The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1847-02-02 00:00:00

MATRIMONIAL ADVERTISEMENT.

On Thursday last, Mr. Austen, the proprietor of Peele's
Coffee-houSe and Hotel, waited upon the Lord Mayor at -
the Mansion-house, London, for the purpose of repre-
senting to his Lordship a certain description of annoyance .
to which he had been subjected since last August, and
which was calculated to do much mischief to the estab-
lishment.

Mr. Austen stated that an advertisement appeared in .
the Manchester Guardian on the 26th August. last,
headed "Matrimony," and requesting that answers might
be sent addressed to "T. A. D., Peele's Coffee-house,
Fleet-street, London." He did not think it necessary to
notice the liberty taken with his house until letters began
to arrive directed to "T. A. D." Ho then wrote to the
editor of the Manchester Guardian, complaining of the
insertion of the unauthorised reference to his house, and
publication was at once gin to the denial. Answers
continued, notwithstanding, to pour in, and some of them
were to all appearance the effusions of respectable women,
who seemed to place reliance upon the candour of the
writer, and to deal with the utmost explicitness on the
subject of their own condition, prospects, and personal_
recommendations.

The Lord Mayor said the observations of Mr. Austen
brought to his mind the fact that Corder, the murderer,
had obtained a wife by means of an advertisement ; so
that ladies who trusted to that delicate sort of introduction,
might meet with partners who would not hesitate to per-
petrate the most atrocious of all offences.
Mr. Austen said that one of the letters which had been
_ _

directed to " T.A.D." surprised him very much. It pro-
fessed to be the writing of the brother-in-law of a young
lady of moderate personal attractions and pretty good
property, and it invited the advertiser to hiS house: to see
the lady, who was to be kept in total ignorance of the
object of the introduction; so that if a mutual liking was
not likely to arise from the acquaintance, a termination -
could Le at once put to it without the least chance of in-
flicting pain.
The Lord Maykr.—You, of course, refused to deliver
up those letters ?_

Mr. Austen.—Most certainly I did, my Lord. Applica-
tion was made to me for the lettersaddressedto "T.A.D.,"
and a solicitor of respectability called upon me to demand..
them peremptorily ; but I not only indignantly refuied to
delivtr up one of them, but I told the person who applied
to me that I should hold him up to public contempt for
engaging in so disxraceful a transaction ; for being, in fact,
involved in the disgusting conspiracy.
The Lord Mayor.—You did perfectly right.-
Mr. Austen said, that since the advertisement appeared
and had been contradicted in the Manchester Guardian,
a matrimonial advertisement had appeared in a London
newspaper of very great circulation and respectability,
referring ' " A.Y. " at Peel's Coffee-house." It had
been ascertained that Mr. •` A.Y." in search of a wife,
was no other than Mr. "T.A.D." who .had tainted LI;
pages of the Manchester Guardian, and he begged that
his Lordship would let him know what was tfie Most ad-
visable course to be adopted before a magistrate to put as
end to so injurious a system. The fellow, no doubt, cal-
culated something on the fact or the pretence stated in
his advertisement, that he belonged to the legal profee:.
sion, for exciting apprehensions as to his hostility. He,
stated in the newspaper that he was one of that class,
5 feet 11 inches high, and proportionately.stout ; that he
would be found very useful to widow ladies who might be
entitled to property from their deceased husbands' estates,
or the estates of others, and that he would exclusively
devote his attention to the comforts of any lady with whom
he might be united. (Laughter.)
The Lord Mayor said, he- did not believe that Mr.
Austen could have adopted a better course for the pre-
vention of any mischief to his establishment, than that
of complaining publicly that his house was stigmatized by
being made a reference for advertisements from matrimo--
nial adventurers. He thought that the mere statement
would have the desired effect. If, however, there should
would be any repetition of such offenailance
probly s
conduct,ab Mr. A
would call at the justice-room,
ceive advice to pursue another course ; and it-might thm
be necessary. with the Vie* of setting the matter at rent_
to publish till the curious (tom/mote which-had fallen 6-!
Vs Laud d 6.