Star.
London, England, 1827-07-02 00:00:00

ROGIRS V. JONES, ESQ.

This was an action, brought by a linendraper at
'Dover, against the Marshal of the King's Bench for the
escape ut a milliner out of .his custody, under the fol.
lowing circumstance,: The plaintiff had supplied
goods to the female milliner, for which she gave him
five promissory notes, drawn at Dover, and payable at
Calais. They were not honoured when due; and when
she returned to Dover, as the declaration averred, YY the
plaintiff went before the deputy of the Mayor, duly
authorised to take affidavits s f debt," where he swore to
his debt, upon which process issued, and the French
milliner was arrested within the jurisdiction of the
Borough Ccu-t of D .ver and confined in the Cas:le of
that place. Ahern ards..however,the plaintiff, thinking
he would be-benefitted by it, moved the action out of
the B rough Court of Doter into this Court, and then
by Milieus Co)pus removed the French milliner into the
King's Bench prison. She, however, disguised herself
In stone way, and by that device contrived ingeniousl, I
'to eludehhe vigilance of the turnkeys, and so escaped.,
At the trial, in this place, a verdict was found for the
plaintiff, but the defendant having obtained I/ rule for
new trial, the case was now argued.
The Coctr,after, hearing the arguments OR both
sides, decided, first, that the averment of the affidavit,
of debt being sworn betoie a •eerson duly qualified was,
not suppoited ; and. secona4, that the plaintiff having
chosen to remove the pri•Aner out of custody when be
had her within four waits at Dover within the jurisdic-
tion of a sufficient Court there, did so at his own peril ;
and as these was pretence to suppose any collision
existed betweett the prisoner and the defendant, a non-
suit must be entered. • - • .
SHERIFFS' COURT, Jots 30.
CON.
THY BARON DC ROSCOE D. LORD SUSSEX IMMO&

The WHIM Sumter stated, that this was a writ of
inquiry, in a case, in which John Michael Baron de
Robeck was the plaintiff, and Lord Sussex Lennox was
the defendant, to assess a compensation in damages
from the defendant, for the loss and injury the plaintiff
had sustained by the defendant having had a criminal
conversation with the plaintiff's wife.
Mr. C. PHILLIPS appeared as Counsel for the Baron
de Robeck, and addressed the Jury as follows :—lt be.
eamehis duty, in this case, to lay before them, minutely,
the circumstances which had brought the Noble plain-
tiff to ask a compensation at thtir hands. The Baron
de Robeek came before them to claim compensation
for one of the most set ism injuries for which one man
could claim affhe hands of another. Without any sort of
affectation, he could say that lie felt the circumstancesi
deeply and bitterly, and be deplored the necessity that
compelled him to give publicity to them,involviog as they
did, the character of one of the patties, with whose pa-.
rein it had bleu his lot to have been well acquainted,
and for whom he felt the greatest 'veneration and respect.
He regretted that at the decline of that respectable NJ..
bleman s fifes* circumstance should have occurred cal-
Imitated to have given him so much pain ; and in this
eipression of sorrow he knew that he was merely the
echo of the feelings of the whole kingdom of Ireland
towards Lord Cloncurry. The plaintiff, Baron. der
Robeck, was a Swedish Noblema", who, by the progress
of events, had become possessed, f considerable estates
in Ireland, and had become connected with some of the
first families in that country. He was an officer in the
'army, whahad distinguished himself during the war in
IPortugal, and to whom this country was much indebted
for his services. His military career terminated at the
period when Gen. Sir John Moore expired at Corunna,
and he had the melancholy duty of closing the eyes of
that hero. He was a man of education, possessing
the most rigid principles of honour ; no stain had
ever been cast upon his character, and a more im-
maculate man did not exist in the empire. The
defendant, Lord Lennox, is the son of the late and
brother of the present Duke of Richmond ; he is also
like the plaintiff, an Officer in the Army. In the year
1820, the Baron de Robeck paid his addresses to the
Honourable Miss Lass less, the lovrly daughter t f Lord
Cloncurry, with the consent of the relatives of both
pantie-. She was beautiful, amiable, and only 17 years
of age, and the Baron was about 27 years, so that there
1, was no great disparity between the p flues in point of age.
lOn the 20th of December, IS2O, the marriage was so-
lemnized, and it was impossible to consider a matriage
contracted um!er more auspicious circumstances. The
property of the Baron de Robeck was at that time
limited; but at the death of the Dowager Baroness, he
would become possessed of very exten.ive estates. His
disinterested attachment for the Lady, who had an in-
come of 2,5001. per annum, was manifested by the cir.
cumstance ot his settling 1,0001. per annum upon her
prior to the marriage. The relatives and friends of
Lord Cloncurry, comprising the majority of the Nobility
in the Sister Kingdom, were present at the marl iage,
They had been married seven years, and the Baroness
bad given birth to five children, two of which, he said—
and advisedly—were fortunately dead. There were
two daughters and a son living, doomed to the bitter
pain hereafter of reflecting on their mother's disgrace,
robbed of that parental care, and anxious tenderness,
and maternal example, which a virtuous mother aff •rds
to her offspring. He should call two witnesses to prove
the criminality of the parties. whose evidence could not
be impeached ; but it would-depend mainly upon the
character of the cross-examination of these witnesses
by his Learned Friend, Mr. Erskine, whether it would
be necessary for him to call the Hon. Whalley, the
annt-•of the Bat oness',cle. Robeck, to prove his case,
though he should be exceedingly happy to spare that
Lady's feelings. The Baroness de It 'heck, in the ye sr
18,26, expressed a strong desire to quit Ireland, anl ro
take up her abode in England.' He did not wonder at
the Lady's tepognance to remain where she had to witness
cenes tbe most painful, in a country torn as it was by
clod discord, and party strife, and harassed by political
tactryns—a country, bear of ul by nature, redocud to the
lowest'state of degradation and misery. Toe Baron,
ever anxious to conduce to her happiness, conceded the
favour she asked, and the Jury would find that it was

of diet inebikehee aissi:47o4Soliance with her request so
go abroad, the defeasdastlaid taken advautage to cove
rupt bet mind and attrartgr her affections from her hula
band; for whom she had previously shewn the most
slater e and ardent Loma The B iron and Baromessciuse
to England, slid proceeded to Brighton, in the yea,
1826. After residing there-for some time, the Baron's
affairs called him to Ireland for several weeks, and
he left his Lady at Brighton. It might be now
said that the Baron ought to have taken his Lady
with him, but he had a good answer to *that:
he should call a physician, who would prove that
the Baroness's health was in such a state at the time that
she could not travel : in addition to her illness, she had
a child at the breast. The Barba took a house at Brialt.
ton for her : and on proceeding to Ireland, he left her
order the eyes of her aunt, the Hon. Mrs. Whalley...a
It was at this period that Lord Sussex Lennok, a gay
young Nobleman, a star in the fashionable circles of
this most fashionable cf all watering places, renewed an
acquaintance with the friends of the Baroness de Rea
beck, which had existed a few years before in Ireland.
and he became a frequent visitor. The family bad no)
doubt the intentions of his Lordship were those of a
casual visitor, and acquaintance—they had no suspicion
that he meditated so base and wicked a design upon the
wife of a Gentleman, and a brother Officer; but • such
was the melancholy fact, he should be able to prove,to
the cost, he hoped of the Noble Lord. By what strange
magic could the seducer so work upon the naind'of the
Lady, also, up to the period. of his introduction, was
kind and nitectionate to her children, attached to her
husba.,d, end apparently contented and happy, to in-
duct her to disregard the ties of nature, and to abandon
her infants, her husband, and blast her reputaan for
ever! The acquaintance between Lord L:nisnx and
the Baronets had not long existed when his Lordship
wrote letter alter letter to her, and it was soon evidvat,
by the alteration of her behavioar, that the arts of the
defendant to effect her ruin had succeeded. The ttarou
could not be blind to the extraordinary change in her
conduct on his consequent return to Brighton t he de-
termined instantly to remove with his family to Prance.•
The Baron was ignorant, at that moment. as to what
cause the change in her sentiments was to be attributed.
Lord Lennox, knowing what misery would be the con-
sequenceof his pursuing a guilty pauion,calmly and de.
liberitely, for the gratification of his lustful appetite rfol-
lows the footsteps of the Baton arrd his Lady to Pasis.
On the 15th of January last, the Baron and Bmoness
were invited by the Dowager Baroness de Robeck, his
molar, to dine with her, and the Baron earnestly re-
quested his Lady to go with him She complained of -
being indisposed, and relined to go. it turned out that
her illness was feigned, and that as soon as her husband
was gone she prepared to quit the house, and when the
Baron returned home, he discovered that she had eloped.
The shock which the Baron received--.whom affection
for the Lady probably never would cease to exist, uotc.
withstanding her unnatural cruelty to him and to bee
children—was so great, that he was in a state cf frenzy,
bordering on madness, for some time. • After he had
received this blow to his happiness, he applied to the
Police for its assistance to discover the retreat of his
wife and her seducer. Such, however, was the contempt
of Lord Lennox for the feelings of an injured husbauds
and so little did he care for the opinion of others, that
he rendered the application of the Baron to the Police
unnecessary, by openly parading the B .raqess about
Paris, from one public plate to another, and from hotel
to hotel. They carried on an adulterous intercourse
with impunity. This proceeding had been instituted
by the Baron not only to recover a compensation from
Lord Lzonoz, but to prevent the Baron from becoming
liable to the maintenance of Lord Lennox's progeny.
The peace of mind of Baron Robeck was gone for ever
—no compensation in damages could be adequate to
the loss he and his children had sustained. •• He would
not use any harsh expressions towards the Lady—he
would

• • 411 image her to Heaven, and to these thorns,
Mink in het bosom grew, toprick and sting laet."
Theta was one circumstance. which, however, went
strongly to prove that in her mind all virtue*, feelings ...-
were not completely destroyed ; that her natural feel-
ings Were not dead to the weHare of her children; and
that at times her reminiscences pictured to her mind the
domestic felicity she enjoyed, until she blasted her own
fame and her husband's peace for ever. After proceed-
ings had been instituted in the Ecclesiastical Count, a
messenger was sent to Fiance to wive hie with a cita-
tion; and on receiving the document, her memory re-
curred to het family; she burst into tears, and is the
deepest agony, exclaimed, n how ate tny poor children
—is the Baron kind to them lo Though she had for-
gotten the character of a wife, yet she was nct insensible
of guilt; and he hoped the day of penitence would ar-
rive, and that her errors would be patdrned. He•was
happy to say, that Lord Lennox had acted with the ut•
most kindness towards the unlottunate Lady, who had
been the victim of his seductive ants. He had been
informed that his Lordship intended to make the
Lady his wife, and he hoped it was tru-, because
it was the only reparation in his power to make
to the Lady ; that, however, was not the subject of the
present inquiry; the question was, what co npensstion
he ought to give to the husband ? If it be true that he
is about to link his fate with hers, after she has conde-
scended to become his mistress, it only shews that he
must have discovered virtues and attractions in addition
to her natural beauty, and that the losses of the plaintiff
must have been the greater. But what compensation
could a Jury give? A mine of wealth could not am
store peace of mind to a doating husband—all It .•
riches of Peru could not minister to a mind diseased,
and restore it to its pristine health. Let the Jury look
at the Lady, not in the degraded state as she then was,
but let them picture to their minds her appearance at
the altar—one of the loveliest of her sex. the idol of her
family, and adored by het husband, to whom she swore
to her GOD she would be true and faithful—and than
ask themselves what must be the loss of such a creature?
But, divesting his address of all romantic description.
he would ask them to look at the plaintiff's loss, as the
mother of his diddle:. In a moment he was wi-
dowed, and his children were thrown into a state of
orphanage. The memory of a m-thei's frailty would
poison iheir future lives, and follow them to their grays s.
It might be said, that there was no bleach of friendshi?
and no violation of hospitality. The defendant could
not deny that he had siolated the ties of civ.l society--
the ties that affection sweetened, and religion conse-
crated—and stamped on the children an orphanage mote
ctrea4sl than that of death. Because the tie of ft iied.
[ ship was wanting, was that a mitigation tot the crime?—
As a soldier, had he possessed a chivalrous and honour-
, able- spitit, be would have guarded the honour of a
brother soldier's wife. Another defence probably would
be set up, that the defendant has not the: means of pay.

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