The White Pine news. [volume] (Treasure City, Nev.) 1868-1906, 1875-05-29
MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.
New York worlds London letter.


New York Worlds London letter.
The defenders of the memory and char
acter of Mary Queen of Scots will now
have occasion to again grid on their ar
NOR. Under the title of A Lost Chap
ter in the History of Mary Queen of Scots
Recovered" DIR. John Stuart, of Edin-
bugh, has related q new story OF the
events connected with the marriage OF
Boutwell, with Lady Jane Gordon, his
divorce from that lady and his marriage
with the Queen. and the subsequent life
of his divorced wife down to her death In
1929. After her divorce, to which she
wal a consenting party. she married the
Earl of Sutherland, who had himself been
divorced and it was among the family
pap rs of the present Earl of Sutherland
that DIR. Stuart discovered, after it had
been missed for three centuries, the most
important of the papers on which his
story is based-that is, the Papal dispen-
sation for the marriage of Boutwell, and
Lady Jane Gordon, who were cousins.
This dispensation was granted On the 18th
of February, 1866. by the Archbishop of
st. Andrews, and sets forth that although
the parties were connected in double
fourth degrees of co~nsanguinity, liberty
was granted them to marry. Boutwell,,
however, was at this time claimed as a
husband of two other women-one a Dan
ish lady, the other Janet Betoun. who
was afterwards the Lady of Buccleugh.
However, the marriage was solemnized
on the 22d of February, 1866, at the
Court, but not by a Roman Catholic
priest. The lady was a Catholic, Both
well was a Protestant, and the dispense
ton was needed only to satisfy the scru-
pies of the lady. If the Queen knew of
the existence of the dispensation, then
she knew that the marriage was a lawful
one in the eye of the church, and that
her own subsequent marriage with Both
well was illegal and void. DIR. Stuart
brings forward many proofs to show that
she must have had this knowledge. The
proofs are strong, but they are, perhaps,
not conclusive. However, in three weeks
after occurred the murder of Rizzio !;
then Darnley was killed and then Both
well wished to marry the Queen.
To do this it was necessary for him to
get rid of his wife, and she was quite will
ling and it was arranged between them
that each should get a divorce from the
other. But trickery and concealment
now came into play for the Catholic
wife now went before a Protestant court,
proved the adultery of her husband with
n of her servant maids, and obtained
her divorce !; while the Protestant hus-
band applied to a Catholic tribunal, and
c%oncealing the fact hat the marriage had
been solemnized by virtue of a dispense
ton, obtained a decree dissolving it on
the ground of relationship within the
prohibited degrees. Affairs were in such
condition in Scotland at this time that no
record seems to have been kept by the
Catholic authorities, and everything went
at hap-hazard.
The sentence pronouncing the mar
rage null was pronounced on May Z,
l557-only little more than a year after
it had been celebrated-and the marriage
between Boutwell, and Mary Immediately
followed. The important point. as re-
CARDS Mary, is whether she knew of the
dispensation, and DIR. Stuart gives it as
his opinion that she was aware of it. But
1t is clear, at least, that Lady Jane Cor
don did know of it, as it was obtained at
her request. She was a devout Catholic,
and remained SO until her death !; but she
not only herself obtained a divorce from
her husband on the ground of his adult
terry, but married again during his life.
The truth seems to be that the Catholics
in Scotland at that time were very much
at sea-deprived to a great extent of their
spiritual guides-and tempted in a thou
sand waysto make compromises and ship
wrecks of their faith.