The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1892-03-04
A PERSONAL STATEMENT BY SECRE.
TARY BLAINE.
Made Out of Justice to Hi. wife.

family have silently borne every news
paper interview which it has pleased the
now divorced wife to inspire. The one
person aimed at has been Mrs. Blaine,
and we have perhaps been at fault in al
lowing a horror of the public discussion
of private matters, combined with a re-
gard for the future of my grandson, to
permit so much calumny to go unan-
swered The last outrage of the kind
embodied in the decision of the Judge at
| DeadwOod, OAK, assumes an official
character which makes it impossible to
remain longer silent. To remain silent
would be to accept and perpetuate a
! great wrong to my wife-a greater wrong
to my grandson than ever a publication
of the truth can intlct upon him." Then
follows this letter which explains itself:
AUGUSTA, Me-, Sept. 18th, 1885.
Rev. Thomas |. Ducey, Rector of st.
LeO's Church, rs East Goth St., New
York City
SIR: On Wednesday morning last,
my youngest son, James G. Blaine, Jr.,
| shocked me by the announcement that
on the preceding Monday he had been
united in marriage with Miss Marie
Nevins; that you had performed the
ceremOney in your own rectOry: that
my son and Miss Neyins were unaccom-
panied by friend or relative and that
two of your household servants were the
sole witnesses. My sons announcement
gave the first knowledge that | or any of
my family had of his marriage or even
of his attachment to Miss Nevns-whose
character | wish to say at the outset is
not at all in question and of wnom-but
for this rash MARRIAGE have never
heard breath of censure.
My son was born October 18th 1868,
and is not therefore Is years old. He was
living here in his own home, in the house
where he was born, surrounded by
neighbOTs who had known him all his
life, under the daily care of tutor who
was fitting MIN for college, winch he
hoped to enter this autumn. TO faclli-
tate his preparation he desired to remain
here during the summer while the other
members of the family were much of
the time at Bar HarbOr. AS | have since
learned, Miss NevinS, in company with
her sister aud her father, came to Au-
gusta on Monday, August 1G. On Fri
day, September ), Is days after her ar
rival in Augusta, my son. who had never
seen her or heard her name mentioned
until she came here, left his home with
out permission and without the knowl-
edge of any member of his family, and
accompanied Miss Nevins and her sister
to their mother in New York On Sat
urday the 18th, the two young persons
presented themselves to you for mar
riage. Through my eldest son, Walker
Blaine, who went to New York as soon
as heard these unhappy tidings, learn
that James misrepresented his age to
you, stating that he was within month
OF two of q. But he did not according
to your own narrative to my son Walker)
conceal from you the vital fact that he
was minor; he did not conceal from
you, but openly avOwed, that | had no
knowledge whatever of his intentions to
be married and his special intention was
to keep all knowledge of it from me. In
this concealment he sought your aid and
allotment and you held his secret under
consideration from Saturday until Mon
day-agreeing with my son not to al rise
any member of my family ~ his rash
purpose. You took him to the arch
bishop in order that dispensation
might be secured to enable Miss Nevins,
who was reared a Catholic, to marry my
son, who was bUru, baptized and reared
Protestant. You knew that during
the lohg interval in which you were
making these preparations, was within
a moments reach by telegraph, and yet
you never gave the slightest intimation
to me-the most deeply interested and
responsible party.
In defense of this conduct you alleged
to my son, Walker, the confidence re-
posed in you as priest by my son. The
confidence of the confessional is always
respccted-but by your use of conf
dences reposed in you outside the con-
fessiOnal-even 0y those outside of the
Catholic communion, you perforce be-
come an accomplish before the act of
any crime or any imprudence to which
you may listen. 1t is not for me to add
wise minister of your intelligence that
your position is absolutely untenable,
would be dangerous to society and would
not be respected by any court in the
land.
You further alleged in justification of
your action that if you had not per-
formed the ceremOney some one else
outside your communion would have
done it. You might as we'll justify your
murder of man. by chlOrOform on the
ground that otherwise some one else
ldImurder him with dagger.
A week agony boy was under my pro-
tection-the most helpless, the least re-
spOnsIble member of the family; cratic,
but cjetrolable through his affections;
an obrct of constant watchfulness to
his pa ents, his brothers and his sisters,
source of constant anxiety, but not of
despair. because he is of good abilities,
as readily influenced to the right as to
the wrong, and because the patience of
love can never know WEAKNESS. To-day,
through your agency, this boy in years,
in experience, In Judgment, in practical
capacity, leaves my home and my care,
burdened with the full responsibilities
of a man; with the welfare of woman
in his Keeping.
am powerless. l cannot question the
legality of the marriage. | shall at
distance aud at every disadvantage en-
Geavur to guide my son. Butt as a father
living under the divine institution OF the
femlly; as a citizen living under the di-
vine order OF society, | protest against
your act. As a servant of God to whose
ministry you are ordained, 1 call God to
witness between You and me. Of what
ever evils resulting from this deplorable
marriage my son mag Oe the author Or
the victim, the guilt be on your head.
JAMES e. BLAINE.
Mr.. Blaine continues. "Wnen / wrote
this letter | believed that Miss Nevins
had no other responsibility in the mar
riage than in consenting to my sons APP
peal and was blameworthy for this alone.
Since then | am prepared to say that the
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