The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1883-01-27
GOTHAM GOSSIP.
New YORK, January II, IS

breach OF promise OF marriage, brOugh
by Miss Mary A. Livingston, agains
Henry Fleming, a young millionaire
The details as developed in the course o
the trial were prurient in the extreme
and of course the court room in Brooklyn
was packed to repletion with curiosity
seekers. The trial resulted in verdict
for the plaintiff for the full amount asked
for, The heaviest amount ever awarded In
b each of promise case in the history o.
legal practice. Now, there is no doubt
that such q verdict would not have been
given in any other city in the Union
save Brooklyn. That city has not its
like in the country. 1t has more scan
dals to the square yard than other large
cities have to the square mile. 1t COM
bines the peculiar friskiness of Chicago
with the outward occurrences of a Qua.
ker town. Everybody goes to the church
and yet everybody looks as if ne or she
had a history. Outside Of that, however,
Fleming's case was grossly mismanaged.
His lawyer, Howe, who is very good at
saving criminals from the gallows, seems
to have been at sea in this case. He at
tackled the girl in most brutal manner.
He called her cyprian and the daugh-
ter of cyp.'ian. On the statement of a
detective who seems to be paragon OF
asinity, he charged her with having kept
an improper lodging house ten years ago.
Now the girl is not yet twenty-one and
the detective simply ascribed to her the
doings of woman by the name of Liv-
ingston, who for ten or fifteen years prior
to 1874 was fashionable notorious char.
acter of metropolitan shady life. OF
course the jury had to sympathize and
side with her.
Said lawyer to me, man who at one
time filled the position of judge in one of
our leading State courts, and who has
gained many laurels by his pleadings at
the bar, "the day of bullying a plaintiff
or heaping vile abuse upon him, and
treating him or her in such a manner as
to arouse all that is manly in bystanders
are over. A lawyer who attempts to rely
on such method will not alone lose his
own cases, but he will make himself lia-
BILE to prosecution. The spirit of the age
is in favor of moderation, and twas high
time that this spirit made itself felt"
An appeal has been taken from the
verdict, and additional evidence against
the character Of the. woman has, it is
claimed, been discovered. During the
trial it was charged that Miss Livingston
had been intimate with her mother 5
coachman, one Alexander Cornelius,,
This person has now come forward an
produced the letters alleged to have been
written to him by the girl. This of course
will open the sluice gates again, The
spectacle is not edifying. And vet,
strange are the workings Of a woman's
mind, or rather feelings, this girl would
even;now marry Fleming were he willing.
| am so informed by person.who knows
both parties.
The first of the great masquerade balls
is over The French Society L'Amitie
gave their tenth annual masquerade at
the Academy of Music last evening, and
Of course the place was packed after mid
night. L. Amitie is not the French ball.
it is but the preliminary canter, to use a
racing phrase, to the grand pageant of
the Cercle Franchise de u Harmonic next
Monday. Then in rapid succession
comes the Elks, the Liederkranz and the
Arlon pageants. The ball-goers will be
pretty well worn out by the beginning OF
Lent. The season of penace and sorrow
this year begins on the 7th of February,
and thus all extrem: worldliness viii
have to be compressed into two weeks.
While at the Amitie ball it struck me
that somehow the taste for masquerades
and carnival extravagances is on the
wane in New York. There were crowds
Of course, but the crowd came more to
ook on than to take part in the fun, and
thsis bound to kill such affairs, for when
Fun en- masque becomes funereal it ceases
% be fun and everybody walks home
rtlred, IN the vernacular of Wall street.
Besides, the societies who get UP these
'ffairs are not spending any money for
Dageants and monster surprizes, and this
very clearly shows what way the wind
$ blowing. The st. Johns Guild which
very year gave one of the famous Mar.
,ha Washington" receptions, has this
year decided to give no public entertain
nent. The truth is, society has had 30
many private entertainments this winter
hat the participants in them seek rather
more rest than additional excitement.
A Catholic Priest of my acquaintance
rad an amusing adventure in street car
he other day. He is one of those few
'lergymen OF modern days who remain
Door because they find SO much misery
o relieve. He was riding in street car
N his way to sick call. In his over
,oat pocket he carried a large memoran-
lum book. Beside him sat a gentleman
y looking man who was busted
With a newspaper. All of sud
len the man arose and went to the
back platform as II to leave the car.
Not long after the priest left too. As
he arose he found that his pocket book
vas gone. Much chagrined he ye could
lot help feeling amused over the pros.
,ective discontinue of the thief, because
le knew that the book did not contain
,ent OF money. He turned into the
street. when much to his surprise man
who followed him, tapped him on the
shoulder, and handing him his book re-
marked, "sir, excuse my friend, here is
your book, It wasall mistake. There
8 nothing in it," and abruptly hastened
lway.
Shafer the biliardist has remarka-
,le dog in his rooms, He makes it his
business to pick up every ball that is
Knocked off u table and returning it to
he proper table. He will not allow it to