SAID HE HAD DECEIVED HER

NZ Truth, Issue 1240, 5 September 1929, Page 4

SAID HE HAD DECEIVED HER

Woman Charged With Bigamy Alleged She Had Been The Victml

DUAL MARRIAGE PROBLEM FOR JURY

(Prom"N.Z. ;^T^utll , s ,, Special Auckland Representative). 1 y Who is guilty, the man or the woman? > | | a Thatyseems to be the question that will puzzle the | | jury A when Minnia Clamest Horrocks stands her trial | | charged /with bigamy. | | Pleading not guilty she has pointed the finger, of J , | scorn at the man she married m 1912, William Arthur | I Meredith. 1

{( fflS mothers told; me I was no I'll daughter-in-law of hers, as ,y*» *> Meredith had a wife living m y " England. After Meredith went to the war, . he' wrote and told me that he was . back m; Eri'gland with ; his wife, and did hot intend to come-back to New Zealand," was the woman's allegation m defence of her name. . Alt was shortly after this,; she alleged, that she wrote her^ last ; letter to -Meredith, telling- him that she was ."finished with him -for; ever."; -'"V •.'■'; -a. A ,vTh^t;settled"everything, as far as she was concerned, arid when she '.met. George' Earl; at y the ;; end of 1920 ahe' ( agreed, to marry him, and, ; to use.;herAoWh'>wbrds, she did 'hot , take into consideration her previous marriage, as she, thought she : was not legally his L wife. ,' Meredith was called.to. identify the woman m the. dock, i and -he declared that it was she he; had married m England m 1912. .. They • came to New Zealand/ shortly after the' wedding, Meredith- told the court," and, when the war -broke ' out he. joined tip,' ultimately: leaving with the- 20th ■ reinforcement. \"- '•'.' It was not until eighteen months

iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiimii^, Horrdcks, "and had" married a' "man named William Horricjts. A , •■'■:.-■ Her first A marriage had taken place at Plymouth, Devonshire, m 1901, and her husband had died m Pretoria m 1902.'. ...A" .'■,•.•'■: : "I was a widow when I married Meredith, but he told me to say I was a, spinster," she continued. "" "When I married Earl, I. did not take into consideration my : marriage with Meredith, as I had heard >he was a. married man when he. married me. I considered I was. not his wife. ■>■- "I thought I was free to marry again, as my first hvftebahd was- dead," she went on, and when questioned on the' point replied that Meredith's mother had told her he had previously been married.' "During the epidemic I had influenza very badly, and. since" then ray ': memory has not been good.- I cannot remember the date of my marriage to Meredith; he. took, my. marriage lines with him when he went to . camp." - She tol.d the court that when she came 'to New Zealand with Meredith, shortly after the wed- : ding, they stayed at his mother's, boarding- house m Bath Street,