Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1852-04-28
Breach of Promise of Marriage.

At the York assizes, on Friday, Hannah
Lucas sued William Blakey. The declara-
ton stated that the defendant promised to
marry the plaintiff and that he broke his
promise by marrying another woman. De-
fendant pleaded that he had never promis-
ed al all. MFR. Atherton stated the case
The plaintiff was young man, twenty-five
years of age, and of considerable personal
attractions. She resides at Lockwood near
Huddersfeld, with her mother. who is the
widow Of Mr., Lucas, hose-painter, The
a cloth-fnisher at Huddersfeld. In the
spring OF 1949 Mrs. Lucas resided in Hud-
dersfeld and it was then that the defend
ant first began to pay attention to the plain
tiff.
He replied to Mrs. Lucas for her con-
sent; and on making some inquiry as to
his character, she granted it, the defendant
declaring he was sincere, and that,in seek
ing wife, he did not want slave but
companion. He was not in quest of for
tune, and he had more than once declined
the opportunity Of marrying with fortune.
He continued to pay his addresses to the
plaintiff from May, 1S49, down to Novem-
Der of last year and in the latter month,
he, in manner that appeared to aggravate
the character of lis conduct and its injus-
tice, without making any communication
whatever to the plaintiff, or her mother, or
any member of her family, contracted mar
iage with Miss Lister, and he did not dis
close that fact until concealment became
impossible. The defendant had written
several letters to the plaintiff, the first Of
which was dated June Is, 1949:
dearest Hanna. You will think have
forgotten you altogether, but | assure you,
love, l have not for with the poet. can
truly exclaim,
absence makes the heart grow fonderp"
TLaughter, In another letter he wrote
"Never was the sign Of an inn more well
come to weary traveller than your letter,
which | received or Sunday last, was 10
me. As traced the characters, | could
almost imagine that | heard your sweet
voice repeating the words it contained, the
sound of which still echoes in my ears like
distant music" Loud laughter,
In third letter the defendant stated that
the plaintiff was dearer to him than his own
existence, and signed himself "Your afec-
tionate love, William" These were spec
linens of the defendants letters in prose
but he afterwards found that he could not
do justice to his subject in prose, and there
fore he resorted to the sublimilies of poe
try. He then addressessed her IN the fol-
lowing acrostc:
s'W hen wilt thou return, my love2
| innocent as the turtle dove,
l. ike that lambkn full of play,
l. lightly skipping on the way?
| n the groves where warblers sing,
A II harmonious to the spring,
M ay we join the joyful ring.
b lack as winter would all be,
l. ost in irksome, without thee;
A II confessed by loves alarms,
X indest, come into my arms
4 vermore would be thine,
eS, my love, and only thine"
Laughter. After this the defendant re-
turned to prose again, and then he broke
out in another poetic strain similar to the
above:
''W lit thou, my dearest. be 50 kind,
| n love to ease my tortured mind
l. est by delays my reason fly:
/. owe longs lis object to enjoy.
thee is centred oil my care,
A nd all my joys, thou charming fair.
NJ US, I be left to black despair?
B lest is she whose beauty fair
l. inks with such charms virtue rare.
A Il want is, may be
k indy loved, fair one by thee!
f. lse life's blank, do declare:
Y es, may love thee, charming fair"
TRoars oflaughter. He contended that
this was case for damages, and called up:
on the jury to discriminate and give such
damages as were proper in this case. Mr..
Sergeant Wilkins, in his address to the jury
said he was not going for one moment to
cast any asperslons either on the plaintiff,
or her mother He admitted there could
be no doubt the defendant had behaved
ill-had broken his promise-and the plain
tiff was entitled to a verdict But what
were the circumstances Why, the de-
fendant, at % years of age, was proved to
have failed over head and ears IN love at
the first moment; and he would say to the
young ladies in court, never give much
heed to young men who express themselves
in poetry. Laughter. He had done
wrong, but what had the young lady lost
For that was the question. She had lost
a silly young man, who, instead Of tell
ing her in plain terms that he loved her,
breaks out in a rhapsody
''My lady fair,
do declare,
My grace and air"
1roars of laughter and all that sort of
thing. Let the jury then judge OF the ex-
tent of the loss she had sustained, and
give such damages as twelve honest men
ought to give. The learnedjudge summed
up, telling the jury the only question was
how much he ought to pay for this breach
of promise. Verdict for the plaintiff-dam-
ages. 945.-English paper.
An Army of Wives.
The suppression of the Slave trade in
Western Africa by the English has devel-
oped some singular facts. Lieutenant
Forbes of The Navy who had been sent out
by the Queen, visited King Dahomey, one
of those chieftains who set out periodically
for the purpose of capturing his neighboIs
and selling them into slavery. Lieut.. F.
writes that this King has no less than figh-
teen thousand 1ripeS, and in order that some
idea of his captures may be given, states
that the kInp's wives are notable fiuhterS & |