Extraordinary Case of Fortune- Telling.

Thames Star, Volume IX, Issue 3070, 17 December 1878, Page 1

Extraordinary Case of FortuneTelling.

AttheCitv Police" Court, Melbourne. T.o»a^iW^,Ajpftor» wu charged oa warrant with Mfjwiu* upon Mary Row. land* by »^ qf f ortOD^wl ti nf . The accusedJuuihefliL remanded, from Ballarat, wfa«e |h* bad undargoo* a sentence or onejfeontb. s imprisonment for a similar oftene*; The case disclosed extraordinary credulity on the part of aome of the person* concerned. - '■fJ? 6, prosecutrix. who keeps a wall grocer s-iHop in Faraday street, Carlton, . stated that the prisoner called at her ahop in July last, and representing that she was, a, fortune-teller, asked if Rowland* i would like to. know .anything, about futurity, adding at the same time, " I am oue. °f jjoae persons who can prevent evil, iiowlaoda conaeDted to hare her fortune* told, and. handed the woman sa. Cora looked at her hand, and, alter aome little, time, ahe said, "There is great trouble before you, and I can prevent it it you give me & piece of gold." * Sowunds gave her* soTereign, after which the woman laid that she would also require " ser*n pieces of silver, the largest yottjcapjjgefcf Rowlands gave her seven one.ghiUing pieces, fora placed the •oins in.a, poeketbandkerohief and said that she would, take them away with her is order to "put them on her (Rowlands') planet, to prevent the evil." Before leaving she said, .'Ton have a bad planet and a good one; I will break the etil one. She then left, but continued to visit Mrs Rowlands frequently for the next three months.- On one occasion she te©te*'fimcy.. to a etttet-stand * and said . would take it, and «« put it on her boys' I planet to preserve^ them from becoming drunkards." Placing implicit faith in I the gipsy woman,, Mrs Rowlands allowed k he* ' tt> ,haYe. ,the cruetstand; aid on a subsequent visit the defendant also obtained'ah'umbrella and two . dresses on the same pretence. Altogether, , she inveigled Rowlands out of about £10 in, mo,ney ( , in ; addition to the .other articles - mentioned. Sb^Jw_as._jn_.Jhe habit oi saying to her dupe," My dear lady, keep your mind to yourself; tell no one, or you will, be. ruined. ( IF you put; faith in m« and|3[odrl will make. all things oomfortable "apd happy, and cause you soon to have, property of your own." At every visit Gbra askeniMrs Bowlands for money, and on the prosecutrix informing her that she eoatdngt afford any more money, she said, ',' You must get it if you can, even if you have: to sell everything you have.'* Mrs Eowlandj at last began to be afraid of the womvoj and used to-borrow money from the neighbors in order to acbede to her demadds/ Whon she was unable to borrow any; "more money from the neighboTirsi Cora induced her to pledge a piece of silk haloed £4,, two shawls worth £4, a family Bible valued at £410 i, and another valuable book. About three' Weeks ago the defendant called at the shop and said, ." Zod'have 1 been very gcod to me, and I «m going to bring yoti £20 on Monday, bttt you must first raise me £1." After •son* .difficulty the £1 was obtained from a heifthbour, and banded to prisoner. ;Cora iaid 1 that she^did not want to see thi money,* and directed Jtowlands to '"place it in)' i: bible, and to bury the book in the y«rd r " The prisoner 'asked for a^handkerehieLand some pins, and having pinned the handkerchief round the bible she'handed it to Bowlaods, who dug a hole in her back yard, and butiel the book as directed. Cora then left and remarked that she would, return in three* quarters of an hour for tea. This.occurred about the end ofithe week, ,kna before leaving Cora expressly advised her not to touch the bible until the: following Monday. She did not return a* promised and Mrs Rowlands* becoming suspieieus , dug-up the bible from the ground arid found the £1 note missing. ' In answer to, Mr F. Stephen, who appeared on behalf of the accused, Mrs Rowlands stated that she left her husband at Scarsdale about eight months ago on account.of ill-treatment. She placed great confidence in the representations of the prisoner, who, however, did not,inform her of the exaot nature of the trouble she had undertaken to deliver her from. Mr Stephen submitted that the prosecutrix had been- labouring under some strange hallucination about her husband, and that the whole of the tnafcsaotiona - which Mrs Rowlands alleged she had bad with the accused never took place at all, but were merely. » my th,. the. result of * - diseased imagination—in fact, added Mr Stephen, the woman was not in her right senses, and should; be sent to*lunatic asylum by the Bench. The testimony of the prosecutrix was wholly unsupported, and if she had been in her proper mind she would never have Allowed herself to be" imposed upon in the manner described. •>•-■.■ Mr J. T. Smith remarked that the. case was a moat extraordinary one, but in his opinion there waa not the slightest doubt butithat the prosecutrix was in her right mind. . The Bench sentenced the prisoner to six months* imprisonment with hard . labour. . . . Mr. Stephen gave notice of appeal.^— Australasian. , „