Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1859-03-29
The Fry Divorce Case.
HARRISBURG, March 16.

A protest from Mr.. HORACE b. Fry, O
which the following is copy, was laid before
the Committee on Divorce on "Wednesday
evening:
Protest Of Horace B. Fry against The Report ofM,
! Mcyority Of the Dirorce C0mnuftee.
| The memorial of Horace Fry, of the city
| OF Philadelphia. to the Honorable the House
| of Representatives of the State of Pennsyl-
vania.
Whereas, / am duly advised that the Di-
| vorce Committee of your honorable body
has adopted and will report the annexed
| Preamble and Act for the divorce of myself
and my wife Emily l.. Fry, submit this my
solemn protest against that action.
| protest against the said preamble, mas
much as it takes no specific cognizance what
ever of the petition of Mrs. Emily l.. Fry, re-
ferred by your honorable body to the Divorce
Committee, and upon the allegations Of which.
being the only sworn CEASES for the divorce
prayed for by her ii was a duty reasonably
expected of the committee to report. while
assigning any causes whatever therefor. The
committee, by ignoring the grave matters re-
cited in Mrs. f. l.. Fry's petition, have ignor-
ed the record confded to them by your hon
orable body; assumption of power, as
humbly submit, contrary to parliamentary
usage, violation of personal rights in this
instance, and as precedent fraught with
danger to the public interests. The allega-
tions in that petition are either true or false.
If true, your honorable body, as arLiter, aud
myself as the party affected by them, require
positive evidence of their truth. If they are
false, both the petition and the object sought
by it fall together.
protest against the assertion in the said
preamble, that my " happiness will be pro-
NOTED ~ by divorce under the circumstau
of the case.
respectfully but emphatically deny the
right of IA Committee of the Legislature TO
constitute itself Judge OF what will promote
my happiness, and to impose upon me the CON
sequeuces of its Judgment.
protest against the assertion as untrue
and alone being the judge of the secrets
of my own heart; which, while / am free
citizen of this Commonwealth and guiltless of
crime, there is no power under the COnstitu-
ton competent to determine, and TO use as
the basis of q proceeding affecting my charac-
ter and my domestic relations.
| aver most solemly-an averment which
no enc has any warrant to gainsay-that SO
far from my happiness being promoted Iy
Your act divorcing myself and wife, it will be
the most grirvons afllction which the exer-
else Of your will can impose upon me.
Further, do protest, that so far from "the
interests of the public and the morals of So
ciety" being promoted, as the preamble al
leges, by such an act OF the Legislature, it
will strike at the very root OF both; at the
integrity of that holy compact upon which
not only the morals, but the existence of So
ciety depend | pray that il be remembered
that my wife has made certain very serious
charges against me rs a husband. not one of
which, is it pretended, has been borne out by
any plausible testimony, whatever; while to
a great extent they are utterly improbable;
in fact, clearly selEcontradictOry; and ia
some instances actually proved TO be wifully
and wickedly false by unimPeachable wit
nesses. While. too. your halls have been poll
luted with anonymous libcls upon me, print
ed aud laid upon your desks, and designed by
the most Infamous suggestions to assist the
attempt against which | am defending all
that is dear to me; while this Is the fact L
am yet denied any process to compel the
production of testimony, which L have as
surcd your committee, who present this act
of divorce, is within your jurisdiction, and |
to make evident all that equity may
demand in this case. am thus denied, say, |
the right accorded even To "A criminal, To |
have whatever may be alleged against me |
by the best possible proof, and |
similarly rebutted.
Yet. under all these unprecedented disad-
vantages, / have proved beyond all contradie-
ton that the wife who presents herself before
you, ltnpeucuinS CouuuNif
formed an Illicit attachment for another man,
only two weeks after her marriage With me,
and held, while under my own roof, sur
rcptitioas and amalory correspondence with
him. of the most shameful nature. That her
Dnly supporter in her present proceeding
,ginSt me. Is father. who by his own cou-
'esSion, makes a merit of having offered no |
obstacle TO that correspondence; and her
'nly witness was that very clandestine lover,
proved To b. such alike under his baud and
ler own. This is the true state of the case
before your honorable body.
submit the question. II my wife had gone
o the utmost extent OF criminality. and bad
hen applied for divorce GA gronad identi-
al with those now before you; aud even II IL
we're admitted by both Of us, that We coald
rot sgaia live togeiher--I submit the qaes-
ion, and entreat your serious considrra-
ion Of it in all its bearings. wis ther yon
would. In such an extreme case a. that BE- com
,etent 10 affirm that my happiness would be
promoted by divorce. aud that therefore
I should be granted at her instance and con-
rary To my opposition. II this be reason
or divorcing man against bis consent that
he Legislature thinks bis happiness would be
hertby promoted-who l. any loager safe In
lis married relations. IL is only nerSiful for
J faithisss wife 20 desert her husband mine
las done, present charges against him, not
me proved true and some proved false, and
hen your honorable body becomes qualified
o decide that the husbands happiness re-
laircs dlys rec. and you grant it Ia opposi-
ioa To his most solemn rcmonstFaasee
What. AK. i biz eonjagal security. faith, or
Ionorg What arr the morals Of the family
lrcle or OF the grsat public TO gain BY such
principle and saeh proceeding A. thisf
Further; protest against the very hrss