Bigamist Tried At Old Bailey

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1040, 2 August 1930, Page 10

Bigamist Tried At Old Bailey

ARRESTED IN AUCKLAND “RECORD ALMOST UNBEATABLE” In tlie punishment that was meted out to a double bigamist at the Old Bailey recently quite a number of women took more than a passing interest. Amazing revelations of his exploits in love caused the Common Serjeant to remark, when sending prisoner to penal servitude: I think you are one of the greatest villains I have ever had before me. You are utterly unscrupulous. You think you can play fast and loose with young women of good character and destroy their lives. Your record is almost unbelievable. The man he was addressing, Arthur Ronald Harris, 34, described as a motor-engineer, of The Gables, Church Down, Gloucester, had been brought back to England from New Zealand under the Fugitive Offenders Act, on the steamship Rotorua, and was arrested by Detective-Inspector Keecb, of Scotland Yard, on tlie vessel when it arrived at Southampton. Tall, smartly-dressed, well-groomed and of good address. Harris was allowed to be seated in the dock while the case against him was unfolded. Mr. Gerald Dodson, prosecuting, stated Harris had been divorced, and married a second time on December 19, 1923, his bride being Miss Georgina Vance. There was a child of that marriage. During 1928 lie me) Miss Roberta Wadkin, of St. Mark’s Crescent, Regent’s Park. They lived together from time to time, and then Miss Wadkin went to Skegness to earn her living as a waitress. She was away until June last year, and meanwhile Harris improved the shining hour by trying to sell motor-cars on commission. Mr. Dodson thought, however, he was really riding about and making advances to Miss Evelyn Newton, of Percy Road, Kilburn. Miss Newton was only 20. and Harris met her in Hyde Park. He proposed to her in May last year, and they went to Chelmsford to see if they could get a house. In September Harris “marrie.d” her at Willesden register office, and they went to the girl’s parents home for the honeymoon. Rejoined Second Wife

It was a somewhat melancholy fact, remarked counsel, that at the time he i "married” Miss Newton he had rejoineu his second “wife,” Miss Wad-. kin, who had returned to London on I June 29. While actually living with : this bigamous wife he went through a 1 form of marriage with Miss Newton. ! He packed a bag and told Miss Wad-'| kin he was going to a job at Chelms- i ford, but he went away to marry Miss Newton. It was not long before Miss Newton and her family discovered that Harris was already married, and he was spoken to about it. He then promised to go abroad. Harris sailed for New Zealand on October 4, aud there was an understanding that Miss Wadkin should follow him out when he had obtained work. On the voyage, said counsel, Harris wrote ardent love letters to both his bigamous wives. In one, addressed to “Bob Darling,” he said there was a heavy sea running, and no one had taken much interest in anything outside their own ailments. He added:— “I wish 1 had you and my baby wkh ! me. I miss you both more than I can say. In the future I will fight for you aud babs and make my one aim in life the bringing of you both out to me and happiness. I have never before wanted you as I do now.” Reached New Zealand He eventually reached New Zealand, but it was deemed expedient, having regard to his idiosyncracies and his weakness for exploiting the other sex, that he should be brought back to England. When arrested at Auckland he remarked: “I was wondering how long it would be.” He asked leave to speak to his landlady, and it was granted. What he said to her, remarked counsel, was a tissue of lies. Common-Serjeant., Sir Henry Dickens, K.C.: Don Juan is not in it. Counsel remarked that another woman had been found in England to whom Harris had made advances. Detective-Inspector Keech related that Harris, on leaving school, entered the service of Barclays Bank. He joined the Inns of Court Officers’ Training Corps in October, 191 G, and in August, 1916, was transferred to the Royal Flying Corps as second-lieuten-ant. He relinquished his commission on account of ill-health in December, 1916, but later rejoined the R.F.C. as stores officer, and served abroad for six months. He was demobilised with the rank of lieutenant. He married his lawful wife when he was 20. on September 9, 1916, and deserted her after two and a-half years, and cohabited with another woman. In August, 1919, his wife wrote and asked him to return to her. He replied: “I have nothing whatever to say except that I have no intention of ever hearihg or seeing anything of you again if it can be avoided. . . . There is only one girl in this world that I love, and you have done your best, not caring one single jot about me, to spoil our little paradise.” His wife obtained an order for restitution of conjugal rights on April 23, 1920, and as it w-as not obeyed, a decree nisi was granted. This was made absolute on December 5, 1920, Harris not putting ill an appearance. Paradise Ended Tlie detective-officer went on to say that the paradise Harris referred to seemed to have come to an end very soon, for he left the womaii he had mentioned and w-ent to Canada. There he served in the Royal Canadian Air Force for over four and a-half months, and then applied for leave to visit his mother in England. On his return to Canada further employment in the Air oFrce was not available owing to decrease of the establishment. Since then he appeared to have had scarcely any employment except short periods as motor mechanic or driver. Detective-In-spector Keech added that so far as he could ascertain Harris had been kept mainly by remittances from his father, over whom he had hinted to two of his “wives” he held some power to menace. For a while after his marriage Harris lived with his wife at her parents’ address, during which time a son w-as born. He was not supporting them, and the wife’s parents turned him out early in 1924. During the next three years he was part of the time in New- Zealand and Samoa. He was in London again in the summer of 1927, and Inspector Keech remarked that he had found

one woman to whom prisoner had proposed marriage, but she declined as she had a husband living. Shortly after that Harris met Miss Wadkin, and “married” her in October, 1927, in the name of Pelham. She succeeded in getting him employment with the Shell Mex Company at its Brixton Hill depot. One of the employees there introduced his sister to Harris, and he courted her and proposed marriage to her. “Moral Kink” Mr. L. .A. Byrne, defending, urged that there was obviously some kink in Harris's moral outlook on life. It should, however, be borne in mind that he had no previous conviction. Harris, from the dock, said he had nothing to say except to express regret for what he had done. The Common-Serjeant remarked that he did not know if Harris had ever borne a good character, but he certainly had never deserved one. He passed sentence of five years’ penal servitude.