SECONDARIES' OFFICE, Cole...
The Times, 1824-02-04T00:00:00

This was an action for tte reeotvery or a compensation sf naamages for the seduction'of the plaintiff's daughter by tie defendant, who allowed iudgmoent to go by defiiult. T e idamages were laid at 5001. Mlr. 4Tojs.s opened the case. The jury, he said, were about to investigate si cage of the most distressing nature as it reg-arded the plaintiff,.anilNf the most iniquitous nature-as it related tQ the conduct of the defeniiant. It would be their duty t;- endeavour to compensate, if comp&dusation were nttainable in such a case, 'forthe severest !njury a nnan could sustain in the person of his ,4M-l~for an injury whicl- extended itself in the most: irritating and pairnful form of disgrace to every member of hisCfa*nily. So corivlneed'was the defendant of the badness of his case, that he;did not -venture to employ counsel to attemrpt to palliate his offence; and in yejecting any aid but that which an express acknowledgment Wag likely to affordhim upbn the mirids'ts a juiy, he ' od done wisely, as~ all argument inmust be abused in the2 etThrt to 'etoncid the language of common .sense with th, nabiurdlti' of a. vindicatory appe41. The two parties were ss humble life'but[he loss of the plaintifft was rendered bv that clrng-mtf'-nce cornpletelv irreparable. Eiis daughter-v wlrose affection might hav.' xeconilpens d him for the '` whips hridt 'ecorts of time," whosi indus' might haiva' diminished the'toil *hi4lt he daily underwent for the support of his family, had been torn from him', and under circusmstanCes which -isroved. thtat the error ot the unfortunate girl was credulity, while *.;e cilnie of hertdestroy-er was aggravated by the fact thbt he. had gained her aiftictiodn ink %Keria. racterof a suitor, and accomplished hot ruin by virtue of a solemn prbmise, of which he had never'contemplatea the performance. The defendant was the proprietgr of one of the Mlarlow and Farringdon stages, and resided at Abingdon. The plaintiff resided at Kensington, and carried. on the ereen-grocery business, in wihidh he was materially assisted by his daughter Alary, the unbap. py subject of the present action, whom he had educated with great care as to her moral habits, and wIhose per.on and face were extremely attractive. Her father was in the habit of sending his dauehter to Covent-garden market to superintend the sale of dle pro(luee of his grounds, and the defundant, having had opportunities of steing her on the road, showed hier those attentions and made those a(lvances which were calculated to make an impression upon a youthful and credulous female. Professions were made, which from constantrepetition sueceededin gaininggher belief andconfidence; and the unfeeling d6fendant, finding thathis victim was-in the toils, per- severed with ann undeviating importunity until he prevailed upon her to abandon ber parents and acco,npany1tim to aplace of coicealmlent and ctine. The flAst meedtin of the defendant with MlsF Niunn was in August, 1820, and finding at that time that he could not be received on any other than honourable tertns, he introduced himself to her father in the character of suitor to the. young *oxrobn, was: adimitted to the house,and confidentialy treated, as might beexpect- ed, by these whot lbe addressed asxhis future ftither and mnother, anti in wihose presence he had made regular prop:sals otf m-anriage. The father, anxious to advance the happiness of his child satiseied himself as to the respectability of the defendant, and broke off an intercourse which existed between her and one Mr. T. Hines, who resided in the neighbourhood, in order that the marriage night takc place 'vithotit impedirent or delay. But the real intentions of the- lefentlant began so nsanites themselves as the time appointed for ithe marriag& approachecd. Ie told the poor, girl that he was compelled to delay the ceremony in consequence of an excentric condition imposed upon him by his uncle, on whomn he was de- pendent, andl who would not remember him In 'that im potait crisis when the earthlv accounts wereito be settledbetiveen t iem,if lie ventured to enter into the matrimonial state before the expira. tion of three years. H.is visits were continued, with unabated warmth tintil August, 1822, when he prevailed upan the wcakgirl. tn leavc her father's liouse. Six weeks of niisery passed over her parents, wbo eould discover in that time no trace of her daughter. The defendant was amongst those whie appeared surprised and a. flicted at tier absence and when he became himself suspected, he dlectared in th'e most solemis manner that he knev nothing about her, at the same time that he had her at his pleasure in totn; Two daysafter this assurancehe wrotethefollowingletterto te plaintiTff "Old Bell lun, Elolborn. Jam verv sorry, anti n-,ucli more surprised, to hear at the ()Id P,cl. bhat you have said respecting me and your daughter Mary. I understand yoa charge me wislh taking her away from hnne. I le. assure voui it is the niost distant of soy thouglhts, for mitanv tissues wlhen 1 fiave seen her In London, and she has told me she wvas going to stay all night; I have advised her to go lhome, as vou) wouldi not feel coasfortable, and have even put her into a ceach on purpose that slie may go homic. Of course, you will now forn a verv badl opinion of me, but you miay depend out it I have always acted very different to what yout inity supPose. I am really sorry she sisoistd ever leave you, as I have since understood, without iettistg you know wsere she was going.for I am sure you must feel it very mitch but let ite consequence be as it iiiStlit, if I knewe where. she is. would let you know. The onlv account I heard was from vour son Wtilliam * he told use she was livinti near where she was livitig liefore. If that is the case, you can easily tiui lier; but at present I can give You no farther account. I only wishl I could. On the Wednesday morning, as I wvas passing through Kensington, your Eliza calledl to me (poor girl, I was very sorry to see the agitation of her tiiiithld. If I had seen anv tlhing of Mary I would have eastd her mdin at once, atud not kept it a secret fromn her. I assure you, Sir, I will don nil I can to find lier; and if by chance I slhuld mieet her, I svill bring her hsome. I am very sorry she should. be so tbottglit less, blut still nitae, us I respect lier very itiicli-for site has always acted in a very becossuing way when in myv conspanay, an(I so have I inwards lier, and hiope beforc now ygou Imsuve had the pleasure of once imsore sceinc her under your owu care. Yoi, perhaps, iimighit be perstiadcd to believe I am the instigation of all this uncasinessu, bht you oiay ielie;eii on it T am tnt, for t ihad always too iliucli respeci tnr you aisd the thisii;y to dni such an action : if yon hitve, or have tnot, heard froits her. I will thasik youi to write to usie ott Saturday. I wishi to know your issind respecting it. I remnain, Sir, with respect to you and .Al v ours, &c. "1 TIIOMAS WESTBROOK, jui." This lettcr, tie learned counsel said, was written aftei the seduc- tion ot' the sinfortunate girl, ansl wvhile slic was in his powver asit possession. To add to the baSeltesh of tllh scetdcer, lie was a mar- ried titan, anti of course at the vc:y inoment .that he itls contem. plasitig fhi ruin of thce girl. knew that lie could tiot aslkce ler that repaRTatiots Withsit Whicil all iCer futtre days must be isiarkell with disgrace and mnisery. He sonnt bezamic disgusted with ulsc nbieet of his former p'ssion'; hatreti followed, and then cruclty; and at lengtlh slih sas east uiponi tle worlihat the age of 17, ansI after enduring the panes of a ninther, deserted and uttcrlv destroved. The defendant could tinot plead youths in umitigation, :f6r ric was now nearly 40 ycars of age. iMiss Mary Nunss was tlhesi callctl. She went itito the box, and was excessively agitated. Just as the cosuisel was ahout to comnmence tio exausination, a, propo&al was madce to tlec plainitiff's solicitor by titc slefeitdant to accomnmottate the tniatter. tlhc parties retired, and. upon ltheir rCturn, it seas announiced to the jtury thaa they liad agreed that a verdict of 501. damages should he gicen to the plaintiflT Illc jury assessed the danwages acrordineLv tin sni. The idefendant enteree the Court at the comnuencetment of the preccedinsgs, and offered. ioney for the suppression of the calse. SECONDARIBS' O6FICsz, cotnuZn.strCei, Thesdao, FO. 3. sEfnucTIowN.- U0TN V. W;ESTBROOX.