Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1857-1865, 1858-08-27
obligations fraudulently aud basoly i'm

But when | found you % loving and be
loved, and learned that hair would turr
the scale against you, in the estimation Of
your lover I thought--and correctly toe
that you would sooner give one thous-
and dollars for this certificate, than let Mr.
Lee know that you are married, even
though you thought it was in jest; and
knowing, as you do, that he would not
marry you after divorce was obtained,
am sure you will not hesitate to pay that
price"
For some minutes, Helen sat with her
face buried in her hands, and the tears
trickling between her fingers, She had
borne up firmly, during this trying dialogue,
until the moment when she was reminded
Of the effect this unfortunate event in her
life would have upon Mr.. Lee. She saw
that effect in all its force, and felt how
idle would be the attempt to explain, to
his satisfaction, the folly of her own con-
duct and the yillainy of Burton's This
reflection, for time, bowed her proud
spirit, and she shed tears of shame and
sorrow; and Burton, seeing her thus
hnmbled, smiled in triumph, and believed
the game his own. Bat the Helen Berne
who sat before him, apparently crushed
by the blow he had inflicted, was not the
Helen Berne he had known in former days
thoughtless, volatile and, seemingly, heart
less. Experience had given her wisdom
mental suffering had awakened her sym
pathies; reflection upon past follies had
aroused all the moral energy Of her nature,
and steadfast in principle, she was pre-
pared to suffer long and deeply sooner
than swerve from the narrow path of
rectitude. And when she again looked
up, her countenance was composed and
her voice steady, as she thus replied:
"You are mistaken, Mr.. Burton, if you
suppose that my future happiness depends
upon a marriage with Mr.. Lee, and still
more mistaken if you believe that would
pay you one dollar for that certificate. 1
know that its existence may cause me much
unhappincss, but not half so much as the
fter-consciousness that / had DESTROYED
it in order that might, by fraud, accom-
plish selfish object. My father is not
here to advise me, but think know my
duty, and my first step will be to inform
Mr.. Motley that you have the certificate
of fraudulent marriage, and my next will
be to institute legal proceedings to cancel
the marriage, if there has been one, and
to bring you to justice, if there has not
And now, sir, that we understand each
other, there is no need for farther con
ference, and warn you against any at
tempt to approach me again on this, or
any other subject"
She passed him without further notice
and retreated to her room, strangely agita
ted at the thought that she had, probably,
been wife, for eighteen months, without
knowing it, and the wife of dissolute
wretch, disowned and disinherited by his
worthy father. Helen had turned over a
new page in the catalogue of sensations
and, from the book of experience, had
learned the additional lesson, that every
act of indiscretion is, sooner or later, fol-
lowed by its appropriate punishment
And yet, severe as was the punishment,
she shuddered at the thought that it might
have been aggravated thousand fold, had
she, in ignorance, married another, and
become the wife of two living husbands.
But, might not Burton's story be sheer
fabrication This question she asked her
self, again and again; and the same mental
answer was given--it must be true; there
is the certificate in due form, and then the
circumstances of the gathering of the
crowd, and the presence of the Magistrate
these could not have been accidental
and groan Of agony was the comment
upon the startling conviction. Yes, there
was the certificate which the magistrate
would hardly have given of fraudulent
marriage, and Burton would surely not
have demanded it as proof of an illegal
proceeding; and view it in whatever light
she could, the conviction was still the same,
that she was wife. 1t was true that Mr..
Motley could bear witness, in her behalf,
that the ceremony was jest, and was so
considered by the whole party, and even
SO treated by Burton himself; but how
ever avaiing such testimony might be in
a suit for divorce, it was not sufficient to
set aside the marriage without the inter
vention of the LEGISLATURE. Such was
Helen's reasoning, and when satisfied that