The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-04-19
TITLED WOMAN IN JAZZ.
The Dowager Duchess of Sutherland Sent to


Prison for Contempe of Court
LONDON. April 1S-The dowager Duchess
of Sutherland was to-day committed to
Holloway Prison under sentence of i'm
prisonmens for SIX weeks by Sir Francis
Jeune, president of the Court of Probate.
for contempt Of court Notwithstanding
that the imprisonmento of q British duchess
in common jail Is probably unprecedented
In England the affair did not excite any
great surprise. and it had been anticipated
that the court would take severe action in
view of the tiagant contempt with which
the Duchess was charged. The name of
the dowsger Duchess is Mary Caroline
and she was widow at the time of her
marriage to the late Duke of Sutherland.
She was the younger daughter of tho
late Rev. Richard Mitchell d. d.,
principal of Hertford College. The
late Duke himself was q widower
dren and grandchildren. the eldest surviv-
ing child being the present Duke of Suth-
erland. The first wife of the late Duke of
Sutherland died Nov. 25. 1888. The late
Duke wat at the time acquainted with Mrs
Blair. the present dowager Duchess. and
this acquaintance rapidly ripened when the
late Duke became q w1d0wer. The late
Duke and Mrs. Blair were married in Flori-
da. during q visit to America. on the 4th of
March, 1889. The news of the marriage
was received with anger and disappoint-
ment by the present Duke, and the other
surviving children of the late Duke. for
one of whom, named Alexandra, tho Prin-
cess OF Wales had been sponsor. The late
Duke died Sept % last year. aged sixty
three. leaving q will highly favorable to
the Duchess. This will il contested by the
present Duke. and proceedings have been
carried on with much bitterness.
I'm Gatr loa rH Aha @f De-
bate. before Sir Francis Jeune, the counsel
for the present Duke asked that writ of
attachments should be issued against the
dowager Duchess on the ground that, hav-
ing obtained an order to inspect certain pa
pers. she had deliberately placed in the lire
q document which. under the order, she
was permitted to inspect. When the case
came up to-day an affidavit was presented
In behalf of the Duchess setting forth that
the document which she had burned was q
private letter written TO her by her late
husband before marriage; that sho had not
thought it any harm to destroy document
of that character. and she closed by offer
Ing an apology to the court
Sir Francis Jeune commented in the
eeverest manner on the action of which the
Duchess had been guilty. He said that il
was evident that the destruction of the doc
ument had been deli iberately planned and
that IL was effected by violence and deceIt.
An apology was proper for such an act, but
the accused could not do anything but
apologize. Moreover. since the injury and
wrong were now irreparable an apology
could only be regarded as . somewhat
easy method Of atonement Further, it
has been shown that when she destroyed
the letter she said il was letter from her
to the late Duke. Now she said the reverse
that it was q private letter from the
late Duke to her. Justice Jeune added
that he was unable to say which statement
was true; shat the action the dowager
Duchess had destroyed the possibility Of
believing her. Justice Jeune limited that
the inferences drawn from the in
cidenb might heavily prejudice her
case. Justice Jeune then imposed the sen.
tence of six weeks imprisonment for con-
tempt of court. and sentenced the dowager
Duchess to pay fine OF ESQ. The d0wager
Duchess was awaiting the disposition of
the case in tho barristers' consulting room.
When her friends communicated the sem
tence to her she hurried into . carriage
and, accompanied by her solicitors, rode off
at once ta Holloway jail. thus depriving
the tipstaff of the court of the uIque expe-
rience of serving q committal order upon q
duchess. At Holloway Jail the duchess was
taken in and lodged as . first-class offender
When the news Of the decision was carried
to the present Duke of Sutherland he re-
ceived the news without emotion, remark
ing. very WE'LL" aud dispatched q mes
senger to bis solicitor.