The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1881-05-19
ROMANTIC LOVE STORY.
From New York Herld.l

lflOhi 4NCW AOih
The particulars of very romantic
love story we're developed before
Judge Dixon, holding Supreme
Court, Chambers, at Paterson, N. j.,
yesterday. From the uncontradicted
testimony 10 the case tho following
facts are gathered: Mr.. John P. Cliff
ford is young man who resides at
Yonkers, thiS State. He is a very
respectable young man and of good
habits, and SO when he asked to be
received as sutton to the hand of Miss
Ellen Mckinley, of Paterson, her
parents did not offer any objection.
The courtship proceeded very
smoothly until Miss McKilvery was
suddenly taken sick. The lover
spen. anxious days and nights, but
finally the young lady recovered her
health, but with il came terrible
afIliction loss Of sight. Before
this the two had promised to marry
each other; now the lady offered to
release him from his vow, but he
would not consent to do it, declaring
that he bad promised to marry her
and that ho considered a pomise as
good as if The ceremony bad been
performed, and that her misfortune
bad only increased his affection for
her. But her misfortune seemed
also to have increased the affection
entertained for her by her parents,
and these absolutely refused to give
their consent to the marriage, though
they did not have any objection pre-
vious to the sickness of the young
lady. Now that she was stricken
with blindness they declared that
they were the only persons who
ought to take care of her. They
told Mr.. Clifford that under the cir
cumstances they could never think
of parting with their daughter and
request him to give up the idea of
marrying her. He used all the ar
guments at his command, but the
parents were inAexible and would
not be persuaded. The two lovers,
however, were so attached to each
other that it seemed too cruel to
separate them altogether, and so Mr..
Clifford was allowed to continue his
vista. Miss McKilvey was over
twenty. one years of age, and conse-
quently her own mistress, and Mr..
Clifford soon persuaded her that the
demands of her parents we're unrea~
sonable. lie 6ually persuaded her
to marry him, aud the ceremony was
performed at st. Boniface's Catholic
Church, in Paterson, on last Monday,
by Rev. Father Hens. When the
parents of the bride we're informed
of what had taken place they refused
to give credit to it, and accordingly
would not allow their daughter to
accompany her husband to his home
in Yonkers. Mr.. Clifford concluded
to have the matter settled at once,
and accordingly consulted Mr.. ID. Il.
English, a lawyer, of Paterson
The result was that writ Of habeas
corpus was granted by Judge Dixon
on Tuesday and made returnable
yesterday. The parents appeared
10 Court with the daughter, and al
legged that she was blind and that
they bad taken care of her all her
life, and did not know why they
should not continue doing as they
desired to, though they did not want
to deprive her of her liberty in any
way. Mr. Clifford then produced
the marriage certificate, and the
parents of the bride saw that what he
had told them WAS not mere fiction,
but the truth. The Court gave the
custody of the blind bride to her hus-
band, and be led her awsy--the hap
piest man in the Court room. Mr..
Clifford is rot wealthy, but he has
pleasant home, and everything is in
readiness there to receive the mis-
tress for whom he made 80 great
sacrifice.