The Sun.
London, England, 1804-12-27 00:00:00

A CURIOUS FRP:NCI-I LOll TRIAL.

On the 26th Vendemiaire (year X II.), or I gth of
November, 180.., a curiAts trial in a love affair
was decided by the Ttibunli at Toulouse, of which
the following are the particulars:
A young peasant of the name of La Fay, of the
Department uf Arriege, fell in love with Msria
Arigni, in the parish of Cassaigne. She was a
young girl of property, and La Fay possessed no,
thing : he dared, therefore, not pay his addresses to
her, and demand her in the usual manner. Lfwe,
however, inspired him with a !rain to make her
his wife, both without her own and her relations'
consent.

Accompanied by a person dressed in woman%
clothes, he. went . before the Mayor of Si, Gisols,
and presented a, certificate stating' that the banns
for himself and for Maria Arigni had been pub_
fished, according to law, in the parish church of
Cassaigne. Fay was, in consequence; mat..
tied to the person in his company, and took our the
certificate of his marriage. With this in his hand
he went directly to Cassaigne, and demanded of
ries relations to have his wife given over to him.
The whole family, and, most of 411; the girl, were,
as might be expefted, greatly surprised. Maria
insisted on knowing nothing of this pretended host
band, and declared that she had consented to no
marriage, and, of course, was not married. She '
protested, therefore, before a Public Natary, against
this acl, and signed a Power of Attorney for her
brothel to prosecute La Fay before the Tribunalq,
and to procure her justice and protection from the
laws.

Upon inquiry it was found out that the certificate
of the banns. being published was a forgery, and
the Imperial Attorney General ordered, therefore,
La Fay to be criminally prosecuted. In the mean
time La Fay conecaled himself, and dace manthe
passed over in irquities to find out whether M,.
ria Arigni, or Who else, was the person to whom
he had been married. During this period. La Fey
procured himself often opportunities to see Maria
in secret, who, after pitying, forgave him a fraud,
the consequence of his love, and declared her de.
termination to reward the latter with her hand and
fortune. She eloped, therefore, from her brother's
house, and joined her lover, whose wile she ae.
knowledged herself to be ; and it was iii her arms
that the gent d'armer found him when they went to
arrest him after his retreat was discovered. Car.
tied before the Tribunal, Maria stood by his side,
and repeated chat she was his wife, and thr no.
thing hut death thnuld separate them. LA FAY,
in }us turn, declared, Illat MARIA was the person to
whom he had been married' helCre the MAYOR at
St. GkOts, and that it was from her that he're.
ceived the forged certificate. This Mite tit affirmed,
re.calied the protest signed hefore,the Pubtio ry,
together with the power of attorney given to her
brother, saying that built these 414. 11,id been
signed by her from fear of her brother, who had
threatened to kilt her in case'of refusal. The cer.
iificate, she said she procured from an unknown
person, who had comp-assion on her situ ition. She
added, that, though of age, she dared not, opcidv
;A against her brother's will, wide!: was the eatt,e
of her having behaved as she did, until she found,
an opportunity of flying i'oto her husband's arms.

consequence of this dedarstion, the Tribunal
or:ley:a even Allaria to be arrested, and after a
space !.f eight months, she, with Li Fay, were car-
ried,hef,re their judges at Toulouse. The Miyor
of St. Gisors, his SAtetary, and four other'persons
witnessing; the ceremony of the marriage, were all
present, and unanimous in their declaration that
Maria. was not the girl wlicse marriage with La Fay
they had seep. Maria,. however, insis ed tin the con.
trary.. She. gave a description of the furniture of the
room at the Municipality at St.Gisors, in which they
were married. Slit...related some remarks made by
the persons present during the ceremony, with
corns words said by the Mayor to the &.ctetary.
She knew again every body who was present ; point.
ed them out hy :heir names and titles, and recalled
to their remmtbraoce some expressions they used"
on that oceasiJii. As she did nut contradid her.
self, but was so determined to be LA Fay's wife, the
imperial Commissary, who, in the name of the
Attorney Gzneral, pursued this afrair, withdrew
his Prosecution as to the tnirriage, but continued it
on account ut the forged Certificate. It was im.
possible fur La Fay to have been the fabricator of
it, as he could neither read nor write, but he and
his wife had both made use of it knowing it to ba
forged, anti were, therefore, found guilty. La Fay
was condemned to 'the galleys at Marseilles, fur
right years, and' Maria Arigni to four years hard
labour in the .I.lOtpe of Currettion at Toulouse.

This trial . excited great interest, particularly
nrnr.tg the youth of tioth sexes. A • Petition was
drawn up,' signed by four thousand bachelots and
maiti., and intended to be presented to the 17:osperor.
.13tit'before it cyuld reach Paris, Maria, with her
husband, escaped from prison, and as she had long
before disposed of all her property, amounting to
6cioa 'lyres (2501.) in the year, it is' supposed that
these persons intended to settle in some foreign
country. Should, however, His Majesty, in his
wisdom, pardon them, which it is hoped. will be the
case, as Her Majesty the Empress interests 'herself
in their behalf, that they may return.and repair in
their own Department the errors of their youth
with an honourable life.

It is regarded as a certainty at Toulouse, that the
person to whom La Fay was married is a young
peasant, %ilia had dressed himself in worn in's clothes
to serve his friend.--(Journal des Tribunaux.)

The person who lately poisoned the two blind
men. in Simpsons's Hospital, in Dublin,' has been
discovered and apprehended ; his name is ptile,
and he is supposed to hive administered the tatal
cake in which-the poison was contained at the in.
stigation of the wife of jobasan, the unfortunate
man to whom it was first given.
A N.4hle Duke, whose 'chief delight is in making
the Poor about him as hippy and cc mfortahle its
possible, last week gave orders to purchase One
Hundred Sixteenths in the present LAtery, and tti.
rated his. Stevard to buy them at Teo difrtrent
e s AO distribute them to One Hundred diffe.
taut (.:;lildren in the neiLhbourhood 'white he lives.

zr--m---t_-

DUPLi/V; DEcF.NSIrkR 20.

COMMISFAON COURT.

Geo-e Ma6bel and johm Lt;raViss sto6B in,line;cl
5
for baying rescued,
,and procured' tO "bc rrscurd,
.iwenty_barrelo ort, -aftw seiitire by a Revenue
Wice4r, where
,tl7erei had !wen re a-silnable'eituSe, t o
suspect.tliem to be liable to .
James Carrick, of Kxcise, proved tf► tt.
on the 4th of April i.e met three cars in Mill.iireet,
,conveying twenty sacks of matt he 'demanded h
pennit of the, c.itmati,' who hall none to picidure ;
'whereupon witness seized the ;malt, Which the Cr.l
man forcibly testued, and
.drove:the cars•inrO the
brewery of. Mr. Lawless, where he took cif one of
the sacks and lodged it in the stores. 'At this time
Mr. Barden, the SurVeyor, came in, and witness
informing him of the circumstance, demanded his
assistance. Mr. Barden then 'called for a permit,' and
none•was 'produced .; on Which •he also seized the
plait, anti with difficulty procured the catman to
:turn about, wham he Orden' 'to 'proceed to the
King's Stores. At this.ritne Hughes came into the
yard, and being asked for a penult, 'produced none.
He svfore " bY.G—d they should not seize his
malt ;
.they . had no right to seize it ; he knew
the Revenue LaWs as well as they." Hughes then
desired his men to take Off the remaining nineteen
bags, and lodge them in Mr. Lawless's stores.--.-
Witness cautioned Lawless against rescuing the
malt, and advised him not 'to involve himself in the
business, but to give up the Malt. Mr. Barden 'at
this time sent witness for military assistance : on
.Itis reknit, the cats and parties were all gone.—
. Lawless is' a brewer, aed Hughes a maltster.
'Hughes and his 'men are' in the habit of assaulting
Office's and 'rescuing exeiseable commodities'. Nei.
then Hughes nor Lawless assaulted witness. Wit.
news believes there was no permit in fat : he had
seized the goods in the street, and before their ar.
tival ai the stores.
Mr. Peter Barden, a Surveyor, came; into Law.
lets',: yard while Carrick'was 'hoe with the malt ;
there was a' violent tumult, whiclP induced him to
ask What was the matter Carrick answered, that
he had' seized twenty, barrels of malt for want of
permit. Lawless,being present, ultness'aiked-him
•if there was a permit for the malt,' and asked the
same question of the carmen. None Was .produced..
Wirness-then .'.old 'Lawless. that the malt must go
to the Cast An.house. He accordingly again seized ir,
and ( tdered the carmen to proceed to the Custom.
house, which they refused. He then applied to
Law/essi telling him it would be of very bad 'con.
sequence if he did not' Order the carmen to proceed,
to the Custom.houses After repeated applications
and time difficulty, Lawless did desire them ;
when Hughes came running into 'the'yartl, and
asked the carmen whcre , they were going P He
swore victiently that no man shnuld seize his matt,
and desired the carmen for turn about and"' cleat
•away their loads. Witness had previously sent for
a guard. • Witness remonstrated. with finghei on
the impropriety of his canduo in rlitis rescuing a
seizure ;'-and healso warned Lawless what the con.
sequence would he of his receiving- into his stores
` malt which was under seizure ; notwithstanding
which, the malt was all unloaded, and brought
into Lawless's stores,, Who was present all the time.
The guard having•then come up,, was 'dismissed,
end witness and Carrick went away. Believes
Hughei was the owner of, the malt, and Lawless
the purchaser. NO person told witness that the
Permit was Sent to the Custom-house, nor does he
think it possible. Lawless's behaviour was colleded
and polite ; but he ,ought,to have ordered the malt
sooner to the Custom.house. Witness expebed his
interference with Ave carmen, whO behaved ill. Liw.
less desired his own men to conduit themselies pro-
perly, and not to interfere, in the dispute.
The Travetsers in their defence produced Peter
Ham', who was in Mr. Lawless's employ- on the
+11) of April:" witness, was in the yard when the
malt arrived ; there' was a permit with it, which
the carman delivered, to the .w itlesa, who sent it by
young•Mr,•LawleSo to the Customhouse.' When
he first heard'a pet (nit demanded, he informed Mr'.
Barden that it had been sent, to the Custom.house ;
he had sent it off in haste on' account of the late.
-nest of the hour, and the distance of the brewery-
(rot-n*llle Custom-house ; this watt after VSO, and
the Customhouse closes at three; the pradiei of
the brewery is to send off permits the same day on
this day he sent Off some permits of the day before
along with the one in question. 'He admitted, on
his cross.eastnination, that-malt on its way in the
street, without a,permit, is liable to. seizure ; and
that Carrick. had reasonable cause for seizing 'this'
malt in Mal-street ; and that he had seen. mill.
condua on the part of the Offi,:ers. ••Witness assured
Barden 0%0'6e permit was at the Custom.hOUse,
and that he would. find it thele, and wanted to-send
Barden' there. 'Mt. Barden propoSed that the rn4lt
should 'go to the Custorn.houae, and that it theperinii
was there it would be returned, which witness ad. •
mite it would ; its teeruval, however, was prevent.
ad, and Hughes &elated it was in a registered,
brewery, and was notliable to seizure. Lawless did
not assent to lodging the malt in his stores. •
James, Lawless. proved that Ham sent the permit
'by him, whieb he lodged in the Custom-house.
Baron Btarrtt charged thirJury-if they believed
the evidence, and conceived Lawless to have as.
tented to lodge the malt in his stores, they
ought to find' broh the Traversers guilty. There
!tame been no permit along,: with t lie malt iN
traNsitu, Carrick's seizure of it was warranted.
Barden was eg Col authorized to seize in the 'stores
on the, nontprOetuaion of a permit there ; even if
there was proof 0f.4 permit having been lodged in
the Custom.house, still this would not justify the
I:reverters it oi;itrld only entitle them to have the
malt returned after it 'had been brought to the
cuitosiijmuse, aod the permit been found there ;
but in the mean time they were not (without a
permit to piOat)Ce) ,to rescue goods ender seizure ;
nor way the Officer to take their word that there
was a permit at the Custom.house.
•But here there was tm evidence of any permit ;
rite permit shoold If.ive been produced ; it was the
heir evitience'of its existence, and still more of its
•

Altu, Ici bk
Lr) N 1) i 4 ; rtinted hy leo A Ito Nit it TS, (of No. 4, Nlartlet.coutt, loom:Suet t, ; 411,1 pubilshed
shy 1V 3.1,:0 :pr t, South Vigiton-strett. Grosvellor-untard
A inc' Stm.Ovi I # No, Ii a, Strand; where Adwroufigoris."Orders fur Obc Papers Letters, kit ell; Lido", 8;4. oatt.,aid), must
.1)e addressed.