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SINGULAR - STORY TOLD IN SEPARA.TION…

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SINGULAR STORY TOLD IN SEPARA- TION SUIT. SERIES OF ENDEARING LETTERS TO HUSBAND READ. In the Divorce Court on Tuesday (before Mr. Ju.~t:ce BcLrgrave Deane) a case came on for hearing in which Airs. Alice Mary i'earnley- YVhutiiigstaAl petitioned for a judicial seyuirauou from the Rev. Herbert (Jakes Fearnley-Whittingstall, Vicar of Chalfont St. Giles, and rural dean, against whom she alleged cruelty, which he denied. siir E. Clarke, in opening the ease, said the respondent was the vicar of Chalfont St. Giles, and he was at present a rural dean. The marriage took place on the 25th of August, 1891. The respondent, up to 1901, was Rector of ilarlow, and then he went to Chalfont St. Giles. The change troubled him very much, and affected his physical health, and, possibly, to some extent, his mental health. In June, 1902, he told his wife he was afraid to sleep with a razor in t.he room He appeared to have been over-excited and distressed at leaving Marlow. A trip to; Switzerland was arranged, and he went with his wife's brother. The expenses were paid by the petitioner's father. It was hoped the trip would restore his health. After his return, however, he behaved in an extra- ordinary way If there was the slightest difference between them he would sit at the table and not speak, and he was. sjIent for days together. In December that year he complained of Mrs. Whittingstall bavin? wound up the clock. He objected to it, say- ing he< did not like to hear its ticking in the night, and that she had done it to annoy him. On one occasion they were play- ing croquet. Mr. Whittingstall claimed that his first ball had gone through the hoop. Mrs. Whittingstall thought it had not, and the umpire decided that it had not. Mr Whittingstall did not speak to his wife for days after that. She went up to his room to ask the reason for his treatment. He had a razor in his hand at the time and he waved it threateningly towards her, frignten- ing her a gocd deal, and he told her to get out of the house. ÛIIl the birth of one of the six children of the marriage in 1906, he was extremely angry because the wne's father did not give them £ 100, which he had been in the habit, of doing on the birth of each child. In 1908 again he refused to sit at ta.ble. with his wife, and behaved roughly. In March she dec-lined further to occupy the same bedroom with him, and the scenes increased in frequency and violence. In May there was a violent scene because the daughter had gone to bed without saying Good-night" to him. CIGARETTE SMOKING BY THE WTFE. On the 5th of June there was an incident when the respondent shouted and shook his fist a.t the petitioner because she was smok- ing a, oigarette. Her doctor had recom- mended her to smoke cigarettes two years previously, and her husband had supplied ner with them. At timed he was alternately confidential .n.n hostile t,t-) bis wife's particu- lar friend, Mips Lewis. Sometimes he con- suited Miss Lewis with regard to delicate parts of his matrimonial life, and at other times he expressed a strong and violent antagonism to Miss Lewis. On the 9th of July he gave his wife a certain promise and wrote: "And, God helping, I will keep this solemn promise." "DRIFTING PROM OUR COMPACT." After that his con duct still continued remarkable and strange. His wife was away for a time in London and Jersey. On the 15th of September he gave back to his wife a watch and chain and a ring that she had given to him, a.nd which be had worn for a long time He said he was not content to continue to wear it whilst their relations were what they are. At length the wife felt that it was impossible to continue to live with him. On the 9th of November, 1908. she wrote to him:- Dearest Herbert,—Before I go to Teneriffe I want to oix-sr you your watch and ring which you returned to me in September, if you will accept them in the spirit of perfect friendliness in which we agreed to live. I am loth to believe that you are drifting from our compact, but your note of Satur- day was a grreat shock to me, and scarcely in keeping with your promise not to intrude yourself upon my privacy. You have shown me so plainly by your rudeness to me. notably at meal times before others thui my presence is distasteful to you, and by telling me twice to go that I ask you in all seriousness is this your wish? If not let me remind you that you have had the beat years of my life, and that I honestly offer you my perfect goodwill and friendship, and I do claim in return your consideration and such deference as is due from a man to a woman. May I say to the woman you have sworn to comfort and honour? I write this because I cannot etand a repetition of the conduct of October 31. I ask you to wear the i watch and chain and let byr^nes be j bygones, and then, Herbert, dear, I am as ever, your affectionate AILSIE. Within a week after that this gentleman's behaviour made It impossible for his wife to stay. WIFE'S COMPLAINT OF HUSBAND'S STARING. The petitioner then gave evidence in support of counsel's statement. She said that whenever her husband was annoyed with her he refused to speak to her sometimes for two or three days together "I told him," said witness, "I refused to be treated like a servant by day." After they sot to Chalfont he found fault with everything she did- The razor incident everything she did- The razor incident frijhtened her very much. On one occasion she said her husband compelled her to go to Sunday school when she had been ordered by the doctor not to go out. On an occasion wheal he wanted her to go to a musical competition and she objected, he was very angry with her. On another occa- sion he told her if she did not keep the household expenses down he would manage the household himself. With reference to the croquet incident he glared at her, and said. "How dare you look at me like that?" and hissed at he.r. Once when she was singing, he rushed into the room, and said, I thought the house was on fire." Mrs. Whittingstall broke off her evidence, and. turning to the judge, said:- "My lord, may I ask that my husband may not stare a?t me so." His Lordship: Mr. Whittingstall you must not stare at your wife so. You must keep your eyes down. Mrs. Whittingstall, in the course of further evidence, said that on the occasion when her husband spoke about the cigarette-smoking, he said, "What do you mean by smoking." He added, "I command you by your mar- riage vows not to smoke any more." Once he objected to her visiting Surbiton and threatened to leave her out of his will. "He went," said witness,. "and tore down a crucifix from the wall, and shook it in my face. Then he rushed to the mantelpiece and took off a vase and threatened to strike me with it. I said, don't threaten. He then fell on the floor and kicked about. I was in great fear of him." ENDEARING LETTERS TO THE HUSBAND. Cross-examined by Mr. Priestley, Mrs. Whit- tingstall said that her married life had not been happy, she admitted she wrote to her husband in 189,7:- My own darling,-Very many happy re- turns of the day to You, my laddie. I feel kCI?i at no1 being able to give you a bir y kiss. This is your ninth birthday since we have been married. They have been the happiest days of all ,my life, my darling, and yOU know I love you with all my heart and soul.-With all my love, ever your loving Ailsie. Counsel also put other similar letters to -the witness. One letter ran: :My darlingetJt, I am so unhappy at having no letter from you. I am sorry you have been worried, darling. You want your Pat back again I am sure, and she wants to be back with you. Mr. Priestley; Are not those letters a trne expression of your feelings at that time. There was no coercion in those letters? Petitioner: Yes; there was. He always insisted on my writing like that. pAfit,inn*vr \1> \1 C 1 compiainea imat a lady in the body of the court, her cousin, was nodding and laughing at her His Lordship ordered that the lady should take a seat where petitioner could not see her. Counsel read a letter written to his wife by the husband on the wedding anniversary, in which he said:- My poor darling Girl,-I believe that the secret of my misery is that neither of us understand each other. God forgive me, but I how hard it has been for you to understand me. I did not understand you were hungering for companionship. If I had, I would have put everything on one side to give it you.-Your ever loving boy, HERBERT. The further hearing was adjourned.

QUARREL OVER CROQUET.

[No title]

EXCITING RESCUES.

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SHOT FHOM BEHIND.

maker OF japan.

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STOP PRESS. ♦

A BYE-ELECTION SENSATION.…

MR. MOND, M.P.-ODDFELLOW.

WIFE'S STORY OF CRUCIFIX INCIDENT.…

MR. LLOYD GEORGE AND CARDIFF.

BODY UNDER A CRANE.

FEARED LOSS OF OVER THIRTY…

QUESTION OF TIMBERING.

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