A TROUBLESOME TROUSSEAU

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 231, 23 September 1908, Page 4

A TROUBLESOME TROUSSEAU

FAMILY AFFAIRS AIRED IX COURT. I AX EXCTTAiILE PLAINTIFF. Silling in hi, civil jurisdiction yesterday morning. .Mr. 11. S.. Fitzherbcri, 5.. U., was called upon to settle family differences, and to decide the ownership of sundry articles comprised in (lie trousseau of a recent bride. tfosid"s tlio unusual nature, of the chiiin. there was novelty lent to the proceedings l.y tin- vehement verbosity of the maternal plaintiff, whose multilixjuenot- defied ail the effort,, of the magistrate for some time. When eventually all the strands of the tangled skein had been exposed to view, it was found bv the Magistrate that to decide the case he simply had to decide which side lo believe, and he chose to believe the elderly couple, who were the plaint ill's, on the ground that their evidence was given in a man ner that led him to place reliance upon it, and also that in some respects the wife's story was corroborated by that of the husband.

The contentious business might have been aired several weeks ago. but the lawyers engaged induced the parties to settle the "action in which Mrs. Olive Eva, wife of Henry Eva. of Xew Plymouth sued her father and mother, Benjamin and Emily dry, of Xew Plymouth, for the possession of sundry articles alleged to belong to her and to be wrongfully retained bv the defendants. Only the amount of legal costs had on that occasion to be settled by the Court. Now, however, the irate parents, piqued no' doubt by defeat at the hands of their offspring, set the law in motion to recover from their daughter four tablecloths, four towels, /our sheets, four pillow-cases, four cushions, some mats, two pictures iti wire franv-s, two blue and white glass ornnments, and some lace, or the value thereof. The plaintiffs conducted their own cave, but the defendant daughter was represented by Mr. C. 11. Weston.

The story of the plaintiff was that: on the last Saturday in May she found that the articles above enumerated had ; been removed, from her dwelling, and upon her daughter coming home from her employment in town she taxed her with having taken them. The girl admitted that she had taken some things, but only her own. IPlaintiff averred, and swore "on her dying oath" fully a score of times-that she had thought the goods and paid for them, and that she had never—certainly not —given them to the defendant, who had absolutely no claim upon them. The daughter left home that day, and the maternal eye had not been again cast upon her until that morning in Court. About a fortnight later the girl married, and about the same time two towels, two sheets, and two pillow cases were sent back to the plaintiff. A letter was sent to the defendant, but instead of returning flu things she "went to Mr. Weston aud told him a lot of things she ha.d no business to tell him. I had nothing told me Tint stories,"' added the plaintiff, 'and wilful stories, too."

Cross-examination seemed impossilec. At last, after considerable quiet qucsHoning. Mr. Weston elicited from the loquacious lady that she had not se?n the tilings removed, but something warned her to look at the boxes and drawers, and she found the things had disappeared. Pressed for particulars, 'brackets were "different .colors.'' ami she said the plush cushions ami-the mats in question might have been put to any amount of uses at the discretion or the owner. The lace was "bought lace." Counsel, with a bundle of white lacs hanging over his arm, approached the witness-liox, but the witness waved him 'back with the .statement that she knew nothing of those laces. It was differ-'iit stuir. she claimed for. She admitted that she had looked forward to the girl marrying -some .lay, but as for giving her presents—oh. dear, no. "I wish siie'd been married years ago. I do. I've had nothing but trouble with her, wet kin and week out. I 111." anil she . nodded fiercely, "l could tell a good 'of if 1 chose."

Fortunately the S.JI. prevented any further linen being brought forward for washing. Hut the witness grew obstinate when askeil to set her value on the articles claimed fur. "I know what they're worth, and she knows." So often was the answer given that the Magistrate intervened, anil then she estimated her loss a s follows:—Two sheets, 10s or lis each; four tablecloths. 3(l< each: four to.vels, lis each; two pil-l«w-eases 4s <,ich: live jilush cushions C> each, "and worth two guineas of anybody",; money'': jilush brackets II each: and so on, making a total of ,t.SV is.

.Mr. Weston thought tin? [iritM's were absurd, li\it the Magistrate considered them reasonable, whilst plaintiff said they were no more absurd than tile jiUO claimed by tilt dan.i^litcr in the previous action. JJr. Weston endeavored to stem the torrent. "Will you oblige mi " he started.

•'Oblige you—you—you!" The plaintiff was now decidedly angry. "Oblige you! I know all alxiut you. It's you who have done this. You're responsible. If you'd given her a good talking to—if you'd done as you promised—if you'd been a gentleman you'd have." She considered it was downright monstrous, and she "would say it in front of the King, too, if lip was here." At the conclusion of her evidence the plaintiff eloquently appealed to the "gentlemen of the Court" for justice, alleging that 'by the daughter's act they had been deprived for a month of their means of subsistence.

Benjamin Urry, husband of the previous witness, entered the witness-box. buf hearing nothing there on account of his deafness, he shifted up to the Bench and leaned against the Magistrate's desk to give his evidence. It was to the effect that his "'missus" told him that his daughter had taken about £2O worth of stuff away with her. He also stat"d his intention of forcing the defendant to prove her statement that her parent* objected to her marriage. Was he on good terms with liis daughter? lie never s poke to her, nor she to him. So they must have got along pretlv fair, he said.

This closed the ease for the plaintiffs, who packed up and prepared to clear, but the S:.M. advised the wife to see it through. "Here.'' she yelled to her deaf husband, who was now nearing the street door. "Here, you've got to come back ami see what your daughter has to say." And they returned.

.Mr. Weston proceeded to open the case for the defence, and'it became necessary to warn the old couple that a Court of law was not a place where one side could do the talking-for the whole of the time.

The defendant's evidence was to the effect that these things were mostly pre-ents from her mother, but, objecting to her "young man." the mother had now decided not to let her have them. Mie denied all knowledge of the pictures, mats, and lace, and alleged that the cushions were her own. made by her own hands from material she had purchased out of her earnings. The reas m why she had returned some of the things was that her mother had threatened to keep all her wearing apparel until these were returned, and, J course, she wanted her ilolhing. Site admitteii having I n taxed l,v her mother with removim.' the I limits. „nd said that "started an annum m." wlih-h ended in the old la.lv telling her to leaving the huiw altogether, so she went.

Defendant'. I'viilfiiiM' \vm |iiini-tiiat.'il liy interjection*, niriisations. and depiv. i-nlory eoiniiiont mini the plaintiff, who was ajpiin rebuked by the Deneh. At one lime till" two women had ;i worjv inteii han<.'e of assertion anil deuial ov •!■ tin- r-ilp. of the witn. s-lmx. tlie yonni.'er ejivinj: way. a> tlniujih she inly reeopnised the mother", iiiperioriiy in «■ JlUllleJlt. TUc pliiinlilV was put in the box for examination liv the Mapislrato. anil .the old gentleman was rer-alled to satisfy the Court whether or not In. hid said he had seen tlie cushions aliout the house, as against his wife's story (Iml tlfry were in the box. anil unused. The lady took no risks. .\s her husband passed her she shouted. '-Those cushions were new in the box." and lie adhered to that =lorv. The Magistrate held thai Intvintf ad-' milled removing these articles II ins was on tli.. defendant to jirove owii'r-i ship, and |hi. she had failed lo do. lie' !tan- judgment for 17 T.'s. with i.ls uosls.