The Sun.
London, England, 1858-08-07 00:00:00

thereftre found necessary to resort to the present action to
compel him to do so.
Mr. Hans Busk was then examined. He deposed that
the defendant's wife vas his sister, and he was one of the
trusttes under her marriage settlement.. She was married
•o the dtfehda,t in May, 1843, atid from that time down to
the year 1855 he was in the habit of visiting them aad com-
municating wish the defendant and his sister. On the `29,1,
of May, two days after the marriage, he received a letter
from the defendant. The letter was put in and read. It
was as follows :

"My Dear Hans,—l am the happiest of mortals—too
happy, I am fearful. -Oh, Hans, you little know what a
:reasure I find Rosalie—how immeasurably she is my supe-
rior in all things. What an entire change and reformatio❑
she will effect both in my outward and inward carriage. Oh,
once agaiil I am too happy. Your sister is so pure, so modest,
so calm, so quiescent, so lady-like, so perfectly angelic, that
I tremble at the fearful responsibility I have undt rtaken in
swearing to love, honour, and obey such an angel. She is,
dear Hans, too good for me. If I had known all her charms,
all her perfection, I should never have dared to have a•l-
-vanced my c:airns. She is too good fur such a man as
myself. She will indeed prove a guardian angel to myself,
and will be the making and the preservation of us, Loth in
this world and the next. We read every morning :mei
evening a chapter of the Greek Testament together, and we
both of us read every day together. In fact I shall live fur
your sister alone."
The letter went on for some length in the same strain, and
the defer.dant concluded by saying, " I am the happiest of
mortals."

Examination continued—ln the month of August, 1819,
witness received a letter from his sister, which induced hint
to seek an interview with the defendant. The letter now
produced is the one referred to. The letter was put in and
read. It was addressed by the defendant's wife to the
witness.—

"My Dear Hans,—l really think I shall be obliged to
trouble you to speak to Charles about It's behaviour to we.
This morning, after breakfast, after evidently trying to
pick a quarrel on two or three different subjects, which I
each time managed to keep off, be begin again abruptly
about the money, saying that he had written to you 3 es-
terday ordering it to be put into his name. I answered that
ysu could not do that unless I gave directions about it.
He got into a great rage directly, and said it was all a
conspiracy between ns to ckeat him. I saw that, as he was
in this spirit, it was better not to say much to him, so only
added, ' The fact is, as you so often-talk about going off to
Australia, you see it might be very inconvenient to me to
have my money in your name.' He continued making a
great noise; asked how I dared talk about my money, said
it was all his, and that all that he or anybody else ever.
married for was for the sake of getting money with their
wives. I said, ' That is a strange confession, but for the
present ',think we had better change the subject, as I have
no wish to quarrel about that or anything else.' Upon this
he flew at me like a tiger, seized me by the arms, and tried
to throw me down. I managed to keep on my feet, and
then he dragged me to the door, and trying to open it kept
swearing out that he would turn rue out of doors. I kept
against the door to prevent his opening it, in order to keep
the affair, if possible, from the servants, and he kept on
striking me, and at last began kicking me with all his
might, and did not leave me until he had given me one
such blow on my side with his foot that I only stopped
him by saying that he would be answerable for another life
besides mine if he did not desist; and, indeed, as it is, I have
felt so giddy and sick ever since that I greatly fear he may
have done me a more serious injury than he will like to
answer for. His object too, I fear, is pretty evident, as he
always chooses the times when I am in a similar condition
for his most violent behaviour, but I must say he never
before went to such lengths as he has to-day. I should add
that all the time he was so treeing me he kept going on
quite like a madman about our having a conspiracy against
him, said It was a plot of my family to get his money, that
he did not believe I ever received any money at a 11; but
that I took enough of his to support my old father, and all
sorts of unfounded untruths that he could think of. He
said be should have a separation at once, and get somebody
else to take care of his children, Sze. New, under the cir-
cumstances, what do you advise me to do? I really am
more than half afraid that he will do me some injury; but
still, rather than make a regular break of it I would let it
pass by, if you think it best. Certainly I would rather
suffer anything myself than be separated from the children,
but with such a temper and without having anything to allege
against me, I do not suppose he could keep them if he should
insist on my leaving the house. . . Ido not think your
writing to him would do any goed. We must either let it
pass over, or you must see him and speak to him."
The witness then said that he had before this received
information with regard to the conduct of the defendant
towards his sister, and upon receiving the letter he went to
endeavour to have an interview with the defendant, and met
him on Waterloo-bridge. Witness had a horsewhip in his
hand. Upon the defendant coming up to him he put out
his kand, but witness pushed it away, and told him that he
was desirous of calling him to account for his atrocious con-
duct towards his sister on the previous day, and at the same
time showed him his sister's letter. Tue defendant replied
that it was very sad, and he was very sorry for it. His sister
was in the family-way at this time. Witness reproached him
with his conduct, and he said it was not his business, and
he bad no right to interfere in his family affairs, and he
was master in his own house, and no one had a right to
meddle with him. Witness then said that, in consequence
of his brutal treatment of his wife, and his having before
assaulted her when she was in the family way, he should
feel it his duty to lay all the facts before the bishop of the
diocese, and the defendant said that he wished she was
dead, and then she would have no more children, whom he
detested. Witness had a horsewhip in his hand, and when
the defendant said this he was so excited that he raised it to
strike him; but the defendant clasped his hands and bent
his knees, and looked in such an abject state of fear, that
I lie desisted, and left him, saying that he would leave the
matter in the hands of the bishop. The prisoner followed
him, and entreated him not to make the matter known to
the bishop, as it would be the ruin of himself and his family
and he requested witness to meet him in the afternoon at
the Gloucester coffee-house, Piccadilly, and inform him, at
alt events, what be intended to do. He went at tke time
appointed, and the defendant showed him a letter he had
written to his wife. The letter was put in and read. It
was couched in the most affectionate terms, and the de-
fendant, in the most abject manner, entreated his wife to
forgive him for the manner in which he had acted towards
her on the previous day.
The following letters were also put in and read. The first
was addressed to the father of his wife; it was as follows:
" My Dear Sir,—Will you receive a penitent son back to
your affections? I thank Hans heartily for having brought
before the bishop all my unhappy history. For the future it
will be my study to do everything to please Rosie, and will
forswear card playing, flirting, and other unclerical amuse-
ments. I have promised the bishop so to do.—Your sor-
rowing son-in-law, " CHARLES VANSITTAKT."
- - - •

The next was the letter In which the defendant announced
his intention to separate from his wife on the following
terms. The letter was dated the Bth of June, 1856 :
" Sir,—Since writing the last I have come to the deliber-
ation of separating from my wife, as my hatred and aversion
toss ards her is so great that I neither can nor will ever see her
again, and my physician tells me that it is absolutely neces-
sary for my health that I should be kept as quiet as possible.
I shall not remain long in Berkshire. Wbat I do is my
own object, and I am not at liberty to reveal my plans, but
never again under any circumstances will I ever see your
daughter. Please to favour me with the name of your soli-
citor, that the necessary steps and forms may be entered
into. if I had not married contrary to the wishes and
prayers of a most excellent mother, much misery would have
been spared me. Would to God that I had done so.—Yours
truly, "CHARLES VANSITTART."
The examination of the witness was Oen proceeded with.
He said that his sister forgave the defendant upon this occa-
sion, and they continued to live together, but in 1853 be
discovered that the defendant had been carrying on au
adulterous intercourse with a young woman, the
daughter of one of his parishioners, ant he showed
the defendant some letters he had received upon the
subject, and charged him with the offence. He at first
debied it, and then said in an insolent tone that it
was no business of his. Witness then told him that he had
thought it right to inform the bishop of the manner in
which one f the clergymen of his diocese was conducting
himself, and that he had been in the constant habit of beating
and hi-treating his wife, was addicted to habits of intern-
p ranee, and that he had wound up by seducing the (laughter
of one of his parishioners. The defendant then said it was
not. so bad as that, for she bad gone away with another roan
'Afore he hail anything to do with her. The defendant then
expressed great contritioa for what had happened, and
said lie saw his conduct in its true light, and entreated
witness to intercede with his sister to forgive him, and she
did so, and the defendant returned home. The la,t
time he saw the defendant was in August, 1856,
when he said he was determined to separate from his
wife and that a deed of separation must be drawn up, and if
this was not done he should sell all his property and go
away, and his wife and her children would have no place to
go to, and he added that he did not know whether be should
go to Australia or to the Continent. He at the same time said
he was willing to make his wife a fair allowance, but lie was
eetermined to be separated from her. The defendant subse-
quently execu'ed an agreement to pay his wife £l2O a-year,
but in September, 1856, he suddenly left, taking two of his
sons with him, and far eight months no tidings could be
learned of him, although considerable expense was incurred
to endeavour to ascertain where he had gone to. Ile un-
derstood from the defendant that his revenue was £l,OOO or
£l,lOO a-year. The defendant's wife was too ill at the pre-
seat time to appear as a witness. _

Cross-examined—llia sister was allowed £l5O a-year by
her father, and the defendant told him that she only spent
£lOO a-year, and laid the rest by for her children ; but he
was not aware that this was the origin of their quarrelling.
He believed that in the year 1846 his sister became a con-
vert to the Roman Catholic religion. Two other sisters
had also gone over to that faith. He had been Informed
that the living of White Walthatn was sold upon the under-
standing that the defendant should resign the ministry,
and that the proceeds of the sale should be invested for her
benefit. The living of White Waltham was stated on the
books to be worth 1900 a-year. After the defendant left,
his wife went to live with her father for some time, and she
then went to live with Mrs. Byrne, a married sister, and her
father and sister had both brought an action against the de-
fendant to recover the cost of her maintenance. These actions
were in addition to the one brought by the present plaintiff.
The defendant himself requested his wife to see Mr. Bennett,
and also Mr. Ward and Mr. Newman. lie was unable to
say how long his sister was wavering Were she joined the
Roman Catholic communion.
Re-examined--The defendant himself first introduced
High Church notions into the family, and he believed that
this led to his sisters' seceding from the Protestant Church.
A letter was here put in, in which the defendant requested
to Bennett, and to stand or fall by
himhis
principles,
; wife
andt ohkeell also t setadt y
stated that
oh e
werewas getting
also
mvaenr
many of
higha
f
Church
parishioners.
Re-examination
a highnationerointateinyuitee.d—He was aware that Mr.
Be
In answer to a question put by Mr. Chambers, the wit-
ness stated that this letter was written before the defen-
dant's marriage with his sister.
rwas tsh.
eJnu I ax
aßmy
irnneed,
stnial
err
stated
et da
tsetds tet rh tat fhore dseoftnenedtaiomt
time
wa
fitfeer,
their marriage the defendant and her sister were on very
affectionate terms, but in the year 1849 the defendant com-
menced behaving unkindly to her. A short time before she
was confined with one of her children, the defendant said he
did not want en,- mere children •, indeed he wished that these
be Lai were dead. lie then said that eiidney, one of his sons,
was a nice boy, and he should like to keep him, but he did
not care about- aby of the others. In March, 1851, she was
present a t,n a quarrel took
place between the defendant
and his wife, but she could not recollect the subject. The
defendant was very violent, and threw the chairs about the
row, and threw his hat from one esd of the room to the
other. HT then rang the bell, and told the servant to pre-
pare a separate bed fur him as he would not sleep with his
wife any more. The next day she took her sister away, but
defendanttoahnoecwsr:ovbsesu:teal
xshaoemti peanrwreo drnh_ el S promised to behave better, and she returned
to him. She saw the defendant behave in a similar manner
occasions.rho ne did not
mo
Monday Witness
where h r
hadsister n
become
a es
a culvert to the Roman Catholic faith.
Mr. Chambers asked the witness how long it was since