Morning herald., 1839-10-25

The Ehllus pnhu Tr0xc0y-s SCENES
TIA ia~s ACT.
II api ears that after obtai his unfortunate
victim 70 be his IT some fdture and dis
tant day, Peak was tolerably quiescent for two or
three .nonhs. Tie did urge the consume al ion
devoutiy be wished," all fond, ardent, and
cere lovers would have done; ~ was not simply the
possession Of Miss Wooa's person that he wanted; /;
il the securing seat ald knife aud fork a the
table o her falaes; il to obtain interest in the
business If possible; as that business nov be
coming Immensely profitable, through the united ex
crtioas oi the whole family.
Accordingly nc Kept visiting iae store three or
four times "A day sounding Miss ood about the time
when the marriage might best be consumaed I'M
known 10 the father, 10 him to evnce the
least anger and receive him (Peak) into the honse
soon after. He aso induced her, occasionally, to 20
out for walk with hin. in morning before the fa-
mily were up; and in this sneaking way kept up the
intercourse. But he never, like man, asked the
Of either parent to the marriage, and
opened his lips to them or the subject.
Thus things progressed until the morning Of Sun
day. the beginning fSepte nber, when he importuned
Miss w ood to name the day for marriage. Before
she did this, she made him promise that he would al
low her to remain in her fathers house long
her parents wished to have her with them. To tins
he readily consented il being all that he desired; he
having place TO take her 70, ater the marriage,
except a boarding house; and even was shifiless
and destitute that Mr. Leiyensen says he lent Peak
$50 to defray the expenses OF the wedding. He had
thus, even though good workman, when he chose
to work, made no provision for the future; and de-
sired nothing bet<er than to have mis- wife remain at
her father's and he have good home, plenty to
and drink and little nothing d. for A. He either
wished thus TO get a fat idle living, else he wish.
IN IN b2ck bnm and thOuf her m vktcf,
ease he would have acted, as indeed he has done,
though he had not the Common feelings of mai hood
about him; he'may choose which horn Of the diem-
rno he pcases 20 perch upon. And this was the fel-
low bxnkruh in pocket, sna fame, penny les SHIFT
less, I've had almost said shrtiess,) hairless, and
brainess, with an empty purse and Ia arnished name,
who meanly and clandestInelv stole from a happy
home. an old mans darling daughter; his only daught
er; the pride, the comfort, aud the hopes of his
declining years.
On the 5th of September then, Peak emnly pro-
missed Miss Wood THAI he would not desire her TO
leave her father after marriage and she consented
be married on SUNDAY, the 18th OF September The
arrangements wsre That the Rev John Is Clemson
should marry them his house, in Eleventh street
below Lombard street, at o'clock in the Dorning,
the parson being let into the that the whole
was clandestine affair. Miss Wood, however, did
leave her house until half past msrning and
married about o'clock al Mr.. Ciemsoa's house.
She stayed there scarcely a minute after the me re
ceremony was over, and on leaving there went al.
rectly and straight home; MIR Peak walked with
her To the cerner Of Fifth and Chesnut street, and
there left her to 60 home alone. He says that he
saw her again that day, hut did not walk with her
again, was he alone with her all that week. On
questioning him closely and repeatedly upon this
point, he says that he does not remember walking
with her after the marriage morning until Friday the
9th of September, the day she ran away from her
fathers house; neither does he remember being
alone with her again after the 18th until the 9th.
AZ Is not Ia be supposed fora moment, that he had
not plenty o opportunities tob alone with her, and
to consunmafe the marriage, lin a literal point of
~ a 4 % In do no maj ar Os4ou
will, for moment, suppose that his wife would not
have contrveI plenty OF opportunities for him TO
have done had he desired ~, n any true man would
have done; but II seems that he had desire do
that he had manly feeling about hips throughout
the whole transaction. lie himself told Ms that he
sought no such opportunity; that he never consam.
mated the marriage, the only night he slept
with her; and that she died. she had lived mai.
den, pure and spotess as the that in short
month will cover her humble grave.
Up To this time IL is most extraordinary that the
parents did not hear o the marriage suspect
any thing OF the kind; bnt it - nevertheless true
that u was not until Friday 9th of September that
the father first heard o' IT. About ten or eleven o.
clock that morning. he received anany ymeus letter
telling him that his daughter had been married. but
not saying To whom. Mr. Wood had been in a state of
great nervous excitement for some months previous
account of alterations his store and the
care Of his business. lie had also been on 20 New
York to establish branch confectionery, a short
time before; when here, he was informed by Mir
M'Gowsn, Of Philadelphia, that Mr.. Arlin had sto
len some of his (Wood'sl spoons. All this worried
him. Whilst in New York he went to the police Office
To about the spoon business; his dsughter the
deceased, was with him; when there he was told
that Arlin meant Tn prosecute hun and M Gowan for
conspiracy; he became alarmed throup his nervous
and ignorance of legal matters and returned 20
Philsdelphia, with Sarah Ann, a. fast as possible
without transacting the business that took him 10
New York This occurred M the period of the al
most Simultaneous arrival of the British Queen and
Great Western. on board of which latter vessel we
both father and daughter; the latter in the iul
blush and bloom of womanhood; she being then in
her twenty second year, her birthday falling ON the
18th of December
There were other circumstances also that were
calculated to render Mr. Wood nervous and exci,a-
BILE. He had been toling FOR 10 years and had only
obtained bare livisg Within the last two or three
years he had realized enough 10 warrant him in pur.
chasing the use, 1S7 Chesnut street. of Mr. Josiah
Randall for e30 600; of this amount he had paid
scarcely half; he had expended at least 1O 600 in
altering and improving the property 50 as to renoer
the most imposing asd finished confectionery in Phil.
adelphia ,He had expended near y a. much more In
elegant furniture for his establishment He had ut
got his grand plan for making fortune under weiah;
he beginning to realize the honest fruits &C an
Industrious life IN our rhes he would have
enough to retire from business and enjoy the ofum
cam digyifofs II life Hut care was now more than