RETURN OF A LONG – LOST HUSBAND.

Thames Guardian and Mining Record, Volume I, Issue 34, 15 November 1871, Page 3

RETURN OF A LONG - LOST HUSBAND.

The captain of a sea-going vessel, whose voyages were usually of considerable length, during an interval on shore, some ten years ago, determined to take upon himself the responsibilities of matrimony, and, accordingly, led to the altar of a church in the canton of Soleure, Switzerland, a lady of considerable beauty, whom he had met whilst on a visit to a friend in that canton ; but happiness is unenduring, and the honeymoon was scarcely over when the sailor received orders to start on a distant voyage. Duty must be performed, and with a lingering farewell the newly-married couple were parted. After the lapse of a few weeks news arrived that the ship had beeD wrecked on the coast of Africa, and that all on board had perished. Six dreary years passed over the widow’s head without having brought any contradiction to the sad tale of shipwreck, when the lady, accompanied by her uncle, went on a visit to Paris, and, in that capital, was wooed and won by a second claimant for her hand. The ceremony was duly performed, and in the pleasures and duties of her new home, and the care of three children which were the fruit of this second marriage, she forgot her sailor husband. A few days ago, however, a gentleman, whose features were bronzed by an African sun, and who bore on his breast the evidences of many a gallant deed of daring, in the shape of several crosses and decorations, entered a cafe on the Boulevard Montmartre and called for refreshment. Happening to cast his eyes to the further end of the room, he observed a lady seated behind a desk, engaged in writing. Jumping up from bis seat in a state of great agitation, lie approached her, and after a short whispered conversation, discovered in the lady—his wife, whom he had vainly tried to find at the village, where they were married. The distress of the unfortunate woman may be easily imagined. With a loud scream she fell fainting to tlic floor, and it was at first supposed that she had been struck by the captain, who had some difficulty in showing the occupants of the room the true state of the case. There appears to be little doubt that the affair will come before the Courts, and that the whole of the facts which have led to such an extraordinary result will be made public.