The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1873-10-18


THE following which we take from
the Couricr-Journal OF the Sd inst, we
give place in our columns, hoping that
some of our enthusiastic young friends
who are desirous,of matrimony may
be profited By liz perusal:
The realistic age, which has exploded
ancient legends, disproved traditions
and reversed the oldest caprices ol his
tory, has destroyed nearly all the ro-
nance of courtship 10y dragging II into
court. Judge Nelson, of Brooklyn,
New York, delivered the most extra
ordinary and unlleard-of opinion in a
recent case of brcach-ot-lGarriage-
promise which was tried before him.
a merchant named Alexander
Earle was sued for breach OF promise
by Miss RoXalena Homan, and Judge
Nelson, finding that the lady offered
no other rroof Of the contract Of mat
rinony except the fnct that she had
been Kissed by the aforesaid Earle, de-
cided that no words were necessary to
coiistitue IN engagement; that the
...sgleam of the eye, andthe conjunction
of the lips, are overtures where they
become frequent and protracted." The
Jury, thus instructed as to the laW,
gave Miss Homan $4,000 damages
the case was appealed, and the Court
of Appcals sustained the decision OF
the court below.
The flinty-hearted Judge, compared
with whom Judge Jefiries WIS hs lnild
as the moonlight drcnn OF maid OF
sweet sixteen on a midsummer night,
added, with all the acrid partiality OF
exasperating detail: ain an engage
ment to marry, the contract can be
entered into Between lovers without
his asking in words the question
whether she will marry him, and
without her answering in words that
she will do so. This contract
or engagement can. be made without
such words. If the facts and circum-
stances are sufficiently full and signifi-
cajit TO amount 10 the engagement,
were they or eonld they he articulate,
the spirit of the law sunpliea the lHck-
ing speech.R
And so for luxrialing in Roxalena's
"cye CLEANS" and Zip conjunctions,"
Sandy Earle il doomed tn pay the enOr-
nous price of fifteen Thousand dollars
Miserable lover. He had better fought
fifteen thousand dollars worth of Pa
cific Mail stock at two hundred and
fifty, and seen it drop to fifty the day
following, than paid so dear n price for
"eye-gleams, which are uansitory,
and lip coniunctions, whose sweetness,
though fraught with entwining bliss,
fade away like dream of tho morn
ing. A Grecian philosopher once re-
marked of IA little intrigue. that threat
ened to cost him Thousand talents in
gold, that lie did Not care to buy re-
pentance at so dear a price, and the
brooklyn merchant will probably con-
clude TO strike from his price list in
future those high-priced commodities
as "eye-glcamsn and zip conjunc-
tions.n
The decision OF the Brooklyn court
will be deatb-blow to all the romances
of love-making in New York. A
Young man with any regard for his
purse would IS soon think of getting
into a pirate-ship as into couitship
in the face of so terrible a decision.
NaOniight eerenades must go by the
board. and Pennsylvania ''bundling'
j. no longer TO be thought Of The
dead line of courtship which no hache-
lnr dare touch in future includes buggy
drives, sleigh-rides, .hand-squeezing,
s..e-clances at church, and lip-eon-
functions tchind the ball door. Cupid
Is literally Kicked out of court, and his
bpw and darts have been whitfield into
ignominions tooth-picks.