L DOLLAR PCR ANNUM INVARIABLY IN ADVANCE.
TOWARD A.:
Uhnreban fllornmn, lil rtlj 11, 1858.
LOVE'S SEASONS AND REASONS.
BY CHARLES MACK AY.
I love my love in spring time,
For beauty fresh as May,
For cheeks like early roses,
For eyes as bright as day ;
For breath like balm of lilies,
For smiles like sunrise clear ;
I love my love in spring time,
And love her all the year.
I love tny love in summer,
For promise warm and true,
For truth like noonday throwing
A lifcht on old and new,
For wealth of bloom and freshness,
And shady comfort near ;
I love iny love in summer,
And love her all the year.
I love my love in autumn,
For fruit of gentle dc-eds,
For wisdom to be garnered
T i serve our future needs ;
For virtues ripening ever,
L ke harvests full in ear,
1 love my love in autnmn,
And love her all the year.
I love my love in winter,
For charities untold,
For warmth of household welcome,
For looks that thaw the cold ;
For harmless mirth and pastime,
As rich as Christmas cheer ;
I love my love in winter,
And love her all the year.
Slllll e b £ a 1
iisECOND MARRI AGE.
ITWAURF.N WARNER, ESQ., OF THE IN.VF.R TEMPI.E.
A busy day in the assize court at Chester,
checkered, as usual, by alternate victory and
defeat, bad just terminated, and I was walk
in? briskly forth, when an attorney of rather
:o* oittf in his profession—being principally
eai|iloved as att intermediary between needy
felons and the counsels practicing in the Crown
c/irt —accosted the, and presented a brief ; at
the ame time tendering a fee of two guineas
milked upon it.
" I am engaged to-morrow, Mr. Barnes," I
eiclaimed, a little testily, "ou the civil side ; \
besides, you know I very seldom take briefs
it the Crown court, even if proffered iu due i
time: ami to-morrow will Ire the last day of '
the a-size in Chester ! There are plenty of
unemployed counsel who will be glad of your
brief.''
" It is a brief iu an action of ejectment," rc
v,:ed the attorney —" Woodley versus Thorn
dyke : arid is brought to recover |>ossession of
a fro hold estate now held und farmed by the
defendant."
"An action of ejectment to recover posses
•vi of a freehold estate ; defended, too, I
know, by n powerful bar ; for I was offered a j
or J. and declined it. Mr. P leads ; and
}ou bring me this for the plaintiff, and at the
•a-: moment, too ! You must be crazed."
1 told the plaintiff and her grandfather,"
rejoined Mr. Barnes, " that it was too late to
'•peak counsel's attention to the case ; and
• at the fee, all they have, with much difficul
ty 1 ceii able to raise, was ridiculously small ;
'■Athey insisted on uiv applying to you—Oh,
here they are !"
We had by this time reached the street, and
be attorney jtointed towards two figures stand
• ! 's attitudes of anxious suspense near the '
gateway. It was dusk, but there was quite
efficient light to distinguish the pale and in
teresting features of a young female, dressed
;u faded and scauty mourning, aud accompa
ud by a respectable-looking old man with
Miite hair, and a countenance deeply furrow
ed by age and grief.
I told you, Miss Woodley," said the at
■ rnev, " that this gentleman would decline
the brief, especially with such a fee."
It is not the fee, man !" I observed, for I
somewhat moved by the appealing dejec
tvo exhibited by the white-haired man and
t s timid grand daughter ; " but what chance
on 1 have of establishing this person's right
right .-lie have—to the estate she claims,
" i! i> suddenly calied upon to act without pre-
T: °nsconsultation ; aud utterly ignorant, ex-
as far as this I perceive hastily-scrawled
r: -fwil| instruct me, both of the nature of
plaintiff's claim and of the defense intend
w to be set up against it ?"
h you would undertake it, sir," said the
• age.oman, with a tremulous, hesitating
T oin. and glistening eyes, "for his sake"—
un I glanced at her aged companion—"who
°jse he helpless."
llie blessing of those who arc ready to
I' Y'b will be yours, sir," said Che grandfather
v , mc, ;k solemnity, "if you will lend your
31 !| i this work of justice and mercy. We
"H' no hope of withstanding the masterful
and wrong of wicked and powerful
r;; e *cept by the aid of the law, which we
taught will ever prove a strong tow
, defense to those who walk in the paths
l*ce and right."
|he earnestness of the old man's language
manner, and the pleading gentleness of
Joung woman, forcibly impressed me ; aud
. "d it was a somewhat unprofessional mode
fn: asi * determined to hear their story
j O,ll their own li}>s, rather than take it from
" brief, or through the verbal nae-
their attorney.
„ Dm have been truly taught," I answered;
really entitled to the property you
t J"' * know of no masterful men that, in
D , an d of England, eau hinder you from ob
, k' u g po&seesion of it. Gome to iny hotel in
tlip.m uIJ k°" r and a half from hence : I shall
<3- to hcar whit you have to
1 aided, taking the two gui-
nies from the haud of the attorney, who still
held the money ready for my acceptance, "you
must permit me to return It is too much for
you to pay for losing your cause ; and if I
gain it—— but mind, 1 do not promise to take it
into court unless I am thoroughly satisfied you
have right and equity on your side—l shall
expect a much heavier one. Mr. Barnes, I
will see you, if you please, early in the morn
ing." I theu bowed, and hastened ou.
Dinner was not ready when I arrived at
the hotel ; and during the short time I had
to wait, I more than half repented of having
had anything to do with this unfortunate suit
However, the pleadings of charity, the sug
gestions of human kindness, reasserted their
influence ; and by tho time my new clients ar
rived, which the} did very punctually at. the
hour I had indicated, I had quite regained
the equanimity I had momentarily lost, and,
thanks to mine host's excellent viands and
generons wine, was, for a lawyer, iu a very
amiable and benevolent humor indeed.
Our conference was long, anxious, and un
satisfactorily. I was obliged to send for
Barnes before it was eonclu led, in order to
thoroughly ascertain the precise nature of the
case intended to be set up by the defendant,
and the evidence likely to be adduced in sup
port of it. No ray of consolation or of hope
came from that quarter. Still, the narrative
I had listened to, bearing as it did the impress
of truth and siucerity iu every sentence, strong
ly disposed ine to believe that foul play had
been practiced by the other side ; aud I de
termined, at all hazards, to go into court,
though with but faint hope indeed of a present
sue vssful issue.
" It appears more than probable," I remark
ed on dismissing my clients, " that this will is
a fabrication ; but before such a question had
been put in issue before a jury, soine produci
ble evidence of its being so should have been
sought for aud obtained. As it is I can only
watch the defendant's proof of the genuine
ness of the instrument upon which lie has ob
tained probate—one or more of the attesting
witnesses may, if fraud has been practiced,
break down under a searching cross-examina
tion, or incidentally, perhaps, disclose matter
for further investigation."
" One of the attesting witnesses is, as I
have already told yon, dead," observed Barnes;
" and another, Elizabeth Wareing, lias, I hear
to-day left the country. An affidavit to that
effect will, no doubt, be made to morrow, in
order to enable them to give secondary cvi- j
deuce of her attestation, though, swear as they j
may, 1 have not the slightest doubt I could ;
find her if time were allowed, and her presence
wonid at all avail us."
" Indeed 1 This is very important. AVould
von, Mr. Barnes, have any objections," I ad
ded, after a few moments' reflection, " to make
oath, should the turn of affairs to-morrow
reader your doing so desirable, of your belief
that you could, reasonable time being allowed,
procure the attendance of this woman—this
Elizabeth Wareing ?"
" Not the slightest ; thongh bow thatwo'd
help us to invalidate the will Thorudyke claims
under, I do not understand."
" Perhaps not. At all events do not fail
to be early in court. The case is the first iu
to-morrow's list, remember."
The story confided to me was a very sad,
and, unfortunately in many of its features, a
very common one. Ellen, the only child of the
old gentleman, Thomas Ward, had early in
life married Air. James Woodley, a wealthy
yeoman, prosperously settled upon his pater
nal acres, which he cnltivated with great dili
gence and success. The issue of this marriage
—a very happy one,l was informed—was Ala
ry Woodley, the plaintiff in the present action.
Air. Woodley, who had now been dead some
thing more than two years, bequeathed the
whole of his property, real and personal, to
his wife, in full confidence, as he expressed
himself but a few hours before he expired,
thr.t she would amply provide for his and her
child The value of the property inherited by
Mrs. Woodley under this amounted, according
to a valuation made a few weeks alter the tes
tator's decease, to between eight aud nine
thousand pounds.
Respected as a widow, comfortable in cir
cumstances, and with a daughter to engage
her affections, Airs. Woodley might have pas
sed the remainder of her existence in happiness.
But how frequently do women peril and lose
all by a second marriage ! Such was the case
with Airs. Woodley : to the astonishment of
everybody she threw herself away on a man
almost unknown in the district—a person of
no fortune, of mean habits, and altogether un
worthy of accepting as a husband. Silas
Thorudyke, to whom she thus committed her
happiness, had lor a short time acted as bai
liff on the farm ; and no sooner did he feel
himself master, than his subserviency v.-as
changed to selfish indifference, and that gradu
ally assumed a coarser character. He disco
vered that the property, by the will of Air.
Woodley, was so secured against every chance
or casually to the use and enjoyment of his
wife, that it not only did not pass by marriage
to the new bridegroom, but she was unable to
alienate or divest herself of any portion of it
during life. She could, however, dispose of
it by will ;• but in the event of her dying in
testate, the whole descended to her daughter,
Mary Woodley.
Incredibly savage was Thorudyke when he
made that discovery ; and bitter and incessant
were the indignities to which he subjected his
unfortunate wife, for the avowed purpose of
forcing her to make a will entirely in his favor,
nnd of course disinheriting her daughter.—
These persecutions failed of their object. Au
unexpected, quiet, jmssive, but unconquerable
resistance, was opposed by the, in all other
things, cowed aud submissive woman, to this
demand of her domineeriug husband. Her
failing health—for gently nurtured and tender
ly cherished as she had ever been, the callous
brutality of her husband soon told upon the
unhappy creature —warned ber that Mary
would soon be an orphan, and that upon her
firnmess it depended whether the child of hina
to whose memory she had been, so fatally for
hemdf. nnfftfthful should be oas* betnefes
PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY AT TOWANDA, BRADFORD COUNTY, PA., BY E. O'MEARA GOODRICH.
" REGARDLESS OF DENUNCIATION FROM ANY QUARTER."
and penniless upon the world, or inherit the
wealth to which, by every principle of right
and equity, she was entitled. Come what
may, this trust at least should not, she men
tally resolved, be betrayed or paltered with.
Every imaginable expedient to vanquish her
resolution was resorted to. Thorudyke pick
ed a quarrel with Ward, her father, who had
lived at Dale Farm since the morrow of her
marriage with Woodley, and the old gentle
man was compelled to leave, and take up his
abode with a distant and somewhat needy re
lative. Next Edward Wilford, the only son
of a neighboring and prosperous farmer, who
had been betrothed to Mary Woodley several
months before her father's death, was brutal
ly insulted, and forbidden the house. All,
however, failed to shake the mother's resolu
tion ; aud at length, finding all his efforts
fruitless, Thorudyke appeared to yield the
point, and upon this subject, at least, ceased
to harass his unfortunate victim.
Frequent private conferences were now held
between Thorudyke, his two daughters and
Elizabeth Wareing—a woman approaching
middle age, whom under the specious pretense
that Mrs. Thorudyke's increasing ailments ren
dered the services of an experienced matron
indispensable, he had lately installed ut the
farm. It was quite evideut to both the mother
and daughter that a much greater degree of
intimacy subsisted between the master and
housekeeper than their relative positions war
ranted ; aud from some expressions heed lev.-!y
dropped by the woman, they suspected them
to have been ouce on terms ot confidential in
timacy. Thorudyke, I should have mentioned
was not a native of these parts ; he had an
swered Moodley's advertisement as a bailiff,
and his testimonials appearing satisfactory, he
had been somewhat precipitately engaged. A
young man, calling himself Edward Wareing,
the sou Elizabeth Wareing, and said to be en
gaged in an attorney's office in Liverpool, was
a not uufrequent visitor at Dale Farm ; and
once he bad the insolent presumption to ad
dress a uoie to Mary Woodley, formally ten
dering his hand and fortune ! This, however,
did not suit Mr. Thornkyke's views, aud Mr.
Edward Wareing was very effectually rebuked
and silenced by bis proposed father-in-law.
Mrs. Thorudyke's health rapidly declined. —
The woman Wareing, touched po.-siltly by
sympathy or remorse, exhibited considerable
tenderness and compassion towards the inva
lid ; made her nourishing drinks, and adminis
tered the medicine prescribed bp the village
practitioner —who, after much delay and pooh,
jjot.ktng, by Thorudyke, had been been called
in—with her own hands. About three week
previous to Mrs. Thorudyke's death, u sort of
reconciliation was patched up through her in
strumentality, between the husband and wife ;
an unwonted expression of kindness and com
passion, real or simulated, sat upon Tiiorn
dykes's features every time he approached the
dying woman.
The sands of life ebbed swiftly with Mrs.
Thorukyke. Infolded in the gentle, but dead
ly, embrace with which consumption seizes its
victims, she wasted rapidly away ; and, most
perplexing symptoms of all, violent retching
and nausea, especially after taking her medi
cine—which, according to Davis, the village
surgeon, was invariably of a sedative charac
ter —aggravated and confirmed the fatal dis
ease which was hurrying her to the tomb.
Not once during this last illness could Alary
Woodley, by chance or by stratagem, obtain
a moment's private interview with her mother,
until a few moments before her decease. En
til then, under one pretense or auother, either
Elizabeth Wareing, one of Thorudyke's daugh
ters, ot Thorudyke himself, was always present
in the sick chamber. Jt was evening ; dark
ness had for sometime fallen ; no light had
yet been taken iutojthe dying woman's apatt
ment; and the pale starlight which faintly il
lutnined the room, served, as Mary Woodley
softly approached on tiptoe to the bedside of
her, as she supposed, sleeping parent, but to
deepen by defining the shadows thrown by the
full, heavy hangings, and the old massive fur
niture. Gently aud with a beating heart.—
Alary Woodley drew back the bed-curtain
nearest the window. The feeble, uncertain
light flickered upon the countenance, distinct
in its mortal paleness, of her parent; the eyes
recognized her, and a glance of infinite tender
ness gleamed for un instant in the rapidly
darkened orbs ; the right arm essayed to lift
itself, as for one fast, last embrace. Vainly !
Love, love only, was strong, stronger than
death, in the expiring mother's heart, and the
arm fell feebly back on the bedclothes. Alary
Woodley bent down in eager grief, for she
felt instinctively that the bitter hour at last
was come. Their lips met, and the lu.-t ac
cents of the mother murmured, " Beloved Ala
ry, I—l have been true to you—no will—no"
. A slight tremor shook her frame, the
spirit that looked in love from the windows ol
the eyes departed ou its heavenward journey,
and the unconscious shell only of what had
once been her mother remained in the sobbing
daughter's arms.
1 will not deny that this narrative, which 1
feel I have but coldly and feebly rendered
from its earnest, tearful teudcrness, as related
by Alary Woodley, affected me considerably
—case hardened, as, to use an old bar pun, we
barristers are supposed to be: nor wilt the
reader be surprised to hear that suspicions,
graver even thun those which pointed to for
gery, were evoked by the sad history. Alueli
musing upon the strange circumstances thus
disclosed, aud profoundly cogitative on the
best mode of action to be pursued, the " small
hours," the first of them at least, surprised me
in my arm chair. I started up and hastened
to bed, well knowing from experience that a
sleepless vigil is a wretched preparative for a
morrow of active exertion, whether of mind or
body.
I was betimes in court the next morning,
and Mr. Barnes, proud as a peacock of figur
ing as an attorney in an important civil suit,
was soon at my side. The case had excited
more iuterest than I had supposed, and the
court was very early filled. Alary Woodley
and her grand father soon arrived ; and amor
of commiseration ran through the nnditUfry as
they took their seat by the side of Barnes.—
There was a strong bar arrayed against us ;
and Mr. Silas Thorudyke, I noticed was ex
tremely busy and important with whisperings
and suggestions to his solicitor and counsel—
received, of course as much meaningless fa
miliarities are, with barely civil indifference.
Twelve common jurors were called and sworn
well uud truly to try the issue, aud I arose
amidst breathless silence to address them.
I at once frankly stated the circumstances un
der which the brief had cotne into my hands,
observed that if, for lack of advised prepara
tion, the plaintiffs case failed on that day,
another trial under favor of the court above,
would 1 doubted not at no distant period of
time, reverse the possibly at present unfavora
ble decision. "My learned friends ou the
other side," I continued, "smile at this quali
fied admission of mine : let them do so. If
they apparently establish to day the validity of
a will which strips an only child of the inheri
tance bequeathed by her father, they will, I
tell them emphatically have obtained but a
temporary triumph tor a person who—if I, if
you, gentlemen of the jury, are to believe the
case intended to lie set up as a bar to the
plaintiff's claim—had succeeded, by the gross
est brutality, the most atrocious devices, in
bending the mind of the deceased Mrs. Thoru
dyke to his selfish purposes. My learned
friends need not interrupt me : I shall pursue
these observations, for the present, no further ;
merely adding that I. that his lordship, that
you gentlemen of the jury, will require of him
the strictest proof—proof clear as light—that
the instrument upon which he tvlies to defeat
the equitable, the righteous claim ot the young
aud amiable person by my side, is genuine, aud
not, as I verily beleive"—l looked, as I spoke,
full in the face of Thorudyke— " FORGED."
" Alv lord," exclaimed the opposing counsel,
" this is really insufferable !"
His lordship, however, did not interpose ;
and I went on to relate, iu the most telling
manner of which 1 was capable, the history of
the deceased Airs. Thorudyke's first and second
marriaires ; the harmony and happiness of the
first—the wretchedness and cruelty which
characterized the second. I narrated, also,
the dying words of Mrs. Thorudyke to her
daughter, though repeatedly interrupted by
the defendant's counsel, who manifested great
indignation that a statement unsusceptible of
legal proof should be addressed, to the court
and jurv. My address concluded, 1 put in
James Woodley's will ; and, as the opposing
counsel did not dispute its validity, nor require
proof of Alary Woodley's identify, I intimated
the plaintiff's case was closed.
The speech for the defendant was calm and
guarded. It threw, or rather attempted to
throw,, discredit ou the death-bed " fiction,"
got up, Mr. P said, simply with a view
to effect ; and he concluded by averring that
he should be able to e.-tablish tiie genuineness
of the will of Ellen Thorudyke, now produced
uv irrc-sistable evidence. That done, however
much the jury might wish the property had
been otherwise disposed of, they would, of
course, return a verdict in accordance with
their oaths and the law of the land.
The first witness called was Thomas Head
ley, a smith,, residing near the Dale farm
He swore positively that the late Airs. Thorn
dyke, whom he knew well, had cheerfully sign
ed the bill now produced, after it had been
deliberately read over to her by her husband
about a fortnight before her death. Silas
Thorudyke, John Cummins, Elizabeth AYare
ing, and witness were the only persons present.
Alrr. Thorndkye expressed confidence that
her husband would provide for Alary Wood
ley.
" And so I will," said sleek Silas, rising up
and looking ronnd upon tho auditory. "If
she will return 1 will be a father to her."
No look, no sound of sympathy or approval,
greeted this generous declaration aud he sat
down again not a little disconcerted.
I asked this burly, half-drunken witness but
one question : " When is vonr marriage with
Rebecca Thorudyke, the defendant's eldest
daughter, to be celebrated ?"
"1 don't know, Air. Lawyer ; perhaps uev
er."
"That will do ; yon can go down."
Air. F now rose to state that his client
was unable to produce Elizabeth Wareing,
and another of the attesting witnesses to the
will, iu court. No suspicion that any opposi
tion to the solemn testament made by the de
ceased Mrs. Thorudyke would be attempted,
had been entertained ; and the woman, una
ware that her testimony would be required,
had left that part of the country. Every ef
fort had been made by the defendant to disco
ver her abode without effect. It was believed
she bad gone to America, where she had rela
tives.
The defendant had filed an affidavit setting
forth these facts ; ami it was now prayed that
secondary evidence to establish the genuine
ness of Elizabeth Wareitig's attesting signa
ture should be admitted.
1 of course vehemently opposed this demand
and broadly hinted that the witness was pur
posely kept out of the way.
"Will my learned friend," said Mr. P
with one of his slyest sneers, " inform us what
motive the defeudaut could possibly have to
keep back a witness so necessary to him ?"
"Elizabeth Wareing," I curtly replied,
" may not, upon reflection, be deemed a safe
witness to subject to the ordeal of a cross-ex
amination. But to settle the matter, my lord,"
I exclaimed, " 1 have here an affidavit of the
plaintiff's attorney, in which he states that he
lias no doubt of being able to find this impor
tant witness if time be allowed liirn for the
purpose ; the defendant of course undertaking
to call her when produced."
A tremenduous clamor of counsel hereupon
ensued, and fierce and angry grew the war of
words. The hubbub was at last terminated
by the judge recommending that, under the
circumstances, " a juror should be withdrawn."
This suggestion, after some demur, was agreed
to. One of the jurors was whispered to tome
out of the box ; then the clerk of the court
exclaimed, "My lord, there are only eleven
men on the jury •" nrid by the aid of this ven-
[ erable, if clumsy expedient, the cause of Wood
Icy versus Thorudyke was de fucio udjourued
to a future day.
I had not long returned to the hotel, when
1 was waited upon by Mr. Wilford, senior,
the father of the young man who had been
forbidden to visit Dale Farm by Thorudyke.
His son, he informed me, was ill from chagrin
and anxiety—confined to his bed, indeed ; and
Mary Woodley had refused, it seemed, to ac
cept pecuniary aid from either the father or
the sou Would I endeavor to terminate the
estrangement which had for some time unhap
pily existed, and persuade her to accept his,
Wilford senior's freely offered purse and servi
ces '( I instantly accepted both the mission
and the large sum which the excellent man
tendered. A' part of the money I gave Barnes
to stimulate his exertions, and the rest I plac
ed in the hand of Mary Woodley's grandpapa,
with a friendly admonitiou to him not to allow
his grandchild to make a fool of herself, an
exhortation which produced its effect in due
season.
Summer passed away, autnmn had come
and gone, and the winter assizes were ouce
more upon us. Regular proceedings had been
taken, and the action in ejectment of Wood
ley versus Thorudyke was once* more on the
cause list of the Chester circuit court, marked
this time as a special jury case. Indefatiga
ble as Mr. Barnes had been iu his search for
Elizabeth Wareing, not the slightest trace of
her could he discover ? and I went iuto court,
therefore, with but slight expectation of in
validating the, as I fully believed, fictitious
will. We bad, however, obtained a good deal
of information relative to the former history
not only of the absent Airs. Wareing, but of
Thorudyke himself ; and it was quite within
the range of probabilities that something might
come out enabling me to use that knowledge
to good purpose. The plaintiff and old Mr.
Ward were seated in court beside Mr. Barnes,
us 011 the former abortive trial ; but Mary
Woodley had, fortunately for herself, lost much
of the interest which attaches to female come
liness and grace when associated in the mind
of the spectator with undeserved calamity and
sorrow. The black dress which she still wore
—the orthodox twelve months of mourning
for a parent had not, yet quite elapsed—was
now fresh, and of fine quality, nnd the pale
lilies of her luce were interspersed with deli
cate roses ; whilst by her side sat Mr. John
Wilford, as happy-looking as if no such tilings
as perjurers, forgers, or adverse verdicts exist
ed, to disturb the peace of the glad world.—
Altogether, we were decidedly less interesting
than ou the former occasion. Edward W are
ing, I mu-t not omit to add, was, greatly to
our surprise, present. lie sat, in great appa
rent amity, by the side of Toon-dyke.
It wus late in the afternoon, aud twilight
was gradually stealing over the dingy court,
when the case was called. The special jury
answered to their names, were duly sworn, and
then nearly the same preliminary speeches and
admissions were made and put in us on the
previous occasiou. Thomas Head ley, the first
witness called in support of the pretended will,
underwent a vigorous cross-examination ; but
1 was unable to exact auythingof importance
.from him.
" And now," said the defendant's leading
counsel, " let me ask my learned friend if he
lias succeeded in obtaining the attendance of
Elizabeth Wareing ?"
I was of course obliged to confess that we
had been unable to find her ; and the judge
remarked in that case he could receive secon
dary evidence iu proof of her attestation of the
will.
A whispered but manifestly eager conference
here took place between the defendant and his
couusel, occasionally joiucd iu by Edward
W arcing. There appeared to be an indecision
or hesitation in their deliberat'o is ; but at
last Air. F—- rose, and with some ostenta
tion of manner addressed the court.
"In the discharge of my duty to tlie defen
dant in this action, my lord, upon whose fair
fame much undeserved obloquy has been east
by the speeches of the plaintiff's counsel—
speeches unsupported by a shadow of evidence
I have to state that, anxious above all
things to stand perfectly justified before bis
neighbors and society, lie has, at great trou
ble and expense, obtained the presence here
to-day of the witness Elizabeth Wareing. She
had gone to reside in France with a respecta
ble English family in the situation of house
keeper. We shall uow place her in the wit
ness-box, and having done so, 1 trust we shall
henr no more of the slanderous imputations so
freely lavislied upon my client. Call Elizabeth
Wareing into court."
A movement of surprise and curiosity agi
tated the entire auditory at this announce
ment. Air. Silas Thorudyke's naturally cada
verous countenance assumed an ashy hue, in
spite of his efforts to appear easy and jubilant ;
and for the first time since the commencement
of the proceedings, I euttrtained hope of a
successful issue.
M rs. Wareing appeared in answer to the call
and was duly sivoru "to tell the truth, the
whole truth, and nothing but the truth."—
She was a good-looking woman, of perhaps
forty years of age, and bore a striking resem
blance to her son. She rapidly, fJEJbothly, and
unhesitatingly confirmed the evident*, of Head
ley to a tittle. She trembled, I observed, ex
cessively ; aud on the examining counsel inti
mating that he had no more questions to
turned hastily to leave the box.
" Stay—stay, my good woman," I exclaim
ed ; " yon and I must have some talk togeth
er before we part."
She started and looked back at me with
frightful earnestness ; and then her nervous
glances stole towards Mr. Silr.s Thorudyke.
There was no comfort there—in his counten
ance she only saw the reflex of his agitation
and anxiety which marked her own Sleek
Silas, I could see, repented of the rash move
he hud inudo, and would have given a great
deal to get his witness safely and quietly out
of court.
It was now nearly dark ; and observing that
! it was necessary the court and jury should see,
I as well as hear, the witness, whilst under ex
VOL. XVIII. —NO. 40.
ainination, I requested tbat lights should be
brought in. This was done. Two caudles
were placed in front of the witness-box, ouo
on each side of Mrs. Wareing j a few others
wore disposed about the bench and jury desks.
The effect of this partial lighting of the gloomy
old court was, that the witness stood in strong
and bright relief from the surrounding shad
ows, rendering the minutest ehuuge or play of
her features distinctly visible. Mr. Silas
Thorndyke was, from his position, thrown en
tirely into the shade, and any telegraphiug be
tween him and the witness was thus rendered
i impossible. This preparation, as if for some
extraordinary and solemn purpose, together
with the profound silence which reigned in the
court, told fearfully, as I expected, upon the
nerves of Mrs. Elizabeth Wareing. She al
ready seemed as if about to swoon with agita
tion and ill defined alarm.
"Pray, madam," said I, "is your name
Warning or Tucker ?"
She did not answer, and I repeated the
qvestion.
"Tucker," she at last replied in a tremulous
whisper.
" I thought so; and pray Mrs Tucker, were
you ever in trouble in Loudou, for robbing
your lodgings ?"
I thought she attempted to answer, but no
sound passed her lips. One of the ushers of
the court handed her a glass of water at mv
suggestion, and she seemed to recover some
what 1 pressed my question ; and at last sho
replied in the same low, agitated voice, " Yes,
i have been.'
" I know you have ; Mr. Silas Thorndyke,
I believe, was vonr bail on that occasion, and
the matter was, I understand compromised—
arranged—at all e-'ents the prosecution was
not pressed. Is not that so V'
" Yes—no—yes.,'
" Very well ; either answer will do. You
lived also, I believe, with Mr. Tnorudyke, as
his housekeeper, of co irse, when he was iu
business us a concoctor and vender of infallible
drugs and pills ?"
"Yes."
" Ho was held to be skillful in the prepara
tion of drugs, was he not —well versed iu their
properties V
" Yes—l believe so—l do not know. Why
am I asked such questions ?"
" You will know presently. And now, wo
man, answer the question 1 am about t) put
to you, as you wiil be compelled to answer it
to God at the last great day. What was the
nature of the drug which you or he mixed with
the medicine prescribed for the late Mrs.
Thorndyke ?"
A spasmodic shriek, checked bv a desperate
effort, partially escaped her, and she stood
fixedly gazing, with starting eyes, into iny
face.
The profoundest silence rcigued in the court
us I reiterated the question. " You must an
swer," woman, said the judge, sternly, " unless
you know your auswer will criminate your
self."
The witness looked wildly round the court,
as if iu search for counsel or sympathy ; but
encountering one but frowning and eager faces
—Thorndyke she could discern iu the darkaess
—she became giddy and panic-stricken, and
seemed to lose all presence of mind.
" He—he—he," she at last gasped, "he
mixed it. Ido not know . But how,"
she added, pushing back her hair, and press
ing her hands against her hot temples, "can
this be ? What can it mean ?"
A movement amongst the bystanders just
at this moment attracted the notice of tho
judge, and he immediately exclaimed, "The
defendant must not leave the court." An offi
cer placed himself beside the wretched mur
derer as well as forger, and I resumed tho
cross-examination of the witness.
"Now, Mrs. Tucker, please to look at this
letter (It was that which had been address
ed to Mary Woodley by her son.) "That, I
believe, is vour sou's handwritiug."
" Yes." "
" The body of this will has been written by
the same hand. Now, woman, answer was it
your son—this youug man who, you perceive,
if guilty, cannot escape from justice—was it
he who forged the names of the deceased Mrs.
Thorndyke, and of Johu Cummins attached
to it ?"
" Not he—not he !" shrieked the wretched
woman. "It was Thorndyle—Thorndyke
himself," and then, with a sudden revulsion of
feeling, as the consequances of what she had
uttered flashed upon her, she exclaimed, "Oh,
Silas, what have have I said ?—what have I
done ?"
" Hanged me, that's all, you accursed
devil 1" replied Thorndyke, with gloomy feroci
ty. " But I deserve it for trusting in such au
idiot ; dolt and 100 l that I was in doing so "
The woman sank down in strong convulsions,
and was, by direction of the judge, carried out
of the hall.
The anxious silence which pervaded fho
court during this scene, in which the reader
will have observed 1 played a bold, tentative,
and happily-successful game, was broken, as
the witness was borne off, by a loud murmur of
indignation, followed by congratulatory excla
mations on the fortunate termination of the
suit. The uefendaiit's counsel threw up their
br efs. and a verdict was at oucc returned lor
the plaintiff.
All the inculpated parties were speedily iu
custody ; and the body of Mrs. Thorndyke
having been disenterrcd, it was discovered tbat
she had been destroyed by bichloride of mer
cury, of which a considerable quantity was de
tected in the body. I was not present at tho
trial of Thorndyke and his accomplices—he for
murder, and Headier for perjury—but I saw
by the public prints that he was found guiltr,
and executed ; Heudley was transported ;the
woman was, if I remember rightly, admitted
evidence for the Crown.
M nry \V oodlcy was of course put into im
mediate possession of tier paternal inheritance ;
and is now—at least she was abbot four
months ago, when I dined with her a d h-r
husband at Daio Farm—a comely, prosperous
matron ; and as happy as a fcptoau with a
numerous progeny and ar. cast-tempered pbrf-