Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1859-07-21
. THE LOST r X CO Il D
IL


A crowd Of busy idlers was gathered round
the guildhall at Riyerton, In England ana q
dense crowd, both Of workers and idlers, was
packed inside of Ii, especially in the Nisi
Prius court The spring assizes were being
held; they had commenced that morning, Mo1
day, and the great cause was on, Carr against
Carr. Not that the cause was anything so very
great in itself; only the good citisens Of River
ton had chosen to take IL up and magnify it
into one. 1t turned upon tho legitimacy of
Robert Carr, now dead; If that could be proved,
his widow and children would inherit the for
tune of his grandfather; if not, that fortune
went to more distant relatives Squire Carr and
Robert Cars father twhose name was also
ROberD had written . document Upon his
death-bed to the effect that he had been mar
ried in Riverton, ut the church of St. James
the Less; but this document had been mislaid
until after the death of Robert Carr. His
widow found 1t, and dispatched it to Mr. Faun--
tleroy, the Riverton solicitor who was conduct
ing their cause. Mr. Fauntleroy, upon receipt
at the important letter, sent . clerk to search
tae register Of Sc. james the Less, and there
the marriage was found. duly entered. This
was the previous autumn, and Mr. Fauntleroy
hugged himself and buoyed up Mrs. Carr with
the certainty Of success; when, just upon the
assizes, the unsccountable discovery was made
that no entry Of the marriage was in the regis
ter Mr.. Fauntleroy-though he had not him
self seen it-ssserted that It had been there.
and must have been taken out; and the other
SIDE held to it that the marriage had never
taken place, and the entry had never been
there. IT,. ... \ = ~ IA ! I
The trial came on about two in the afternoon,
and It progressed equably up to FIVE; then there
aFVse the fierce discussion ching the register
Mr. Fauntleroy's counsel, Sergeant Wrangle.
declaring that the marriage was there up to
very recently; and Mynn and Mynn's counsel,
Sergeant siftem, ridiculing the assertion,
AynR and Mynn being the lawyers for Squire
: Can. The judge ordered the register to be
1t was brought into court and examined
The marriage was not there, neither was there
any sign Of its having been distracted. Law
renee Omer was called, Mr.. Fauntleroy's clerk,
and he testified TO having searched the register
seen the marriage, and copied tho names Of the
witnesses to it. In proof Of which he rendered
his pocket book, where the names we're written
in pencil. -..- -.-.- FL
cp rose Sergeant Siftem. "what day was
this, pray2"
II forget the precise day. 1t was in Octo-
ber," ...--- r. -, ...,.....-..
. And so you think you saw the marrisee of
2 Robert Carr and Martins Ann Hughes there ?'I
VAN am sure i,s saw IL replied Mr.. omsr
-" looked over the book alone Hunt, the
clerk efthe church, was present in the vestry Z"
IL must appear to the jury as a singular
thing that you only, and nobody else, should
have seen this mysterious entry" continued
Sergeant Siftem. .s.
Perhaps nobody else looked for ID; they d
have seen it if they had, shortly returned the
witness, who felt himself an aggrieved man,
and spoke like one, since half the town had
publicly accused him Of having gone down to
St James,s in his sleep, and seen the entry in
dream alone E.' 1890 IN. =
Does ii not strike you, witness. a. being
extrsordinary that this one particular entry,
Professed to have been seen by your eyes, and
by yours alone, should have been abstracted
eI book safely kept under lock and key 2''
said Sergeant Siftem. " L am mistaken il il
would not strike an Intelligent man as being
akin TO an impossibility. .r..."
No, it does not strike me 50. But events,
hard Of belief, happen sometimes. / swear the
marriage was in the book last October; why il
Il not there now is the extraordinary part of
the affair"
Ii was no use to cross-examine the witness
fLFther; he was cross and obstinate, aud per-
4 sisted m his story. Sergeant Siftem dismissed
him; and Hunt was called, the clerk Of the
zkchnreh, who came hobbling in.
h The old man ramblsd in his evidence, but
the point of it was that he didn't believe any
abstraction had been made, not he, it must be
farce to suppose 1t, crotchet Of that grea,
lawyer, Fauntleroy; how could the register be
touched when he himself kept il sure and
sacred, the key Of the safe in hiding place
in the yestry, and the key Of church hanging
up In his own house, outside his kitchen door,
HIS rector said il had been robbed and in
course he couldn't stand out to his face as il
hadn't, but he were upon his oath now, and
must speak the truth without shrinking.
Sergeant Wrangle rose. Did the witness
mean 10 tell the court that he never saw OF
read the entry of the marriage,
No he never did. He heard say il were there
but he never looked.
But you were present when the witness
Omer examined the register?' persisted Ser
gesnt Wrangle.
Master 0mer wouldn't ha' got to examine
IT. unless had been there, my lord Judge and
jury"
retorted Hunt to Sergeant wrangle. "Iw~
sitting down in the vestry, a nursing of INV
leg, which were worse than usual that day; /,
always is in damp weather, and"
9" Confne yourself to evidence" interrupted
the Judge. -
"Well, your reverencss, was nursing Of
my leg while Master 0ner loOke ed into the book
don't know what he saw there; he didn' .a v;
and when he had done looking, locked it safe
up again" r.-
. Did you see him make an extract from it9',
demanded Sergeant Wrapgle. s
Yes, your worship, / saw him n writing
something down in his pocket book" =
- Have you ever intrusted the kew of the safe
TO strange handsp'
a. wouldn't do such thing, your reyerent
wOrships. ! never gave it TO nobody, and
never would; there's not q soul knows where il
Is to be found, but me, and the rector, and the
other clergyman, Mr.. Prattleton, what comes
often to do the duty. / couldn't say a. much
for the key Of the church, which sometimes goes
beyond my custody, for the rector allows one OF
two Of the young college gents 10 90 in and play
the organ. By token, one on 'em-the quietest
the pair, it were, too-fung in that very key
on to our kitchen foor. and shiversd our catis
beautlful chaney saucer into seven atoms, and
my missis-" -
. That is not evidence" again interrupted
the judge
Nothing more apparently, that was evidence.
could be got from the witness, 90 he was dis
missed
Call the Reverend Mr.. Wilberforce.
The Reverend Mr.. Wilberforee, rector of St
James the Less, minor canon Of kiyertou
Cathedral, head-master of the collegiate school
came forward.
= You are the rector of St. James the Less, u
said Sergeant Wrangle. as s"
'' am, replied Mr.. Wilberforce. -
" Did you ever see the entry of Robert Carr
marriage with Martha Hughes in the churc I