Year: 1876




[From the Providence Press. December 27-l


A case has recently transpired in
Newport which has given rise to no lit
tie gossip in circles where il has be-
come known. being the return of the
lawfully welded wife of a man, after an
absence of forty years. to assert her mar
itnl rights. The story as related is in
substance as follows: Some forty years
ago, (report says forty -twO,l a young man
and g maiden in that city were united
to each other in the bonds OF wedlock.
However smoothly the course Of true
love may have been the act matrimo-
nial, it appears to have become strange
ly rufled quite soon after; a brief per-
iod, report says two or three days, the
blooming bride. the echo of her marriage
vows having scarce died away, in a
clandestin~ manner, and for no known
cause lett him whom she had vowed to
love and cherish, and fed to parts un
known For two years nothing was
heard from or of her, when all at once
she presented herself to the astonished
gaze of her deserted hu u.band. The lat
ter, il may readily be supposed, was not
Overjoyed to see her after such unac-
countable behavior on her part. He
gave her 90 understand that he was not
in readiness to resume marital relations
with her, when she retorted that he need
give himself no further uneasiness on
that score. az she had obtained divorce
The husband replied that he was re-
joiced to learn that, as it had saved him
the trouble and expense Of taking mesa-
ures TO procure a divorce on his own ac-
count as he had intended TO do. The
pair then drifted apart, she disappear
ing again from this region, while he re-
sumed the even tenor of his way. Feel
ing that he was freed from the bands of
matrimony, and not favoring a life of
"single blessedness," he sought out a
fair townswoman Of his, wooed and won
her, and for the second time became a
married man. The second matrimonial
alliance was attended with better results
than the first. Children were born to
them as the years rolled on, and being
industrious and frugal, the pair accum-
Mated a snug little property, and few
years ago, being in infirm health, the
husband gave up active employment,
and has since been deriving as muc h
comfort as usually falls TO the lot of a
man under such circumstances. He had
never heard from the woman he had
formerly called his wife since their last
interview, and believing himself entire
ly free from her, gave himself no furth
er uneasiness concerning her. Forty
years had elapsed since that time. What
was his astonishment when one day a
short time since a woman rang at his
door bell, and on being admitted, intro
duced herself to the household as the
wife =. rs head. Here was a scene.
Wife No. 2 was aware of the previous
marriage, but believed il TO have been
abrogated by decree of divorce. The
hu'band. too, withstood her claim, ab-
ducing, in support, her own story of a
divorce related forty years ago. She ad-
mittei having thus informed him, but
claimed that it was all a sham, that she
was still his lawful wife, and was still
here to claim her rights and privileges
under that head. This is the status of
matters in this particular household at
the present writing. Where she has
kept herself all these years does not
readily appear, but it is qnite apparent
to the parties concerned that she is here
now, and with purpose.