The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1865-12-05
a4ashrille Aniuu.
WIN. CAMER0S 4 90. PaslIshsFs.
TrEsDAY. DEcEMBER ). Is.
THE ROMANCE OF A MEDIUM.
The Love Life of DIR. z. n. Kane.
His Letters TO and Secret Marriage
with Miss Margaret Fox.

MS ActAGts 20 anu SeCTet marriage
with Miss Margaret Fox.
The literature of love is entitled to the
best place on all the shelves. Love is the
golden theme Of every language-the only
one to whose charm there Is no exception
that enchains the thought and delights the
fancy Of ali ages, classes aud conditions OF
men and women. The love stories Of real
life are those that have the deepest interest.
[ However exquisitely the poet or the novel
lst may mould his hction-with whatever
force or nicely Of delineatiOn he may depict
his persons and tell US the secrets of their
souls-he eau never give to fiction that
height 0f interest OF power that every story
has The moment We believe il 10 be true
the moment We know that its events and
parsons are real. It is this faith in tAs;r
reality that has perhaps brought down
through 50 many ages and still keeps alive
Some Of the Oldest love stories Of the human
race. 1t is certainly this that has given Vi
tality to the loves Of Abela1d and Heloise.
Who does not read the love history of Sir
William Temple, or the story of Horace
Nslpole and Miss Berry, with more interest
| than they can any mere invention
Another history not unlike to these is dis
closed in a volume Of love letters lust pub
lished by Carleton, Of which, it is ssld, fifty
thousand copies are already called fOr. This
story resembles in various respects all the
stories alluded to-that Of Aboard, of Wal
pole, Of swim for his stells and Of the Che
! Waller Wykotf for Miss Gamble. Il draws
the curtain and lays before the eve Of the |
world peculiar chapter in the life Of dis !
tingUishe1 man and a singular family his |
| tory. There is the usual romantic perVer- |
sity Of the passion at the very outset Of the |
story. The persons were Dr. Z. X. Kane, /
Of the United States Navy, whose Arctic |
discoveries have a worldwide fame, and /
Miss Margaret Fox, well known as one of /
The original Rochester rappers or sine
dlums" Of spiritual communication.
One day-tO begin at the beginning-the i
/ Doctor went to one OF the seances Of the /
raPpers in Philadelphia. 'Fhers ito use his
/ own Words) be saw a little priestess, cunning
IN the mysteries Of her temple, and weak in
everything but the power with which she
played her part. A sentiment almost Of
pity stole over his worldly heart as he saw
through the Disguise Can il be that one so
young, 80 beautiful, 20 passionate, and yet
/ 20 kind-heorted can be destined forsuch a
life ? These were his thoughts. Thereupon !
he went 10 work and did all that true kind
hess could do to gether confidence" and in
doing this he lost his heart, and fell ire
irievably in love. IE
The Doctor is said to haze declared that
I
| lady his wife. He told her plainly that 'sit
/ was no life for her" to be there-so constant
/ ly in the public gaze He Eas thereaftsr at
the seances every day, aud every day his
interest IN the sensitive medium grew
stronger. His attentions of various kinds
were constant, and his desire was always
that Margaret should relinquish her life %
Medium because "she was lifted for better
things" InalFthis we see q true and noble
sraf Tr- i |
oi Margaret, aad the constant theme OF his
letters TO her is chow much l wish that you
would quit this life Of dreary sameness and
suspected deceit" He was in constant tor
ture through his sensitive, delicate tender
ness for her. at was such pity-it was 50
repulsive, so abh0rrent TO refinement to be
exposed 10 such associations" Finally the
Fox family gave way 10 the importunites
Of the lover, but apparently not until he
and Margaret were betrothed. Then she |
was sent 70 a school Of his choosing, and to
reside with family Of his relatives. He
went on his Arctic voyage, and they were
to be married on hIs return and make a we'd
ding trip TO Italy. How many Arctic DAYS !
were gilded by the thoughts Of THAT Italian
journey
But all this time DR.. Kane's attachment
for Miss Fox seems to have been a secret 70
his immediate family. He wrote to her:
There is but one life in this world, that of
seli-approval;" and yet he was slave 10
the approval Of others. He had felt keenly |
all that was least refined in her position,
but his love enabled him to bear what he /,
knew others, without that tender reason,
would sneer at. But though the engage
ment was partially a secret DR.. Kane cor )
responded with Miss Fox constantly while
absent through q confidential friend, and
this person regarded her as the loctor's
aflianced wife. The story of this engage-
ment erept into the papers and wounded !.
the pride Of the Doctors relatives. lie had ! .
not therefore miscalculated its effect upon
them when he judged it best to keep the !
engagement secret.
DR.. Kane was absent from May, 1858, till
October, 1855. His vessel came up New
York bay, and Margaret was in the city at
the time. She heard the cannons that
greeted his arrival, and in fever Of impa-
thence she waited for him TO come to her.
All that day, that evening, all night and !,
the next day she waited and waited in vain.
Then he sent word that he would come | :
soon. There was great trouble in his
family over this match. IL was beset on
all sides by remonstrances, and so on.
His messenger asked also, 10 IS said, for the
letters that hsd been written by the Doctor
ON the third day the Doctor came and Miss
Fox now refused 10 see him; but relented
upon earnest entreaty, and the lovers met
once more. But the marriage was to be
POSTPONED were to meet "as sister /,
and brother" So much the lover had
Welded to the pride Of his family.
At this point the story becomes somewhat : !
painful. We see the misery OF the two low
ers as they are victimized TO the shallow
conventional pride Of ambitious relatives.
The Doctors own thoughts appear in this
scrap Of one Of his letters:
once upon q time there were certain !
crystal vases in fairy land kept bright by
the hands of little spirits. When burnished
they shOne like the stars Of heaven. You
would suppose that each OF the fairy crys-
tails contained some pure and beautiful OBJ ]
iect. such as young howers kissed by dew !
drops, or golden fruit just riPened on the S
bourh. But this was not the case In the 4
GENRE Of each vase, surrounded by mould I
and rust and mildew, was lOathsome 7
toad"
Thus the lover showed, however brilliant ,
and splendid his life was, be did not feel ell 5
right At heart. But despite this broken en- '
gsgemsnt, the Doctor could not separate y
himself from his fair one, until the pru- :
denee of Miss FoX's friends required that a
she should not be visited by a mau whose '
friends thought her unit to be his wife. y
Then came another engagement, made with Z
8 ring that had been found in the Arctic re- y
gions, aud as g sequel to this the informal d
marriage Of Doctor Kane and Margaret Fox
comprised ia his declaration made purpose 3
Iy before witnesses, Maggie is my wife, I
and ! am her husband wherever We are, /
she is mine aud I am hers !" marriage L
that the Doctor himself considered 50 real !
and valid that be subsequently wrote 70 the j
lady as nv WIFE, q
These letters are interesting in themselves I
AZ the love letters Of distinguished man | q
bat, since they are 50 evidently private, the '
question VIII naturally be asked, why are {
tnev now published The answer is, 20 ]
yindicnte the fair name equally Of DR.. Kane I
and Mrs. Kane 20 prove to the world that /
Mrs. Kane was not an artfUl intriguer, en- l
trapping distinguished man, and also that /
Dr Kane really regarded her as his wife. !
This has. apparently, been made necessary Z
nv the course OF Dr.. Kane's family. Fol ! I
losing out their former objections 10 Miss !
Fox. Ihev have given 70 Mrs. Kane only / I
martial recognition. Dr.. Kane left money ! I
tp trust for the support Of has vile, and 9th {
arvrise left ample means but it is said, in ! !
tbe preface 70 the letters, that his relatives
bsve succeeded ia Withholding from his wife /
even the sum left for her support, and have !
otberwise brought her character in question.
ms letters are now given, thsrefoee, 10 let
oll know the real state Of the case.-N. j. I
HsrIld-
JosEu, HuL.-We observe in the pro- /
.esdiurs OF the Georgia Convention, thst /
,bo Hon. Joshua Hi1 continues to main
tain his consistency as an unswerving