Telegram-herald., 1890-08-31

degree. Tie sr.ciest conditions OF
leg,s.ratson have hern imposed As ln All
OTTER e.vlhztd countries; and about th"
a. s.ir of the present cenlufy-no, oc-
carss , necessary restriction upon
regular or irregular marriages among
Scottish pe0plr. hut wholly In defer
euce 70 Engish olamor tJr a check
upon tle"GGetna' and "Coidstream"
naFr agas OF Euglsh p ople-an ad3l-
ti0nXt requisite was provided u llle
eKeet that e. least one OF the contract
ng parties must hav. been IN Gctlai
esdent u any PARISH Of Scotland Tor
tweaiy-one DAYS preceding marriage.
J. other words, any marriage IN Scot
land always has been, and now is, =
vas.d marriage by EVIL contract; and t.:'
IeQGi tes ior marriages here today are
precisely the same as they always have
beer, wish the exception @. the -ate-
guard OF subsequent registration, AM
th4lriiiug condition OF brief residence
o. one or the contracting parties. inul
the s>cotch marriage laws have been
huer;I, wlse and humane, and that ne
De5t social results III Scotland are at
trlbutto.e 10 the same, admit or no de-
nal ~ shC face OF the incontesab.e
fact that IN no other known county <
the martial relation held more sacred;
and when statistics also SHOW. as tacy
do. trat socal scandals arising out OF
unhappy marriages, and appeals to
courts tor severance Ot the marriage
BOND are practically unknown. Tue
proposition therefore can DC safely ad-
vanced that the tOryocracy OF the Eng-
lisll law INSPIRED 10y tie Church aaiO-
cracy IN England, and not any inherent
uIwisdom OF Scottish law was solely
responsible for the unenvlable noIu-
riety of famous and infamous Gretha
Green.
There seems to be no way of asctr-
tanning the exact date of the first IT,
regular marriage at Gretna, or of d.
covering the degrees through which rs
humble priest Of Hymen reached hs
zenith of fame. But by dnt of pers
verance and good fortune | at last set
eyes on the record OF the first marriage
or which any record IS preserved at
Gretna. The date Is l7Tl, or but j.
years subsequent TO the passage OF Lord
Chancellor Hardwicke's English Mar
rage Act, and 1t is not unlikely that
this one was the first; the heraldlnG OF
the ludlcrous adventures of the parties
to the same being quite sufficient for
directing attention TO new way OF es-
cape from the rIgors of English mar
riage laws. The young man and
woman who at this date attained bliss
by the Gretna route were John Edgar,
st. Mary's parish, AMI Jean Scott, of
the parish Of Hetherel, both in the ad-
Joining English county OF Cumberland.
ttsfn h1f n II II
coming by coach-and-four over the old
post route from Carlisle, escaped their
relatives by boat across the SolwaY;
were upset by storm and an incoming
tide, whose violence drowned one of
their pursuers and caused the others ID
abandon the chase; the couple them
selves barely escaping with their lives;
aud. bedraggled in brine and sand,
finally made their escape on foot from
Greenhouses, where they reached shore
ON the Scottish side, TO the safe haven
OF Gretna Green.
This marriage, ss we'll as thousands
following, was performed by Joseph
Paisley, who from this date until the
time OF MS death, IN 1914, a. period of
43 years, was the most notorious, If not
noted man in Scotland, as well as the
most execrated single individual known
10 the aunals OF English social anathe-
ma. From all accounts this Joseph
Parsley was an odd character. He was
OF unusual height and frame, and was
accorded one Of the strongest men in
Scotland. He was a tobacconist-not
blacksmith, as according to general
literary tradition-and presided over
the destlEies of an Insignificant licenced
depot for tea, tobacco and snuff, where
slso smuggled whisky was to be had by
the "muckle right sort who could be
trusted. Grctna Green then, ss now
white the western end of Springfield
village, consisted of not more than
a halt dozen houses; a little cluster Of
buildings about the Olden farmstead OF
Neg g's-hlli. There was the residence OF
Colonel Maxwell, an extensive land
owner, the old straw-thalched kirk
with IS little kIrk-yard in which | now
tiEH Icafi-stones IN memory OF Paisley
aud his successors as Bishop of Gret.
nj" "a they were each styled, toe parIsa
maaso behind the kirk, a carpenter
shop a cottage or two, and the viie
little soop of Paisley. The man
was - grossly ignorant that ae cou4
scarcely write nis name, bui vas sti.
possessed of much canny SIRE wdness
su. mniag. lie : credited With tire
menia IL feats Of strength, and Win
his ESQ hands he could stfa gften "a
Aers shoe ia iis cold state. lic wss
also tHe possessor of suCa stentoT al
lungs thst his holioa could 81 heard
fuFiher than any post-nofn in use he-
tween Carl - and GLASGOW wHiie BE-
ras Tire most capable drhksF Seen
known n Scotland no little tribute
at Any ..me - btu.ous proHfss. A His
faf-e aHd income Increased, ife feeause
tremendous mass Of fat. and, ahe
rever Sncnn 90 - dFank CO me tNo
= - eezfts ri brandy asfY. Iee
isct = ~ record thst GA ore 0ccs
slan 30 sst down Hfa hots co-a-
- taa ea y nasy mor1. 4 ~ - aa <sr
~ - enac, ar Rlth1lt Al drns-
-, - 20 any tase henz nfoxlea TEA.
taef SfcSed tae empty cEss 1t -
eacf on IRE s1cC ~ ~1tur sy fae
apfy t4fcngAogt fBz ssi ever bae
ttzsf--eoft Easrragc 30 1921. smey
resulted in tefn - tae afff cen 81
erhist ~ cfHeT eupes io Era. afd
te nlant sauset slaHfif -
ct1ss ,swoes "a eF Dss tfea s8
VITA a. HaA1aer q harm. uRon ensa