LOVERS’ GIFTS.

Shannon News, 18 March 1924, Page 2

LOVERS’ GIFTS.

DIVORCE COURT STORY.

£IOOO A YEAR TO FRIEND’S WIFE

A torn-up note found by a husband was quoted in the Divorce Court during the hearing of a petition brought by Mr Herbert-Basil Harrison, a solicitor, of Manor House, Pershore, Worcestershire, on the grounds of his wife's misconduct with Captain Ernest Duveen.

The jury found misconduct proved, and Mr Justice Horridge pronounced a decree nisi with costs. Sir Ellis Hume. Williams, K.C., said petitioner was a solicitor of standing and a county court registrar. . The marriage took plaqe in October, 1904, at Ealing, and they had three children.

In 1916, or perhaps a little earlier, the wfe made the acquaintance of Captain Duveen, and about 1919 t Captain Duveen accompanied Mr and Mrs Harrison on a pleasure trip to Brussels, and, continued counsel, petitioner noticed many things' of. a suspicious nature. One of the petitioner’s discoveries was a torn-up letter in the co-re-spondent’s- handwriting. It appeared from the fragments, said counsel, that he addressed her. as "Bebe’' and “My Own and Only One,” and one piece of paper had the words, “To-night I dread to think of that brute, alone with you.” There was also the phrase, ‘Your life is wrong so is mine. Neither of us is going to be happy until we are together. God bless you Bebe, you are the only thing I have in the world.” Another scrap had the words, “Love, I love,” and another, “Oh, my child, my Bebe.” Petitioner’s wife said Captain Duveen was in love with her, but that she had resisted his advances. .

Captain Duveen, added counsel was a man of some wealth, living in Park Lane, and it transpired later —when there was a dispute’ about, the children, who were made wards of court in Chancery-—that he had in December, 1920, brought a house for respondent in Golders Green and had gone to live a few doors away. Since - th£n the wife and Duveen had been on terms of the'closest intimacy, and in addition to buying the house Duveen had settled on the respondent £IOOO a year, payable until the youngest child" was 25. Mr Harrison afterwards gave evidence, in the course of which the judge asked—Does Duveen do anything? “He is now, I believe, a* member of Lloyd's,”, was the. witness’s answer.-