East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1860-05-10
rhc scotch Marriage Laws---Extraordi.
nary Cose.


In the Edinburgh Court Of Sessions
OH Friday, Mrs. 'esatherihe Mitchell, or
Leslie, entered suit to have il declared
that she was wife Of the late Rev.
Cathcart Leslie, minister of the parish Of
Borthwick, near Edinburgh. In 1922 an
attachment arose between the parties,
and they entered into an engagement Of
marriage in December Of that year. Mr..
Leslie, who was a student Of divinity,
was then about % years of age, and the
fact OF the engagement of the parties
was communicated by both of them to
the pursuers father in 1923, and was APP
proved Of by him. 1t was recommended
that the marriage should be deferred till
Mr.. Leslie became a minister. He be-
come assistant to a minister in 1927, and
in that year the two formally accepted OF
each other as husband and wife, but it
was agreed to keep the marriage secret
till he was placed in church. There
was no evidence of this alleged verbal
contract, except the change of the terms
of their correspondence, wherein Mr..
Leslie invariably subscribed himself as
her husband, and used the name and sub
seription of Catherine Leslie, and this
they continued TO do for thirty years,
letters being interchanged between them
at least weekly. Mr.. Leslie occasionally
made remittance to her, although these
were limited, in consequence of his cir
cunstances being very embarrassed
The letters were peculiarly ailectionate
and intimate. Itwas not till July, 1916,
that Mr.. Leslie was presented to the par
ish and church of Borthwick, when she
earnestly entrested him to take her home
as his wife. This he profcssed himself
unable to do in consequence of his pecu-
mary circumstances, his income being
quite inadequate, after providing in some
measure for the claims upon him, for the
proper maintenance Of wife. Ulti-
mately in May, 1856, the pressure of his
debts, many of which were not very
creditably incurred, and which amounted
TO between $1,000 and $4,000, led him
to the resolution to flee the country, and
he committed suicide in Lancaster, it was
understood, while on his way to America
or Australia
The Lord Ordinary (Ardmiltan) de-
cided that no marriage had been proved,
notwithstanding the acknowledgment in
the correspondence. She reclaimed
against this judgment, and the Court, on
Friday, decided by majority that the
parties had been married according to the
law of Scotland, while Lord Deas thus
explained: "'The leading principle is that
consent makes marriage. No form or
ceremony, civil or religious, no notice be-
fore or publication after, no cohabitation,
no writing, no witnesses even, are essen
tial to the constitution of this, the most
important contract which two private par
ties can enter into whether as effecting
their domestic arrangements or the pecu-
MARY interests of themselves and their
families. Matrimonial consent may be
verbally and cffectually interchanged
when no third party is present; and if it
can be proved, even at the distance of
years, by subsequent written acknowl
cdgment or oath of reference, or in any
other competent way, that such consent
had been seriously and deliberately given,
the parties will be held to have been mar
ried from that time forward, whether they
have cohabited in the interval or not
Living together and being in habit and
repute husband and wife will, in like man
ner, constitute marriage, without inquiry
whether the parties meant it or not."--
English paper.