The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-04-04
THE DELPIT MARRIAGE.
Remarkable Case in the Church and
Civil Courts OF Canada


In the spring of 1893 Rev. William S.
Barnes was the pastor of a Unitarian So
ciety in Montreal. AS such he was en-
powered by Article 19 of the Civil Code of
the province of Quebec TO solemnize mar
riage. May 2, that year, he solemnized the
marriage of Edouard Delpit and Marie Ber-
the Aurore Jeanne Cote. There are several
Delpit children now. May IL. last year,
their father petitioned the ecclesiastical au-
thorlty of the archdiocese of Quebec
(wherein he then resided and still resides)
10 declare his marriage with their mother
null and void. That was the beginning OF a
very curious, interesting and important htt-
cation that has already stirred up much
ugly feeling and that may yet develop
grave Sequels.
Put into plain English. Delpit's case is
that the marriage of May 2, 1885. was no
marriage at all, no Protestant minister be-
ing able validity to unite in wedlock a man
ana woman who are Roman Catholics. he
represented to the ecclesiastical court that
ne and Miss Cote had been born and bap-
tized In that faith. and that neither OF them
naa at any Tune prior TO May 2, 1898, for
malIy ana legally renowned il. This was
equally true. he said. of Miss Cote's faith
era point OF Importance, in view OF the
fact that at the time she became (as she
supposed Dame Delpit she was a girl of
sixteen, just out of school. Delpit at that
time was a prosperous young business mai
OF tWenty-fOur.
She denies that either of them was a Ro-
man Catholic in the May of '93. She was OF
no religion, she says. and Delpit was an
avowed and blaSphemous free thinker. Such
he remained during the whole CT their mar
ried life. Il have never known him to full
fill any of the duties required by the Cath
Ollie Church. she says She asserts, FUR
Their, that he began TO maltreat her in the
second month of their marriage; that he in
suited her, slapped her face when others
were present; during the last six months OF
her life I'm nifohaa yrnnlHnff cnnQk IN her
and finally sent her 10 family in Montreal
with barely money enough to buy her rail-
road ticket. Two or three days later her
mother-in-law appeared in Montreal, told
her that Delpit was going to have the. mar
riage annulled, and told her further that II
she made no trouble by opposing his petit
ton he would provide for her future MAIN
tenance. She rejected this bride with IN
di9nation. She does not know where the
three children are; she thinks they have
been sent to France. They left CANADA IN
October last" she says. land /. their
mother, abandoned penniless in Montreal.
have not even the privilege of seeing my
dear little ones, estranged from me by the
treacherous action of their father"
The ecclesiastical court took jurisdiction
OF the subject matter without delay or
scruple. In its eyes, and in the eyes of all
the Roman Catholic clergy of the province,
the church's powers in such cases are in
contestible- The court found that Delprit
had been negligent in the performance of
his religious duties, but had not become a
member of any Protestant sect and had
not declared at any time that he was not a
Roman Catholic. With regard 20 Miss Cote.
the court found that she had rather alb
stained from the practice of her religion
than renowned il on account of her then
but slightly developed intelligence. her yet
tender age, the condemnable spiritualistic
practices in which she INDUCED, and the In
fiuence of her mother whose brain at that
time. in the estimation of the family, was
tired and overexcited by spiritualist prac-
tees" From these findings of fact tha
judgment Of annulment followed. in &C.
clesiastical logic. as a matter of necessity.
The Council of Trent, in it's "Tametsf' de
cree, pronounced marriages between Roman
catholics, soiemnized by anybody else than
their parish priest or his representative
after due publication of the bans, clande5-
tine and void. Louis XIV promulgated that
decree in France and Canada. In the view
of the church it is in full force and effect
there To-Day. BY the treaty of Versailles
Q763) and the Quebec act Q774) the French
Canadians were guaranteed the free enjoy
ment of their language. laws and religion.
Il pronounce and declare" said Vicar
General Marois, of quebec, 1.-The marriage
null ard invalid on the ground of clandes-
Unity" The Judgment was reviewed and af-
frmed by the ecclesiastical jurists of the
Propaganda at Rome. Thereupon the arch
bishop Of Quebec officially declared Edou-
ard Delpit and Marie Berthe Aurore Jeanne
Cote free to marry again.
In February of this year Delpit applied
to the Superior Court at Montreal to give
civil effect to the ecclesiastical decree OF
annulment. The case was very ably argued,
Taillefer and Lafieur appearing for Delpi;
and Bisaillon and Lamothe, h. c., for Mrs.
Delpit. Last Saturday Judge Archibald
gave udgmen in the case. He dismisses
Delpit's action. He declares the marriage OF
May 2, 1893, valid-Vicar General Marois
and the Propaganda Notwithstanding. I'm
der the common law of England says his
Honor, there can be no doubt that "A mar
riage celebrated by any minister in hoiy
orders of any denomination is recognized
as valid" 1t must be so recognized in Can
ada, he says.
Nothing is more unlikely than that the
Roman Catholic hierarchy. thus overruled
and lectured, will accept Judge Archibald's
Judgment as final. Everybody in Canada
takes it for granted that the litigation will
be taken TO the steps of the throne-the
judicial committee of the Privy Council. Ii
Judge Archibald's decision is sustained
Thereon, for that matter, if it is reversed
look out for events of interest in the pre-
dominantly French and Roman Catholic