The Savannah morning news., 1904-03-12
RISKS RUN IN C0URTING.
Young Men Must Beware of Breach
of Promise Litigation.

From the Chicago Chronicle.
It is many decades since the first
breach of promise suit was brought
before an English court and poor John
Keche of Yppswich, Wales, was the
victim, while Margaret Gardyner and
her daughter Alice benefited greatly
by his misfortunes. The court chron-
icles of the time record the fact that
he. the said John Keche, had received
a sum of money on condition of his
marrying the aforesaid Alice, and that
he had married Jean Bloys, "ageyne
all good reason and conscience, breach
of promise suits have been recognized
among all English-speaking peoples.
Lord Holt enforced it at common
law, holding that the wounded spirit,
the unmerited disgrace and the soli-
tude which would be the probable con-
sequence of desertion after a long
courtship were considered to be as le-
Ultimate claims for DecuniarY dam
ages as the loss of reputation by
SANDER or the wounded pride in
slight assaults and batteries"
These matrimonial contracts are
sui generis. No GRIM iSaged lawyer
draws up a formal contract to be ex-
ecuted; no notary prizes into the in
tents and purposes of the parties and
certifies the same under his official
seal; no go-between Pandarus is pres
ent to hold the hands of Troilus and
Cressida and solemnly pronounce:
"A bargain made; seal it, seal it; I'll
be the witness"
No Safety Anywhere.
No-in the vine-clad arbor or behind
the protecting screens of parlor walls,
in some shady nook or in the dim moon
light deep down some lonely dell. far
sunken from the healthy breath of
morn and ewes one star" there these
enga gements are softly whispered and
the contract sealed with a kiss
For these reasons, while the making
of the contract is question of proof,
it need not be proved in totidem verbs,
and is often inferred from the actions,
and it is difficult to tell under what
circumstances the court would be JUS
tilted in finding that a promise had
been made. Many a young man not
fatally bent on matrimony would some
times be surprised to find that his Ian
guage, intended only as a compliment
to some charming damsel or his con-
duct, meant solely as an act of gall
lantry. is sufficient in the eyes of the
law to support proof of a promise to
marry.
A gentleman once concluded that it
would be a very elegant and a very
funny thing to send to his dulcinea a
newspaper article entitled Love, the
Conqueror," marking it, Read this
The lady did read it, and when the
funny gentleman declined to marry her
she brought suit against him and read
the article to the jury, who gave her
$4,000 damages. The Supreme Court of
Illinois, sustaining the verdict, said:
THE article may be regarded as the
defendants own letter; it doubtless
contains sentiment which he sanction
ed, couched in language more choice
than he could compose. 1t was his APP
peal for marriage-it foretold in clear
and emphatic language his object and
intent to his courtship with her She
doubtless placed this construction upon
it, as she well might do, and laid it
aside as a rare treasure"
Old Enough to Know Better.
In New York case it was shown on
the trial that a widower, a piouS elder
of So years of age, soon after the death
of his wife visited the plaintiff, a
maiden of 80. and taking out a memo
randum book from which he read, or
Dental way that he had noted down
some requests made by his wife four
days before her death; that it was
something he could not tell her now
but that she (the maiden LADY, would
know some day." darby limiting, so
the lady took it, that the deceased wife
had requested the forlorn widower to
tighten his grief by marrying the
plaintiff.
1t was proved that after this conf
Dental talk there were rides and
idltves together, frequent visits ex-
tending till late in the evening, and,
to cap the climax, the widower told
the plaintiff that after the lapse of a
year from the death of his wife (the
widower's quarantine, it seems) he in
tended to marry and he then entered
into a minute description of the lady
he wanted to marry, which description
was an exact photograph of the plain
tiff. While we c0nnot but admire the
shrewd diplomacy of this willy widow
err, counting by dark insinuations and
covert suggestions. and not commit
ting himself by an open avowal yet
as the sequel shows. he ran amuck of
the doctrine of estoppel.
Guarded Against an Action.
The sanctimonious Proteus forgot his
heart. and, knowing that he had be-
come somewhat involved in his affair
with the plaintiff he automatically
undertook to checkmate the lady He
told her that he did not want her peo-
pie to think that he was paying her
the attentions Of lover so soon aft
er the death of his wife, and. in order
TO allay that suspicion, he drew up a
note, in which the plaintiff was made TO
say that she regarded his visits as
simply evidences of friendship and
nothing more" and got her 20 sign IL.
The jury found in her favor and the
Court Of Appeals OF New York upheld
the verdict
In a Connecticut case the defendant
had been heard 10 remark on his han
piness when In PLAINTIFF company and
his utter misery unless On her society
The parties had exchanged daRuerro-
types. the defendant had taught the
plaintiffs nephew TO call him uncle
and had told the plaintiffs brother-ln-
law that All the Courtinn was aora %