The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1898-12-09

There may still be some very old
men about town who remember the duel
between Sir George Marston and Colo
mel Merridew; there may still be q
venerable lawyer or two who recollect
the celebrated case Of Merridew versus
Marston. With these exceptions the
story probably survives only in the two
families interested i'll the matter and in
the neighborhood where both the gen.
tlemen concerned lived and where their
successors flourish to this day. The
whole affair, of which the duel was the
first stage and the lawsuit the second,
arose out of the disappearance of the
maharajah's rubies. Sir George and the
colonel had both spent many years in
lnula. olr George occupying various lln-
portant positions in the company serv-
ice, the colonel seeking fortune on his
own account. Chance had brought them
together at the court Of the maharajah
Of Nuggetabad, and they had struck up
friendship, tempered by jealousy. The
maharajah favored both. We Merridews
maintained that Uncle John was the
first favorite, but the Marstons declared
that Sir George beat him, and l am
bound to admit that they had plausi-
BILE ground for their contention, since,
when both gentlemen were returning to
England the maharajah presented to
Sir George the six magnificent stones
which became famous as the mahara-
iah's rubies, while Uncle John had to
content himself with couple of fine
diamonds. The maharajah could not
have expressed his preference more sig
nificantly Both his friends were pas
sionate lovers of jewels and understood
vary we'll the value of their respective
presents. Uncle John faced the situa-
ticn boldly and declared that he had re-
fused the rubies. We, his family, duti-
fully accepted his version and were in
the habit of laying great stress on his
conscientlousness. The Marstons treated
this tradition of ours with open incre-
dulity Whatever the truth was, the
maharsjah' s action produced no imme-
date breach between the colonel and
Sir George. They left the court togeth-
er, arrived together at the port of Cal
cutta and came homo together round
the Cape The trouble began only when
Sir George discovered, at the moment
he was leaving the ship. that he had
lost the rubies By this time Uncle
John. who had disembarked few hours
earlier. WAS already at homo displaying
his diamonds to the relatives who had
assembled to greet him.
Into the midst of this family gathering
there burst the next day the angry form
of Sir George Marston. He had driven
posthaste to his own house, which lay
some ten miles from the colonel's, and
had now ridden over at a gallop, and
there. before the whole company, he
charged Uucle John with having stoler
THE maharajah's rubies. The colonel, he
said, was the only man on board who
knew that he had the rubies or where
the rubies were and the only man who
had enjoyed constant and unrestricted
access to the cabin in which they were
hidden. Moreover, SO Sir George de
clared, the colonel loved jewels NOR
than honor. honesty or salvation. Thu
.colonel's answer was a cut with hi
riding whip. A challenge followed
from Sir George. The duel was fought
and Sir George got ball in his arm
AS soon as he was we'll my uncle, VIII
had been the challenged party in tn
first encounter. saw his seconds to ar
range another meeting. The cut witt
the whip disposed of. the accusation re
manned. But Sir George refused to g
out, declaring that the dock and not til
field-of honor was the proper place TO
Colonel Merridew Uncle John, bein
denied the remedy of gentleman. car
riad the case into the courts, al1houg
not into the court which Sir George ha
idaicated.
An action of SANDER was entered an
tried Uncle John filled town and oouu
try with his complaints. He imnlore