DOMESTIC DISCORD.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 May 1919, Page 6

DOMESTIC DISCORD.

REVEALED IN SUPBEME COURT.

A STORY OF UNHAPPINES&

A sordid story of domestic 1 contentiousness and conjugal m.appiness was unravelled in the Supreme Court on Saturday, m the course of which the folly ot people marrying after only a very I short acquaintance, and with a very meagre knowledge of each other, was once more forcibly demonstrated. The revelations were made in the course of the hearing of an appeal against the riecisjon of the magistrate (Mr. Wyvern U Hson) at Hawera, in refusing an order tor maintenance in favor of Martha Tapp against her husband, Jesse Tapp, under the provisions of the Destitute Persons Act. Mr. P. O'Dea appeared in support of (he appeal, and Mr. A. H. Powell opposed on behalf of respondent. RAILWAY CARRIAGE ACQUAINTANCES. Some astonishing facts and circumstances were elucidated in the course of counsel's presentation of ,the case and the evidence given on either side. •the appellant wag a fine-lookin e woman approaching middle life, who said, in her evidence, that prior to June, 1916 she had kept house for a highly respected gentleman in the district, and that at the time of his death she had to care for three young children. About ££ tune * h ?, was travelling in ,the train between Wellington and Auckland, when she met the man who afterwards induced her to marry him. During the course of the conversation they had in the railway carriage, the new-found friend told her a story of his need of someone to-look ai.ter his household, and invited her to come and supervise his domestic circle She protested that her health would not permit her to do so, but assurances were given that there woukl be no occasion tor her to do any work, a 8 there were grown-up daughters in the household, who would do all there was to do, and that all that was required of her was that she should be the guiding and directing Bpir it of ,the home. The lady was persuaded to give a tentative undertaking to accept the position, and whilst on her holiday in Auckland received letters from the elder members of the family, who were then resident at Alton pressing her to join them immediately This she ultimately did, and with the three children, joined her new-found friend and his family of eight. THE PROPOSAL OF MARRIAGE. Within a week of her arrival solicitations of marriage were made to her by the head of the house, but these she firmly declined. Feminine weakness, however, at last yielded to masculine importunity, and she was assured .that- the children would be on exactly the same footing as Mr lapp s. She protested, however, that the marriage could not be for six months, but this was eventually, reduced to three nconths, and, with "every prospect pleasing, the happy event was consummated at the office of the registrar at Patea some time in October, 1916. THE WEDDING BREAKFAST. On arriving home, the occasion was celebrated in the sitting room with wine and cakes, and the elder children w'ere-i called in to be acquainted with the joyful news. They signalised the announcement by throwing wine over the bride and scattering cake all about the room and generally "playing up." ' From then ou her life at home was a continual conflict with the elder members of her husband's family— particularly the eldest girl, who was about 20—and with her husband as well. She suffered from varicose ulcers on one of her legs and the girls, who were .to have done "all the work of the place," did nothing, and she was expected to do everything. On account of the state of her health, and the condition in which she found herself, she sent for her sister in Auckland to come and stay with her This apparently added fuel to the fire that had been kindled, for Tapp, not content with abusing his wife, also meted out similar treatment to his sister-in-law A climax' was reached one night, when Mrs Tapp rose and said she would go into her sister's bedroom, with the children. Tapp became furious, and jumping out of bed, grabbed a razor and swore she would never go out of the room alive. He did not actually touch her, though several times he had threatened her with a razor. His children also bad thrown table forks and potatoes at her and when she protested he had replied laughingly that B he could expect nothing else. She was told to take her children away, or he would not be responsible for wha,t his children might do to them. TEARS OF PENITENCE. Abuse was heaped on abuse, and, although residence alternated between Alton, Hawera, and Kaupokonui, the treatment was ever the Bame. The unfortunate wife was persuaded time after .time to return to her husband, on his promise of better behavior towards Penitence, on one occasion, so overtook him that he sought her with tears, acknowledging that he had "been a rotter, and not fi.t to live with her." This she refused, and said she wanted her own ctothes and furniture from his house, whereupon she was told that, as he had married her, he had also married her furniture. DOUBLE STRATEGY. She was-not without resource, however and on one occasion, seeing Tapp in Hawera in an elevated mood, conceived the idea of hiring a motor lorry and sending out to get her furniture. Fearing an order might be made against him for maintenance, it was alleged that Tapp made over his responsibilities at the Alton farm to his son, so that he would jn reality, have nothing of his own It was also alleged that on another occasion, when faced with the possibility of having to meet his creditors, Tapp made over his bank account to his wife, and then asked her to meet them and tell .them that she was the family financier. CON, THE COOK. During all this time the condition of Mrs. Tapp's health did not improve, and at one time, acting on medical advice, she had to lay up, and a woman was secured in Hawera to come out to the farm and look after Mrs. Tapp and the little children. The rude awakening she received on going into the kitchen, where "Con, the cook" held sway, on the morning after her arrival settled matters for her, however, and she demanded to be .taken back to Hawera immediately. The story of fires being douched out with kettles of water, chairs and logs of wood flung at her and about the house, narrow escapes from knives thrown at her face, and sundry other fUMt incident* af limibr eharaoUr, to-

(gether with the fact that she was throughout kept in a state of impeciiniosity, went to make up a record of about two and a-half years of the most miserable experience that could ever be inflicted on a woman. The end came at the beginning of last August, when the appellant left her husband, and had not been back to him since, neither had she received any maintenance from him. ORDERED OUT OF COURT. At this stage his Honor' stopped the proceedings to comment on .the behavicr of three young people in the body of the court, whom he ordered outside. It ultimately transpired that they were the elder children of Tapp. On one occasion Mrs. Tapp had been abused in the street by her husband. and had to seek the protection of the police. She went to her husband's place to get her own and the children's clothes, and when his family met her they said he had told them if she came there to "kick her but." She could not find the clothes, and had never received them. LEFT WITHOUT REASONABLE CAUSE. The defence set up in justification for the non-payment of maintenance was that appellant left her husband without a reasonable cause, and that at frequent intervals and for long periods she had been away from home —in fact, she had not lived at home half the time since they had been married. His Honor remarked that, even if respondent did not want his wife to ,go back to him, he would still have to support her, as he could not get rid of that responsibility by throwing her oil to the State. If the court did not make an order it would mean that appellant would have to go back and have all that kind of life over again. A PATHETIC STORY.

Respondent told the story of his first meeting with the lady who afterwards became the wife who would not live with him—who early sickened of the quietude of the country in a longing for the gaiety of town life. In a railway train, between Wellington and Morton, his eyes fell on a lonely-looking woman who travelled in the same carriage as himself, and "touched with a sympathy within," he was so moved towards her that he—got her a cup of tea, and in "the cup that cheers" there was the seed from which sprang a harvest of two and a-half years of domestic disaster. The story of the lady was that she had been to Wellington on a "fool's errand." She went to collect a £I2OO insurance on the life of her late husband, and had found that he had sold the policy for a paltry £2OO. Two hearts thereupon opened out to each other, and the woman, on hearing the man's story of his trouble, thought she could help him. He, however, said he would have to go home and talk the matter over with his family, and his daughters would write to her. This they did, and at last it was arranged that Mrs. Connor should come, and he paid her way from Auckland, and also for the removal of her furniture. "I HAVE A HEART, AND FELT FOR HER." All went well for a few moAths, until trouble arose between the elder children and Mrs. Connor, and respondent said he would have to dismiss her. This provoked a flood of tears, and the future Mrs. Tapp went on her knees and begged him not to put her out. Another man appeared on the scene, and 'eventually his advice, that Tapp should marry his housekeeper, was accepted. "I have a heart, and felt for her," declared respondent, with much emotion, "and we agreed to marry." It was at this time the truth came out, the bride-elect mentioning, in an unguarded moment, that in the marriage license she" had declared herself a widow, and she was really a spinster. This" news came a day or two before the marriage, but, as he had gone so far, respondent said he did not like to "back out." He denied all knowledge of the wine-spilling and the cake-throwing in connection with the celebration of the happy event. A WOMAN HE DISLIKED. All went merry as the proverbial mar-' riage bell until the advent of Mrs. Tapp's sister, whose presence brought a new and foreign influence into the home. "She had a very bloated face," said respondent, "and I did not like the look of her." She had only been in the place a day or two when, he alleged .-she frequented the Alton Hotel', and, as well as coming home drunk' brought liquor into the house—" a thing I have never done in my life, thank God!" expostulated the witness, with as accompanying thump on ,the hand-rail of the witness box. Sundry collisions between Tapp and his new-fojrad sister-in-law were attributed to her alleged likin<* for drink, and he even accused his wife ol culpability in this respect also. '-She couldn't even come from Auckland without two bottles of rum in her lueeara " he declared. SB 8 ' Respondent denied absolutely that he had illtreated his wife. When taxed with the razor episode, he said he had not been guilty of such a thing. "I never did in my life," he declared, with another emphatic smite on the witnessbox railing. The account of how "the missus" and her sister held and thrashed one of his boys was with difficulty related, and respoudent, in tearful tones, said he had never been able to get at the reason for it. ANOTHER MAN IN THE CASE. Allegations of at least undue familiarity on the part of another young man with respondent's wife were at one time made. "I saw him myself one day rubbing her over the head and so on." said the witness, but he admitted that thr action for a divorce which had been commenced by him had been withdrawn. "She asked that they should be and I was a bit soft-hearted and stopped them." On one occasion, the day before the anniversary of the marriage, appellant had come to him "crying, with outstretched arms, to be taken back," and witness suited the action to the words: "I ONLY WANTED 'APPINESS!" The story about making his farm overdo his son and his banking account i to his wife was explained on the pica of seeking happiness. He thought his wife would be more satisfied if she had control of the finances, and when such an arrangement was suggested he gladly acquiesced. "All 1 wanted was 'appiness, your Honor!" and another thump fell ot the defenceless witness-box.

Farther questioned in regard to his treatment of his wife's sister, who, in the meantime, had married—"l was at the wedding myself." he declared as he denied ever striking, her, "and I thank God I didn't," he said with another thump of emphasis. The hearing of the caso to this stage occupied the court till about 5.30 p.m., and at 11 o'clock this morning" the crossexamination of respondent by Kr. O-'Dea .wilt be flosunaaced.