The Express.
London, England, 1864-12-15 00:00:00

EXTRAORDINARY LIBEL CASE IN

IRELAND.

An extraordinary case (Travers v. Wilde) is now
before the Court of Common Pleas is Dublin. The plaintiff
is a young lady of *boat 29. She is the daughter of Dr.
Travers, who holds the situation of sulelibearian in Marsh's
Library. There are two defendants, Sir William Wilds
and his wife, of Dublin. Sir William is somewhat eminent
LI ea wrist. The action is one of libel. Mary Josephine
Travers, spinster, seeks to recover 2,0001. damages from
William Wilds, knight, and Jane Francesca, his wife,
for a libel written by the female defendant to the
father of the plaintiff. u follows :—" Towez, Bray,
May 6.—Sir,-1 on may not be aware of the dis-
reputable conduct of your daughter at Bray, where she
consorts with all the low newspaper boys in the place,
employing them to disseminate offensive placards, in which
my name is given, and also tracts, in which she makes it
appear that she has had an intrigue with Sir William
Wilde. If she chooses to disgrace herself, that is not my
affair ; but as her object in insulting me is the hope of ex-
torting money, for which she has several times applied to
Sir William Wilde, with threats of more annoyance if not
given, I think it right to inform you that no threat or
additional insult shall ever extort money for her from our
bands. The wages of disgrace she has so basely treated for
and demanded shall never be given to her.—J AN/ F. WILDE.
To Dr. Travois." The defendants pleaded that the letter
no libel, that the words were not used in a defainato7 sense,
that there was no publication, as alleged, and that, if there
was, the publication was privileged. There is another plea,
which declares that the plaintiff, having taken umbrage at
some supposed slights put upon her by Lady Wilde, set her-
self to insult and annoy the female defendant in various ways.
Among other things it was alleged that Miss Travers had
published " • certain scandalous and immodest pamphlet,
under the title of ' Florence Boyle Price ; or, a Warning,
by Speranza,' thereby causing the public to believe that
such publication was the composition of Lady Wilde, who
bad previously been known as an authoress under the name
of • Spersuisa '—in which she (Miss Trevose), under the
assumed name of Florence Boyle Price, would make it
appear that a parsec therein styled Dr. Quilp. whom the
plaintiff afterwards admitted to have been intended for
Sir William Wilde, hail made an attempt upon her
virtue ; and that, in furtherance of her design, she
caused divers doggrel verses and additional articles to
be inserted in a newspaper called the trickly
ddtertinT, signing some of them with the assumed name
of • Speranza.'" It was also alleged that Miss Travers bad
sent several insulting letters to Lady Wilde, and bad en-
deavoured to expose Sir William Wilde to ridicule and con-
tempt by issuing placards and handbills against him on the
occasion of his lecturing in the Metropolitan-hall to the
Young Men'. Christian Association ; that the placards bore
the words, " Sir William Wilde and Speranza ;" and that
the plaintiff employed men to ring hand-bells, so as to direct
attention to them; that she hail furthers. "caused divers
persons to sell copies of the same immodest pamphlet,
falsely alleging it to be the intended lecture of Sir William
Wdde, thereby causing great disturbance and confusion
at tho place where the lecture was to be delivered;"
and that she subsequently invited public attention to this
circumstance in the newspapers. The defence proceeded
to allege that the pamphlet had been offered for sale,
and sent to the home at Bray, where the Wilde family
were residing, as the plaintiff would "have it to be be-
lieved that she had so intrigue with Sir William Wilde."
It was sleo averred that on several oceasione, before the
writing of the alleged libel, the plaintiff bad applied to
the defendants and " threatened more annoyance if her re-
quests were not acceded to." Lady Wilde further pleaded
her bona tide belief that the plaintiff "Lad disgraced her-
self," and that her object was to extort money ; and that
in order to mince her father, lir. Travers, to use his
parental authority over her, she (Lady Wilde) had written
the letter without malice, wed in the hope of stopping the
insulting proceedings ; and her ladyship declared that she
believed the statements contained in toe letter to be true.
Serb, in substance, were the pleadings, as opened by Mr.
Quin.
&briefest Armstrong, also for the plaintiff, said that in
1814, the plaintiff, being threatened with deafness, was
recommended by her physician to consult Sir William
Wilds, who enjoyed a high character as an aurisL She
was then "about nineteen years of age, and most interest-
ing, both by reason of personal beauty and mental culture."
Sir William prescribed for her, but would not take any fee, '
and an acquaintance sprang up between Miss Travers and
the Wilde family, said she often visited at their house when
they had company. When she had first seen Sir William
Wilde he lived in Westland-row but he afterwards
removed to Memocesquare. Si; William had wade
Miss Travers a present of a season ticket for the
Exhibition in 18ii9, and she used to go to the theatre
with his children. The learned serjeant " did not mean
to say that at this period Sir William ever entertained any
intention of asuulting the virtue of the plaintiff, bat no
doubt as intercourse extending over seven years gradually
exerted ita in duence, and raised in his mind a guilty isteut."
The loused serjeant read a number of letters, to show the
progress of the acquaintance between Sir William Wilde
arid the plaintiff. So long ago as 1819 Sir William used
to criticise Bliss Travers dies; saying he did not like a
bonnet, or something of that kind ; arid he was accustomed
to give her small soma of money, which the plaintiff took
as loans, to supply her with dress befitting her position.
There were a vast number of letters written from Sir
William Wilde to the lady. One of them referred to a
burn which she had on Ler neck, and another to the paring
of a corn, and others were written in a half fatherly, half-
quizzing style. Sir William was over 50 years of age. How-
ever, Miss Travers bad her suspicions aroused in the winter
of 1* a. In the October of that year "there was a
distribution of premiums for the Queen's University in
Ste Patrick's-hall, Dublin Castle, and Miss Travers was
there with Dr. Wilde. lie asked her to go, and escorted
her home. Well, the next day he met her in West-
Lind-row, and he said to her, in a very marked way? ' Did
you observe anything yesterday? Said she, ' I did not.'
• Did you notice my carnage, a. we were coming along the
street, coming after us? '1 did not.' I will not repeat the
identical words he used. She will give them herself; but the
arbstance was that they had been watched by Mrs. Wild* in
that carriage, and, in fact, that Met With was, in berown
mind, distrustful of what was going on. From the lips of Dr.
Wilde himself Miss Travers find heard of such a circumstance.
She unquestionably was a little alarmed. snd it struck her thee
she should be more circomapect ; but he made as light of it
when he saw the effect it had on her as possible, and he gave
her a book. He said to her, • Lull in that book, and
you will understand what 1 mean.' She took the book.
and found it contained a letter, asking her to see him et
the hospital which he was professionally attending, bat she
did sot to. She saw him shortly afterwards, when he asked
her did she want money, but she said not ; she wanted to
have his ' reference to Lady Wilde' cleared up. She gave
him to understand that unless this were done all acquaint-
ance between them must cease. Ile wrote to her :—' Davit
be angry. lam sick, I mime von. I will leave the money
for you, 61. 10a, at Sheridao's—(this was • shop where
parcels were left in the ordinary eourss)—at abort
eleven o'clock. You will make me curse you if you don't
take it.' Afterwards ha explained that is speaking as he
had doe* be bad been only joking, and asked her to conic
and die, with Lady Wilde and the family, and she did
go. Matters went on till February, 1861, when one day,
as he was examining her ear in his study, 'eke was unsaid
and confounded when, most suddenly, be clasped her in his
arms, and refused to releue Ler till she bed promised to
call lam William." 1 will not let you go,' my. he, • till
you promise to call me William.' He said be would detain
her till she said, • Please, William, let me to ; but she re-
fused, and got away from the house. He then wrote lettere
to her, which she returned to him unopened. The drift of
them, as afterwards ascertained, was that she should • not
be making mountains out of mule-bills,' and that the clasping
tai her in his arms wand no harm, and that it was unjust, for
Ler to harbour ace suspicion emiast him ; and he also talked
about being miserable, fretting about Miss Travers, and
more to Mist effect. She felt it necessary to see Sir Witham
Wilde about a letter which hail been opened, as she thought,
before it reached her, and be also invited her to the house
to see one of his children. Subsequently Sir William
Wilde ' supplied her with some money to go to Australis,
and • ticket was taken at Dublin ; bet when she west to
Liverpool to embark there was some difflealte about her
berth, and elle returned." The learned counsel touched
upon other similar matters—upon Lady Wildn'a "petulant
remark " on one occasion, when she asked Miss Travers
" Where do you want to take my husband to now
then upon the most startling item of his case.
"On Thursday, the 11th of October, 1862, Mite
Tracers, in obedieace to an invitation she received
from him, waited on him in his study. She was
there about half-put one o'eleck. He made no
allusion to any previous conversation in refereece to
the publication in the letter or anything else, but he, at all
events, represent great concern about the mark of a burn
which she had across her throat. He removed her bonnet
for the purpose spparestly of looking at her threat. She
was in the babit of concealing that slight defect by wearing
a necklet of black velvet, and he put his band into it, with
his knuckles next her threat, fastening his knuckles in the
velvet bud. He pressed against her very tightly, so forc-
ibly that the said, • Yon are suffocating me.' ' I will,' said
ha, • suffocate you—l cannot help it.' Gentlemea (said
the learned wirjeant), I will leave it to herself to tell you
what followed. But I will tell you what he said after what
followed. I felt it my duty to be most particular in sacer-
Weiss what sbe was prepared to swear aa to that interview
and the meaultupos her. The next thing, after the bor.
Tilde ponytail/sties into which she was thrown when dm
recovered consciousness, was this : she found him throwing
cold water on her face. He was opposite to her, with a
tumbler of water in his bead. He cried to her, Oft, don't
close year eyes • look up once more.' He always had a little
wine in his study. He held wine to her lips. She was is
that state her mouth was tightly compressed in the agita-
tions of the maiden. He could not get bar mouth opened.
He then sponged ber face with water, and what did be say
• I wish the devil or the angel Gabriel would make her open
her mouth.' (Laughter.) He said, ' h'ise, I beseech you,
for my preservation and your own.' lie shook her. He