Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1880-06-11
A REMARKABLE ELOPEMENT.
Running Away from Her Home
With Her BrOfher-1n-laW-
Unusual Excitement
Caused In q Com
necticut Town.

"a al
for the woman was sister of the wife
ofthe man with whom she elOped.
On the top Of Nod Hill Ambrose
LOCKWOOD, a well-to-do farmer lives
in a very comfortable house. He has
a fine grove of trees in the court yard,
a good-sized barn, and fields, that after
hard toll, such as a Connecticut
farmer only knows, yield a grateful
return each year, except when the
potato bugs eats everything. Mr..
Lockwood is a weather beaten, hard
listed, e~asy-going sort of man, and
has been married fifteen years to An
toinette Beers, of Weston, She is a
plump blond of37 years, and the fruit
of their union has been a family of
four children. aged respectively Is, II,
10 and 8 years. About seven years
ago a sister of Mrs. Lockwood, Agnes
Beers, married Chas. Middlebrook,
then scarcely OF age, son
of Samuel Roe Middlebrook, of.
Wilton. Charles Middlebrook has
been somewhat of. a rover, and has
not accumulated property. He had
the Yankee faculty of turning his
hand to various occupations, but not
the thrift to save and accumulate.
His wife, Agnes, is a tall, rather
comely woman Of twenty-five years,
fair and healthy. The fruit OF their
union has been three children, the
youngest an infant. The two families
have been much together, not only on
account of the relationship of the
sisters, but also because for a time the
men were partners. For several years
Lockwood and Middlebrook were in
the lumber business. 1t was under
stood that Lockwood furnished the
capital. But the business did not
prosper, at least for Lockwood, and it
was generally remarked that the
brains Of the business was in a fair
way to eat up the capital. Within a
year the partnership was dissolved.
Lockwood devoted himself to his
farm, and Middlebrook went to ped
ding cigars and other commodities,
but was not able, apparently, to pro-
vide fully for his family, who took up
their quarters last April in the house
Of his father, about three miles from
Nod Hill. Lately the visits of
Charles Middlebrook to Nod Hill had
been OF marked frequency. 1t was
noticed that he was about there a
good deal at night, and Ambrose
Lockwood heard Of it. He could not
see it, because his eyesight is not very
good after dark, but he had his
suspicious, and he set his children to
watch and report to him if they
saw Middlebrook about the premises.
Although she said nothing to me
about it." Lockwood said yesterday
noon, when he came in from his hard
work, Il have suspected her for some
time. MiddlebroOk kept running
here often, and she made excuse to
60 to South Norwalk. l had several
talks with her about it, and told her
she could not encourage him coming
here. She said she would talk with
him when she liked and | couldn't
stop her. | noticed lately that she
was buying everything for herself and
nothing for the children, and | told
her she ought to take some of the
money to fix up the children, but she
paid no attention, aud we had some
words about it. Last Wednesday
week, when | came in from the fields,
| noticed she had her hair slicked up.
and | suspected she had made up her
mind to 60, but she ran and sat down
at the sewing machine when she saw
me and pretended to be sewing. |
told my little girl to watch her, but
she got out and went over the hill.
When / found out she had gene |
concluded to follow her, and went
over to the railroad station, and there
she was.
What are you doing here2 l
said.
What are you following me for?'
she replied.
You will fud out, l guess, said.
You had better come home
I'm not going with you, she re-
piled.
IF you 90 to South Norwalk now.
you won't come back to my house any
more | told her. Then we talked
the matter over, and finally | said /
was going home, and if she wanted To
come along she could. | started OF
aud she followed after. We had sew
eral miles to walk. When we got
home | had the horse hitched up, and
told her if she wished to 20 to South
Norwalk we would go. But she said
she would not ride with me any more.
When, it began to get dark, and |
could not see much, but | told the
children to keep a look out for Mid
dlebrook, for | suspected he would
come sneaking about. Along about
II O'Clock | told her she had better
lock up the house and 60 to bed, but
she ran out in the dark, and the chill.
dren said Middlebrook came out from
under the trees and went with her. l
have not seen her since. | do not
care to have harm come to her. but [
would like to see him punished. |
did not have any words with him, be-
cause some time ago signed his paper
for 500, and | have been hoping he
would pay it. But for him to rob me
Of my money and my vile, too, it's
too bad"
Itappears that Mr.. Lockwood's sus.
picions Of Wednesday were well
founded, for at the time that Mrs.
Lockwood went TO the station to take
the train for South Norwalk, Charles