Carlisle, Monday, March 8...
The Times, 1824-03-11T00:00:00

Hubert MIyers (a sweep), aged 29, ,as indicted for having, on the2d of November, 182, feloniouslv married Mary Johnston, spinster, in the parish of St. Mary. C(irlisle, he having previously, on the 29th of July, 18b22, married Isabella Dixon, spinster, at Gretna, in the county of Dusnfries, in Scotland, his first wife being . alive at the time of such second marriage. The prisoner pleaded not guilty. The marriage at Gretna-Zreen was proved by several witnesses the principal one gave the following evidence- Geor,e Graharn was examined, and he stated as follows :-Is a weaver living in Carlisle; knows the prisoner and Isabella Dixon. is married to a sisterof hers, previous to the month of July, 1822 Myers camie three years last Easter Sunday to go to Gretna with him, that Robert Iylvers ^nd Isabella Dixoni should be mnarried; I consented, but did noLto; my wife would not let me. He said upon this thiat it might be put eff to the races following, and they would go then. I did not go then. By the COURT.-\'hY not ?-He did not ack me. My)ers fre- quently aftcrwards asked me to go, but I would not consent. On Sunday, the 28th sf July, 1822 (witness intended going to America next day), I wrent from Carlisle to the new iron-bridge, Esk-bfidge, where ;se mnet the prisoner,w.ho had appointed on the Sunday to meet l us there. There wasls John Graham.Edwv;ard Ridley,aad myself, who were go ng to Aineric James Dixon, Richard Johnston Prince, Daniel l1ancliffe, andi Jsabella Dixon, all met at the Iron Bridge. WVe went on to George Irving's to a public-house, where we had 2i. worth of liquor, some bread, and other refres.hments. As we were walking on, I said to M yers, you have been often asking me to go to Gretna, and as this ii the last time I shall bchere;you had best get married now, perhaps you will not see me again. He consent- ed; ie said he was agreeable if Isabella vas agreeable, Isabella said she was agreeable to be marrie(d. WVhen I had this conversation some of tbe party were two or three yards oft, and some nigher. Can't sav if any of them heard it. WFhen we got to Gretna, we saw . young man of the nme of \Vil- son. I called to bim in the presence of the prisoner, who was near enough to hear, and 1 asked hiim if lic knew where Afr. Lang, the parson, lived ; he said, yes. I desired him to tell Lang to come, as we were going to have a marriage. lie went, and Lang carle, and asked which was the conple was going to be marriedi. Robert Myers and Isabella were pointed out to hfim. Lang asked thenm if they were single, and they both said yes. lie pulled out a pocket. book from his breast, and wrote upon a small slip of paper, which he retaned into the book, which he put into his pocket tgain ; the first thing he said, was to ask if they were single. He then cemmenced the marriage; I cannot exactl) recollect the words he said somethingabout taking her i; for better and worse." (a laugh,) Myers and Isabe.la were sitting close beside Mr. Lang, and after he had gone thro.gh half the ceremony, he ordered us to kneel down and pray; and after praying, he then performed the other partof the ceremon. He bid'. Isabtlla Dixon and Robert Myers take hold of' achC otber's hands; they did take hold of each other's hands. Ee then asked the nrisoner if hc took Isabella Dixon to be his lawful wife; prisoner said "Yes." He then asked Isabella Dixon if she took prisoner to be her lawftul husband, and she said " Yes;- and after the marriage ceremony was finished, he asked who were going to sign the marriage lines. Bv the COUtrT.-Whom did he ask ?-Daniel Harclifle. Daniiel* Hancliffe then said he would sign them ; the orisoner heard him, and I signed the lines as witness for Isabella Dixon. I then gave the pen to Robert Myers, and he signed for himself. AIr. ALDERSoN.-_Does your Lordship think any paper of thi. kind, or the contents of it, can be received in this way as evidence The COURT ruled it could not. Witness.-Mvers then gave me the pen, and I signed for Isabella Dixon, who can't write, but shetmiade hermark. After they had done signing, iMir. Lana took them in his hand, and gave them to IsabeUa Dixon, and he sail that it was customary for the bride to make himI a present. She said she had no monev; and sbe asked mie to lend hera shilling, which I did, and she gave it to Mr. Lang. lr. Lang.l told the prisoner to take the bride round thte neck and salute her: he dad so. They then sat down. Lang did not say any thing more, but said he wvanted whiske!y. By the Cotl RT.-Who said so ?-The old parson. 1W'e then had 3 gill of' whiskey, which Lang tooks the first pull out of. No time elapsed between our entrance and the commencement of tle ceremony. Pri. soner said he did not rue what he had done. In a short time after, the whole party, except Mr. Lang, left the house, and proceeded on our jourey to Annan together. Alyers desired me when I got to Phi- iadelphia to write if his business (chimney-sweeping) was good there. Icabella and lie would go over there and settle. Ile went on vith me to Annan that evening. I knew the prisoner Myers's father, he was a chimnney-swKeeper in Carlisle. He is deadl; I heard so when I was there. Mlvers said, he wished the marriage to 'fe kept secret on account of his father being poorlv, for fear he might i' cut him out with a shilling," which, he said; would be very bard, as he wVas the man that helped to make it. During all this time the prisoner was sober. This witness underwent a long cross-examdnation by AIr. Az. iEisoN, in which he prevaricated occasionally. After several other witnesses had been hcard, Mir. James Little, a writer to the signet at Annan, was called. Ile deposed, he had had occasion to inquire into the law of Scotland respecting marriages. A writer's business in Scotland is the same as an attorney's. To constitute a valid marriage in Scotland, it is celebrated various wayS. Knows what a Gretna-green marriage is. if a man asks a woman to be his wife, and she consents, and asks him to be her husband; if they both agree and it takes place before witness, or is reduced to writing, it isavaid marriage. If the parties give metual a,surancclthat thev take each other for husband pund wife, or they do take each other for 'husband and wife, and provided it is not done as a frolic; and pro, vided the intention of the parties to live together is unequivocal. I ueg to explain that the man who officiates en such occasions, is, in the eye of the law of Scotland, merely a witness, If the parties are serious at the time, and evince no disposition for frolic, or show no levity at the time, though ,hey do not subsequently live together. If they arc serious at the timc, that is sufficient, though they may not liye together; there is no paricular form of words necessary -: any words distinctly expressive of the intention of eite parties to live together as mian and wife, is sufficient. CroSs-exminiined byvlr. ALDsERSO .-.He stated, that he thought that, if the narties (or one otfthem) were drunk, or if they declared, both at the tine of the ceremony and afterwards, it was a mere joke, the marriage vrould be invalid. lVitnesses were then called, the object ot whose examination was to show that the parties were drank at the time-at least that the bridegroom and the parson were; and that the bridegroom had, both before and afterwards, caUed It a joke. The parson was not called as a witness. The Jury gave the preference to the testimony for the defence, ana returned a verdict of Not Guilty. CARLISLE, MIONDA,y MIACH g- 1IGA,IY.-GRETN A-GREEN NfAl1tTAnr-