A BREACH OF PROMISE CASE.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2009, 12 June 1875, Page 2

A BREACH OF PROMISE CASE.

Fine old truism it is, and is still-true, that a man, especially a man of middle age, ought to think twice,- and if possible three times, before fixing upon any woman for a wife. First thoughts in such matters often enough only bring such men to the stool of .repentance. Even seicohd thoughts, if not carefully, weighed in 'the scale of judgment, not unfrequ en tly yield a large crop of vexation. To "think twice" is no doubt a good classical phrase, both in form and-substance, yet the idea of- thinking "threetimes"before entering upon any enterprise such as matrimony, particularly, in middle life, has a greater degree of mystery and profundity, nofeto apeak of the support it has from antiquity and the "Philosophy of Triplication*." "Once for a:fool, twice for; a peasant, thrice, for. a wise ,mani".is. an;ancient oracle. Good had it been 'for ■•Mr Thomas Sheridan, Dublin ironmonger/had he been acquainted with these things. Ho would have escaped being made a spec? tacle of. in a'Dublin. Court, and he would not have been compelled to pay £200 to Miss Eliza 'Shiel, whom', without due thought, he proposed to marry, • and couldn't, or at least didn't., Eliza is the daughter of a widow in Dublin, and Mr Sheridan had known tie:girl from.her infancy. . So far as~years went, he might have been her father.. It occurredVto him, in raw haste, that he should like to. become her husband: He proposed;, Eliza hesitated; but after'a walk in theZoological Gardens with him, she consented, on the condition that she should not be asked to reside inChurch street. Thomas, of course, granted her wish ; and something was said about taking a house at £40 in Drumcondra. This was in the month of May. ■ In July, however, in* spite of the hot weather, he became r.ery cool in his attentions io Eliza, rln-' deed, so asauringly cool did he become that he asked Eliza's sister to walk with him, ignoring Eliza. September was fixed for the ..wedding, but by the end of July the matrimonomster registered;SO ?altry a degree of heat that untrue 'homas had resolved. to, break. thY engagement. Some idea of the temperature of Thomas' affections may be formed from the only love-letter which passed between them. On May 23rd he wrote: "My dear Miss Shiel, —I send the parasol. "Will you accept it?—rthough it is not a very nice one. It can be changed at Todd and Burns'.—Tours sincerely, Thomas Sheeidan." Cool this —as an ironmonger ! It was on July 31 that Sheridin called at Eliza's abode. He looked "very weak and pale," and wine and ■whiskey were set out, but poor Thomas had no appetite. He simply * asked to see Eliza alone. They went into the back parlour; brief and startling was the interview ; the wretched. girl came out immediately almost fainting, and saying, "Mamma, Sheridan has given me up." As a hen stands up for her chickens, so did Widow Shiel stand up for the deserted Eliza. To her imperativo demand as to what he meant, the craven Thomas replied, " I come to ask you, will you allow Eliza to release me from this engagement?". As, may be guessed, the widowed mother answered, " Certainly not!" Council for Sheridan i asked Mrs Shiel whether she had heard her daughter say that she would . >. ■ Look out for the grave she would like to be burled in Before she gotmarriod to frosty old Sheridan? To which, of course the widow answered 1 with an emphatic .negative, causing much laughter among "the spectators of the comedy. John Shiel, Eliza's brother, was examined, and described how Sheridan visited him to make a whining apology for breaking off the match. John called him a " low scoundrel." He didn't want the ironmonger to marry his sister, because he considered him " a miserable, miserly creature." That was the case for the plaintiff. For the defence, counsel declared that Eliza had been unwillingly forced into action "by her bullying brother and scheming mother," and that there had been " a regular trap " laid for poor Thomas, who had been previously engaged to Miss Polly then engaged to Miss Eliza, and almost engaged to Miss Agnes. He had, in fact, been the friend, of the family—all except the mother-in- . law that was to be, whose strength of character was such that she had even frightened Canon Macmahon, the,parish priest, .who had visited Mr Shiel f»r the purpose, apparently, of trying to mako peaco* Sheridan's counsel was quite sure that amongst the ladies there was not one —maid, wife, or widow—that, would ' not prefer two young fellows of 25 to one old man of 50. (Laughter.) The plaintiff had probably thought, in the words of tho old song—

What can a young lassie, What can a younqp lassie, What can a young lassie, Dq wi* an old man ?

And her conclusion wag probably the tame as that in the song^ ' . '

My old Auntie Kitty ' ■' ■ Upon me takos pity ; - I'll do my endeavour to follow her plan, . I'll track him and pack him ' ■ ' - -'- Until I heartbreak him, ' • And then his old brass will buy mo a now pan. (Laughter.) Tho illusion to the. "old brass" was prophetically intended by Burns for Mr Sheridan, tho bell-founder in Church-street. (Laughter.) He was a bell-founder in Church-street, and h&

tried to be a belle-finder, in Synnott-place, First, he found the belle Miss Polly Shiel, who, however, objected to be rung ; then he found the belle, Miss Eliza, whom ho was always, and is afc the present, most anxious! to ring, but who, by a strange inconsistency, is determined that she will wring him instead. (Laughter.) Thomas Sheridan himself made but a poor figure in Court. He described Miss Shiel's manner as " very grand and hoity-toity :" an opinion founded' on the fact that the widow being in Sheridan's^ house, had, we suppose, been displeased with tho furniture, and advised that it should be sold, with the exception of •bme handsome articles which would do for the hall.- This rather annoyed Thomas, who of course did not sell his sticks. After that important event, Thomas declared that the manner of the family changed towards him; that the girls used to titter when he went to the house ; that v Eliza, becoming colder, showed unwillingness to walk with him, " till her mother ordered her to go up and put on her clothes and go out." In fact, she didn't appear to like him at all. So said Thomas, who further stated that

wjien hfr visited Eliza for the purpose of her the opportunity of withdrawing lan .engagement which he feared would not make her happy, she only said, " Ask mamma, ask mamma," and left the room. He even went the length of declaring that he was anxious for the marriage, denying having told anybody that it hatl been broken off because Eliza would have ho 1 fortune. " But,, unfortunately, the jury couldn't believe Thomas, and awarded Eliza £20f>, as a small sum which might help: to heal/her wounded affections. It is to be hoped that .Eljza may ,be happy yet; fand we may fairly, predict thai Thomas Sheridan, the bell-fouader, will think three times before attempting to ring any other of the Dublin bellesT—Glasgow Herald.