The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1873-06-25
The WalwOrth Tragedy.
ABOUT THE SECRET MARRIAGE AND THE
CAUSES WHICH LED TO THE DIVORCE.

CAUSES WHICH LED TO THE DIVORCE.
Mansfield T. Walworth was thrown
into the society of his step-sisters, af-
ter his fathers marriage to the widow
of Colonel Hardin, and without the
idea occurring to their seniors that they
would ever dream of being anything
nearer to one another than brother and
sister. Mrs Walworth was strict
Catholic, and the marriage between
the young people would have been ex-
tremely distasteful to her, since, in the
views Of the churches, this relationship
by her new marriage was such as to
forbid the forming of closer ties; but
the young people knew nothing of these
ecclesiastical regulations, and cared
little for aught save themselves, and so
grew to love each other strongly-so
deeply, indeed, that the passion after a
while obscured their reason. Then
they secretly plighted the truth to each
other, and took up the relation of man
and wife. A few brief months of wild
happiness followed. AS was inevita-
BILE, the secret exposed itself, when the
betrothed wife was evidently about to
become a mother. Then a scene of re-
elimination followed. The young cou-
pie made the excuse that they had
promised themselves to each other,
and recognized one another by solemn
words of agreement between them
selves as man and wife, and that this
agreement, according to civil law, was
marriage. There was then but one re-
course left, and that was to make the
best of an unhappy passion, and unite
them by formal ceremony ofthe church.
To this cheerful assent was given, aud
it was accordingly done. The marriage
that had become necessity was for
mally solemnlzed, and three months
afterward Frank H. Walworth was
born. AS might be expected, when
the passion cooled the couple looked
upon each other. with changed eyes,
and each come to think that their
choice would have been different had
they not been thrown together in a
common household. Hence it happen
ed that they quarreled, and finally sep
arated. Each was jealous of the other,
and each despised the other for youth
full weakness and indiscretion. Letters
passed between them, containing re-
elimination, and some of their strange
missives came into the possession of the
young parricide. Taunts upon his
mother angered him, and there is rea-
son to believe that he totally misun-
aerstood the reflections made on the
subject of his own legitimacy. He
thought his father reflected on his
mothers chastity after marriage. Fired
with false chivalry he did not stop to
question his mother, and the mother
had naturally concealed her weakness
from the son. It was enough for him
that a slur had been cast upon her
name and his own. He took his faith
er's life, and thereby published his
mothers early frailty to the world.
Her best friends lament this more Bit
terly than the murder for which her
son is imprisoned.
The correspondent says: "This story
is freely canvassed by all residents of
Saratoga, where the marriage caused
great scandal at the time. 1t accords
with what l know about the history of
the Walworth family Chicago Tri-
bune.
~~~~~>~-~>~Os-.>->~
p The New Orleans politicians are
at work again, in anticipation of a new
election, and are resoluting and plat
forming for a new party and new is
sues. They have had meeting and
proclamated, and our cold intimate
Tom Bynum, is out in an address to the
dear people, as Chairman of the Liber-