The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1803-06-06 00:00:00

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IR.ELANff:

COURT OF ICING% ISP.NCH, Desuw.
BREACH OF PROMISE OF MARRIAGE.
Wednesday, a trial at 1414 i Prim: was held at the
Court of King's Bench, before Lord ICILY:ARDEN
and a respetable Jury. It was the case of a Miss
Jane Arabella Kelly against a Mr. Brennan, of
the Merchant's-quay, to obtain damages, which
were laid at 20001. for breach of a contrast of mar-
riage.
Mr. Ccait ix, for the plaintiff, exerted a great
portion of his unrivalled powers to contrast the inno-
cence and the misfortunes of the plaintiff, with the
odious, cruel, and triumphant profligacy of the de-
fendant, her seducer.
The principal evidence was Mrs. M'Garry, sister
to the plaintiff; who keeps a boarding-house at
Queen-street, which was, at the period when the
declaration stated this transaftion to have taken
place, under the denomination of a boarding-school,
as exhibited by a brass plate on the door, kept by
Mrs. Kelly. The aCtual mistress, however, was
Miss Kelly, who succeeded her sister in the depart-
ment of teaching females, but since, according to
her own testimony, privately married to M'Garry,
her present husband. Her direct and cross-exami-
nation, in a material degree, illustrated the private
history of the plaintiff's family as well as her own.
From the first part of her depositions it was collet-
ed that her father, a Mr. Hubert Kelly, was a gen-
tleman of some respetability and consideration,
about twenty years since or upwards, in the county
of Meath, from whence he removed. That her
mother, after having borne eleven children, eight
of whom were females, had died much about the
time of his removal, or some short time previous, to
the King's county. Though in habits of genteel
life, and associating with the first company in the
King's counts., after his removal there, it would ap-
pear that his circumstances were not altogether af-
fluent, as his daughter, Miss K. who died a maiden,
had sought .!er bread in Dublin, in the charalter of
a school mistress, in Queen-street, in the house where
Mrs. M.G. liter her decease, had succeeded her in
the same capicity. It appeared by subsequent evi-
dence that Mr. K. the father, bad, after his emanci-
pation from the trammels of matrimony, dedicated a
-great portion of his time and attention to amorous
pursuits, and bad ado:illy, at an ads anced period of
life, kept a concubine, by Nhom he had children,
in the same house with the plaintiff and her sister
M'Garry. He had afterwards, it appeared, in the
75th year of his age, married a girl of the age of
20 years. The plaintiff, some time in the year
1801, came to visit her sister, Mrs. Nl‘Garry, the
evidence alluded to, and remained with her for some
time at her boarding-school, or house in Queen-
street, where gentlemen as well as ladies were,
with equal complaisance and hospitality, enter-
tained. _ _ .

The plaintiff, on coming to her sister's house, met
the defendant, who was a boarder there. After
four days acquaintance, and dining at the common
table, Mrs. M'Garry perceived such attentions from
the defendant to her sister, the plaintiff, as induced
her to suppose that he had no less than honourable
views of matrimony towards her. The acquaint-
ance and mutual attention of the parties to each
other increased, and became more conspicuous in
the course of a few months, a circumstance which

at length induced Mrs. M'Garry to interrogate the
plaintiff as to any declarations or proposals of
matrimony, which she conceived it probable the
defendant must have made her. Explanations on
the subjeft succeeded, and Mrs. M'Garry swore
positively to a formal promise, in three -everal in-
stances, which the defendant had madaiti: marry the
plaintiff; in one of which overtures of matrimony
directly came from him, and the lady's reply was,
that she had a father to consult. On this the de-
fendant rejoined, that he would accompany her to
her father's in the country, to ask his consent.—
During this negotiation, however, the plaintiff be-
came pregnant, as appeared by her communication
to the defendant from her father's house in the
country, whither she retired, but where, after certain
plausible excuses, the defendant declined to accom-
pany her. The defendant's answer to this letter,
which was read in Court, occasioned a remark from
Mr. Plunket, that it was an heterogeneous compound
of philosophy, vulgarity, sentiment and duplicty.
It set out with violent protestations of unceasing
love and fidelity, hoping it was only her fears, her
inexperience, and timidity, which caused apprehen-
sions in her mind of consequences, which, under a
variety of circumstances, must be distressing to him,
consequences, which, in the transports he felt in her
society. he did not find time to refleet ou or antici-
pate: but, let the event be what it may, she might
rely on his honour, his fidelity and protection, at
the same time advising her, if her fears should be
realised, and that she cotfld ascertain the fact she
apprehended, to snake some excuse to come to town
to her sister M'Garry, whom, if all other expedients
failed, it would be necessary to make a confidant of.
He attributed the commencement of a long project-
ed reformation to her influence—he was no longer
• the gay, the gallant, and rattling Brennan, but a
steady, sober, melancholy man of business, and he
would say a man of sense, if modesty would permit
him. Another fond letter or two succeeded, after
arrangements had been made for the lady's secret
aenuchement, under the management of her sister
I%l4:any ; but previous to that event, love and
sentiment seemed to have subsided. In one or
two 'subsequent letters, written to Mrs. M'Garry, he
talked with all the-snethod of a man of business, of
sending the unfortunate young woman's child to
the r ..)r-house, being, he said, the proper recepta-
cle for the illegitimate offspring of an unnatural
mother.
The defendant, by his Counsel, Serjeant Moore
and Mr. Barrington, set up his youth against the
plaintiff, who, only sin testimony of one witness, ap-
peared.to be a few years older than him, :Wedging
that she was the seducer, in concert with her aster
M4Ganry, whose character was attacked on the cir-
cumstance of her appearing pregnant at the same
time with her sister, neither avowing marriage. On
MIA. M'Garry's testimony, however; it appeared,
that at the time of her pregnancy, she had been pri-
vately married to her husband, and that family
reasons compelled them to keep the marriage se-
cret. There are few cases on re,:ord where it was
acknowledged by the Bench greater ingenuity had
been displayed bj C.gi.insel on both sides, and his
Lordship oon:e.ssed tfillt he felt his mind enlarged by
many observations advanced at the bar.
Lord Kaiw A R oast charged the Jury in his usual
style of davionate perspicuity, who returned a
Verdict Of liipoool. damages, and tid costs. • . .