herself according to the
judgment of every one who woe fit to judge in this
matter. They found Richardson and the respondent
kissing on every possible occasion—kissing at meeting.
Stasis's at departure, kissing every now and than. Was
that Miss Richardson's notion of what was right and
proper? Kn. Hall might stay during every reasonable
hour of the night in the bedroom at Mthardson's stabile,
without comment or obmrvation. It was true they had
• strange woman to deal with, but wee Frank Richardson
• strange man at all? What was the bond that bound
him to this woman? He said she was "charming and
fascinating." That wasi boa view, and he said he knew she
was in ion with him, and so kneed him. Wise the bond
that bound them the great power of mental dimity which
drew spirits together like • magnet I This man of
apparently low okra% not of generous feeling this
stable-keeper, was it reasonable to sunhate that, without
manta] or return, he turned away from the society of
men and woman in order that he might spend every hour
of the day he powdbly could with this middleeged lady?
He said he was grateful to her. What was he grateful
for? Wm it because of the shilling which she Mad the
ostler, end which he meanly accepted out of lier
income? Was it because she deserted her huband and
broke tip her home for Wm? What was that consistent
with After the sacrifices that had been made on both
sides to attain a certain end, were they to believe it
namable that this love was • pure and holy love if the kind
referred to by Yr. Ketone

At half-peat foar the foreman stated the jury Were ear,
tired, and the Court adjourned

The Rev. Newman Hall's divorce suit was
resumed and concluded on Friday. Sir Henry James
having finished his address for the petitioner, the
president summed up, remarking that he could not
blame the rev, gentleman for withdrawing his suit
when collecting for a church, nor did he agree that it
was an unworthy motive to desire separation from a
wife whom he believed to have wronged him. He
regarded Mrs. Hall's repugnana3 ws one of the first
symptoms sf an illicit attachment. The jury without
retiring, immediately found a verdict that l ira Hall
had been guilty of adultery with the co.respg
Richardson, and that the counter charges agsJnxt the
petitioner and Miss Wyatt were unfounded. A decree
nisi with COatil was therefore given. Mr. Hall on
leaving the court was warmly congratulated by his
Friends eisd loudly cheered by the wesembled throng in
Westminster-hall.

On the announcement of the verdict there worn some
cheering and much excitement. The Rev. Newman
Hall who hadCbeen present moseof theday, rose to leave,
insi on hill doing so he was greeted with a volley of
cheers, men and women alike pwas.l2l2l forward to shake
hands with him, while others him on e back
with much vigour, cheering the while. Arrived at
the door, he went up one of the side paasages, and
som afterwards, supported by two friends, on whose
arms he was leaning, he pawed through another door
into Westminster Hall, where by this time a
onuiderable crowd had collected. Being Immediately
rbe Tree vocifemusly cheered. Surrounded
t7tEtd crowd, the reverend gentleman who continually
raised his hat in acknowledgment of the greeting he
received, made his way with considerable difficulty to
Pa/ace-yard. By the time he arrived there the
excitement had subsided, and he IVIIA allowed to walk
off in peace in the cowpony of his friends.