National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1881-01-15
THOMAS BoWEN,s CRIME.
Allowing His Son to Marry His Sist
Rather than ReYeal His Birth's secret

Allowing His Son to Marry His Sister
Rather than Reveal His Births Secret.
The details of an unnatural marriage were
brought TO light in Baltimore recently by an appli-
cation made to Governor Hamilton for the pardon
ofThomas Bowen, of Calvert County who is serving
| six years sentence in the house of correction.
! Bowen owns farm of $40 acres in the county
named. He was sentenced in the circuit court of
Calvert County on November r. 1880, for bringing
about the marriage of his son, Enoch Bowen, aged
| twenty-three, to his daughter, Ella Bowen, aged
seventeen. The case at the time of the trial was
not published in the Calvert County papers at the
solicitation of Bowen's friends, who are very
| influential.
Bowen was a moderately wealthy man, and prior
to September last was respected and influential
citizen of Prince Frederick, Calvert County. He
was the leader of the choir and deacon in the
Methodist Church, and was looked upon q man
thigh moral character. The testimony taken at
his trial went to show that about twenty-three
years ago Bowen was intimate with young wo-
man in Calvert County, and, dreadng an exposure
married her few weeks before her son Enoch
was born The mother died in childbirth and the
father took charge of the infant whom he raised
and educated as the son of an old friend. About
six years later Bowen married the daughter of
respectable resident of Calvert County, by whom
he had one child, daughter, whom he named
Ella
The latter, as she grew to womanhood, deyel-
oped unusual beauty. Enoch, who was living in
the family, was smitten with her charms. and the
two became engaged. The father was greatly
alarmed and sought to break off the engagement.
He intimated to the young man that some mys-
FERROUS reason existed why they should not be
married. The young man demanded an ex-
PLANTATION, but Bowen refused to clear up the
mystery. Then Enoch declared that he should
engage detectives to investigate his history since
his birth. Dreading an exposure of his escapade
with Enoch's mother, Bowen finally gave a reluc-
tant consent to the marriage.
The ceremony was performed on September IS,
1880, by the Rev. Joseph P. Wilson, pastor of the
church of which Mr.. Bowen was member. A
young man who has also been sutton for Miss
Bowen's hand suspected that there was mystery
about Enoch's birth, and remembered rumor as
to the latters parentage which had been in circu-
lation several years before. He instituted in
quries, and discovered the record of the marriage
of Thomas Bowen to Enoch's mother; also the
record of the infants birth and of Mrs Bowen'S
death.
Having established beyond doubt the fact that
Bowen had allowed his own son and daughter to
marry, the rejected sutton caused the arrest of
Bowen. As already stated, Bowen was convicted
and sentenced to the house of correction, and it
was with the hope of being released on the ground
of i'll health that his application for pardon has
been filed. The exposure caused great indigna-
ton III the community at the time, and there was
some talk of lynching Bowen. AS soon as the facts
became known to them Enoch Bowen and his sis
ter separated. The latter is greatly Frustrated by
the shock