Star.
London, England, 1820-01-28 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

COURT OF CHANCERY, JANUARYV.

IX THE MATTER OF DEAN, A MINOiI, AND WARD OF

THE COURT.

MR. WETHERELL observed, that he had very little,
more to say in addition to what he had already sub-
mitted on a former occasion. Pursuant to his Lord-
ship's pet mission, r.everal new affidavits had been
filed, the contents of which he would merely stwe,
without any comment. Dr. Moore, Vicar cf
'Pancras, had tiled one, in which he fully confirmed
all had said in his first affidavit, adding this, that
when the banns were duly published, it no disco.
very was made, then the marriage would be legal,
ou which Mrs. Stables, with extreme anxiety, said,
" Oh, well then, let the publication be continued,"
meaning, of course, the publication of the banns.
The Doctor, whose conduct was above all praise,
;tiler the conversation was concluded, felt and de-
clared, on his con,cience, that in jus:ice to the very
populous and extensive parish to which he belonged,
he did not wish tliat any irregularity should be com-
mitted by himself or Curate, and therefore he stopt
the publication of the banns, -as his own impression
was, that the parties wiEhedji+r a clandestine marriage.
(On these words Mr. Wetherell laid much emphasis.)
Mr. and Mrs. Stables had also filed a new affidavit,
in which they gave a very :iifferent account of the
conversation, and observed, that as the Doctor was
then in i;reat pain, and very unwell, it was possible
he might have misunderstood the nature of what
passed, and they still persevered in declaring their
entire aversion to any clandestine marriage, and their.
utter ignorance of what attended the elopement,
which, if concerted, was quite concealed from them.
There was also the affidavit of John Coles, a post-
boy at Digi2leswade, in Bedfordshire, where the two
sons arrived in pursuit of the fugitives, and this affi-
davit more that the deponent, on being asked, told
the two sons that the fugitives had gone only fifteen
or twenty minute:: before thq arrived. There was an
affidavit from Mr. Carr, in which that gentleman
declared, that he had not the most distant idea of

any such conversation having taken place as did at
the house of Dr. Moore, on the 7th of December ;
neither did he know such conversation had taken
place, on the very day the elopement took place.
There was also an affidavit from the young man
himself. Such were the general discoveries made
by these new affidavits, and he now left tile whole
case in his Lordship's hands.

Mr. HEALD begitn by observing, that as Counsel I
for the defendants, he.had fet it his duty to bring
the whole facts of the case fully before the Court ;
not that he ever entertained any doubt of the proper
line of conduct which his clients had pursued, but
because it was their wish, and his also, to have the
platter sifted to the very bran, in order to shew the
Public, most satisfactorily, that no subterfuge of any
kind was sought for. According to the first affi-
davit of Dr. Moore, it appeared that he asked how
the parties were described, and he was told. He
thought the Doctor should have gone on to detail
the whole conversation ; and he could tint help think-
ing that the Doctor was a volunteer in this case—
The LORD CHANCELLOR.—No-4 do not think so.
1 will not say whether Mr. and Mrs. Stables did so;
but this I will say, that here are parties trying to in-
volve a Clergyman in a most violent breach of his
duty. Dr. Moore is, I know, as excellent, amiable,
and worthy a Clergyman as the Church of England
can boast of; and I am bound to say, has done his
duty here in a most faithful and admirable manner ;
and I say still more, that by coming forward as he
has done, he has just done what every Clergyman
should do; for when any attempts are made on a
Clergyman, to induce him to a breach of his clerical
duties, that Clergyman becomes entitled to respect,
aye, and to very high respect also, from the Court,
for bringing it forward.
Mr. IIEA.LD agreed in this, and though he dis-
claimed a wish to make any insinuations against Dr.
Moore, still he thought the Doctor might have been
more accurate than he was.

Mr. SIIADWELL, on the same side, disclaimed the
mast distant intention to doubt the testimony of Dr.
Moore, but he thought it extremely probable, that
that Gentleman, from his indisposition, might have
mistaken the exact words of Mrs. Stables.
Mr. WETIIEREI÷ then entered into a very long
detail of the facts, and with much force refuted the
assertions made by Mr. Heald against his client. fle
then commented very fully on the affidavits which
had been filed, and contended, that all the asper-
sions cast on Mr. Carr, were as unfounded as they
wet e mean.

lie LORD CHANCELLOR, after going into the facts
of the case, observed, that Mr. Stables, who, front
all accounts, was a very worthy man, ougla net to
be suri.rised, if this Court called on him, titter the
two 2:-:tters ht, had written to Mr. Can, and die.so-
lemn wiscveration lie had made on the lt:th of De-
cember, that no clandestine maniage should take
place, to account for the circumstances under which
'Age was effected. As to principles of ho-