The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1867-06-17
A Mild Lunatic - Singular Story
Of Property aud Hanaaa Rights.

There Is no country in the world, says
the Philadelphia Ledger, where the
rights Of property are more thoroughly
protected than in Great Britain. But it
is really odd how completely the rights
of man are subjected to this, even where
he happens to be the possessor OF prop
erty. The following case will well IL
lnstrate what we mean, and show how
completely man is subsidized to means,
and treated as merely the life occupant
of 90 much property: Mr.. Tovey, the
son of Colonel Tovey, was young man
of twenty four in 1885, when at some
German watering place, where he was
sojourning, he fell in love with young
lady, and wished to marry. her. Instead
of this, however, his father ordered him
home to England and shut him up in q
lunatic asylum. To all this he patiently
submitted, and after o few years his
sisters kept house, and he lived with
them at place called GOring
where he kept his boat, went to
church, and lived decorously and
hsrmlessly. He had himself been edu-
Gated at Oxford and intended for the
church, 30 he carefully observed both
Sundays and the Saints day. And thus
he lived, quite at his liberty, until the
oath of February, 1866. Then he was
placed under retraint again, about the
time that an uncle of his was taken
sick, who died on the 4th of March,
leaving him heir to ten thousand dol
lars q year, and some three hundred
thousand dollars in ready money, which
had been accumulated to purchase
other landed property. Of this sum
s., 500 was devoted to keeping him COM
Portable, and under the strict watch of
custodiaus, as it would seem to allow
him every sort of liberty but that of
getting married. So he was removed
to Scarborough, and allowed to go
where he pleased sll day, on condition
that he shsuld report every evening at
nine o'clock to his medical guardian, on
his word of honor-a promise it will be
seen he faithfully kept.
On the 2Sth of last July he met o
young lady with whom he managed to
become acquainted, and, after court
ship of month he was married to her
on the 9th of last August, with the
full consent of the lady's' friends, but
without the knowledge of any of his
relatives or keepers, and he spent the
wedding day with his bride. at nine
o'clock at night, however, he carefully
kept his word, reported to his keepers,
and next day was spirited away and
not allowed further to see his bride. BY
the laws of England lunatic cannot
marry, and the real contest is, whether
he is really married at this time; and the
case is brought into the court by his
wife's brother, who claims for his sister
the right to his society, and her right
to take care of him if he needs care.
The case may be viewed in two or
three different lights, as to its essential
justice. His friends seem to regard 1T
from the property point of view simply,
in which a young lady has picked up a
weak-minded young man for the sake OF
his property, when in fact he was too
infirm of mind legally to contract mar
riage OF take care of his possessions.
There is no doubt that he mnst have
been weak-minded to have submitted
in so dOcile manner to keepers and re-
straints. Yet it is equally clear that
his keepers allowed him all possible lib
erty of doing harm, had he been vio-
lently disposed, and they trusted to his
sense of truth and honor implicitly.
So far as he was personally concerned,
little seems to have been apprehended. !.
1t looks as if it was to take care of his
property that he was treated as luna
tic. rr-.
Whatever there was weak in this mans
mind, now 81 or IS years old, would be
best cared for by the society Of wife
of his own choice. But the property 7
His friends. no doubt, thought that
wodld be best protected by his sisters or
by chancery, and therefore, to secure
that, his marriage must be set aside, his
only chance of perfect recovery taken
away, and he held a prisoner to large
fortune. Truly money has its cares, and
property its own responsibilities. Who
would have such q fortune at such n
pricei