THE TOUNSHEND CASE.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVII, Issue 218, 12 September 1906, Page 5

THE TOUNSHEND CASE.

STRANGE DISCLOSURES. HOW THE MARRIAGE WAS ARRANGED. LETTERS FROM THE MARQUIS The inquiry- into the mental condition o the Marquis of Townshend was reopened it Landon ou July 30th. The proceedings ha. been adjourned fur attendance of the Mar quis. On Tuesday he came in company o his wife. The Marchioness, who was daiut ily dressed in black, sat next to her fathe: iv the seats reserved for counsel, and be-siil. her was the Marquis looking somewhat pale Evidence was tirsl given by Mr l'erkins a solicitor, -who was consulted by Lor( Townshend about his affairs in October J904. Tbe property, he said, was heavili mortgaged, and practically the Marquis ha. no income whatever. The Dowager Ma*, chioness allowed him £300 a year. A M Robins was generally ln the eompar.v o ihe Marquis, and the Marquis wa«v absn lutely under his iiitluonce. The Marqui never exercised any independent judgment Mr Robins Introduced lo the ainrquis th.. lady who afterward** brought an action fo breach nf promise against him. A QfIKT AIAKRIAOE. Witness continuing gave particulars as t. transactions concerning the estates. In th. course of which he stated that he had som. (rouble in July last year wUh Mr Robins who had dismissed an old employee who wa in charge of the Norfolk estates. Mr l'er k'.ns went cm io state that he had no know ledge that the Mnrouls was married ou Utl of August last till he read It In the new-s papers the following day. Soon afterward the Marquis wrote him apologising for no Inviting him to the wedding, and saying 1 was owing to the ceremony beiug kep quiet. The Marquis had added:—"l thin: you will he r-barrued Willi the Marchioness ."She •;« level-headed and bnslncss-like.'" In interviews after litis witness notice. thai ihe Maronis became more nervous an. excited. On the 2<*th of November he re celved a letter from the Marquis slatlng:----"In consideration of my marriage with Mis Sutherst having bad anything but a sati« factory result, I feel myself in no way eniie. upon to allow my wife one penny." Th Marqnls asked him to repeal a former wil which he had drawn tip. It struck wltnes that the Marquis was in fcir of Mr sinners at this time. Mr Lush: Did ih«* Miir.Mil> sny anylhlji to you an to whether l*e would ;iv* with th Marchioness?—Willi --: lie made sever-) complaints against her. Did he «ay anything to you about a plo to kidnap him.* -"\ .<-■. lie said when he wa abroad there w.is a piol to kidmip him. an that he was taken from place to place a all times of nljht. I must ask you I be ..ti.-<i l-.n. did lie null; complaints a-. |.. Lady Townshend's em ductv—Yes. Did he say anything to you about lit house in BrooU-streel '.' — Ye*, he said he ha taken the hor.se and had °igned the acref meat, and had not the least idea that h had done so. He said he did not care abmi th» h«>u>e. and wanted to leave it. LOCKKD ll' AT HOME. I>r. Savage, i lt<- well-known mental cp"l*l. who '.ml given evidence on a previou occasion, wan cross-examined h.v Mr Duki lie sn:.l thnt when he saw I lie Marqnls a Isruok-slro..'l in J mm-try las! he did no, know al the ilnie that he h.id been incke up A the house for three, days. Mr Duke: Were you told that he hart nee i locked in hi-cause ho desired to go bar and lesume his residence with Mr Robins - Yes. He told mc lint. | Did the Marquis tell you that he had bee j deprived of lus liberty, and did he resen ' vehemently being locked up 7— Yes. he v. (leniently protected. The Marquis was nc ; a robust man and w.is not a man of lute [cental power. 1 would expcei a man o the Marquis's Intellect to express hlmsel more vehemently than a man of greater it (elleetual power. The whole burden of hi Lordship's complaint was that he wante to leave the house where lie was detalne :in.l wanted to go to Mr Robins. Did you not know that there, was a pect ulary and a marital matter why the Mai I guis and Ms wife should not live together | —I heard he had practically run away fror , his bride to go to Mr Robins. Do you realise now that at tho lira 1 when the Marquis went away from his wlf there were differences such as frequentl separate husband and wife? —I have hear i it snid since. If thai Ik so. what becomes of the sugge; tk.n that he tied from a bride to a manV- . It was thought Mr Robins was on the 100 l I out ready to recapture Hie Marquis if h , had the opportunity. ' Re-examined by Mr Lush. Dr. Savage sal j ho looked upon it as a sign or mental weal ness that the .Marquis allowed Mr Robins t ' order him out of his bridal bedroom on th • nighl of the marriage. He was told tha .was done. Witness was informed by >l Sutht-rst that rhc Marquis had asked pc: mission of Mr Robins to allow him to if sitine cohabitation with his wife. Mr I.itfth: 1 believe the Marchlonetss mad ; some communication to yoaV ', THOUGHT UK WAS POISONED. . Witness: Yes, she (old tne that Mr. Re bins controlled the Marquis' married retr ' ti.mship v it h her. ! Dr. Crawford, the mental expert, wh had previously given evidence to the efTec . that the Marquis was not of sound mini , was now cross-examined by Mr. Duke. II I said when he saw Lord Townshend he wr i under the delusion that he would not I isafe in his mother's house, and that a attempt was made to poison him nt Wie ! baden. This was delusional insanity. Wi j ness adhered to the statement he had a ready made that the Marquis waa ot wea nnd undeveloped mental calibre. Tht I meant that his years were in advance > j the development of his tniud. Witness a l; 'adhered to his statement that the Ma guis had so renounced Initiative of actio I and thought in favour of a certain M Robins as to make him incapable of ma: [ aging his own affairs. Taken with oth. j matters, witness looked upon as a sign i j insanity in tiie Marquis his short statur immature voice, shape of his head, extr ordinary credulity, and the way he a | lowed himself to he a counter in the ilea | lues with Mr. Robins and Mr. Sutherst. I funner cross-examined, the witness sa that if the Marquis had come to the co elusion that he had made a mistake in r gard to Mr. Robins, that would be'a soun healthy conclusion. Again, he should co slder it not a sign of Insanity if a man pr ferred to live with his wife and away fro his wife's family. Laughter.) The Judge: Supposing the Marquis is no affectionately disposed to his wife, ai j other people are kept from him. then i i you thluk he- is capable of managing hit (self? | Witness: Yes. I think so. CLERK'S EXTRAORDINARY CONFES : SIONS. 1 Mr. H. E. Dunne, th? clerk at Soniers House, who has been referred to in t of the inqutrv, also gave evidenc

He said he met a titled lady at the Hotel j I Meiropole, Brighton, who told witness that I j she had been trying to get Lord Townshend j married. She said There would be a considersble reward for the person who could introduce the Marquis to an heiress, and that reward was to be divided between the titled lady and witness. Witness, the Suthersts. and the titled lady dined together at the Hotel Metropole. London, and other leading hotels in London, and eventually it was decided that the Marquis should marry Miss Sntherst, who, witness tho-ngrht, was the daughter of a wealthy man. Witness was to have a percentage on the introduction, and the money was to be divided between witness and the titled lady . he had re/erred to. Witness added that he believed the amount of commission which wonld come to him was £2000 or £3000. and the idea was that it should be divided between himseir :.nd the titled lady, whilst Mrs. Suthcrst was to have £500. "he Judge: I really do not know why a t'.tled lady who has acted lite this should i he allowed to conceal her name. A lady of title, a clerk in Somerset House, and somebody else to act in this way shows a state of society which, if it exists, 1 hold to be detestable. Mr. Lush: Now, Mr. Dunne. T ask you tr. name the titled lady. ; The witness: Lady Kaweett. Further intersogate.l, witness said ihar ! **hU friend the Marquis" man-led Mlas Stttherst, but subsequently it was' dlscvv- . ered that Mr. Sutherst was .-in undischarged bankrupt. The Judge (to witness): The jury would like to know what your salary as a clerk in Somerset House is? Witness: i"170 a year. (Laughter.) Mr. Lush: Were you at the wedding '! — Yes. ' Who invited yon'! I —Everybody. (Laughter.) I have received altogether £330 In | ' regard to this transaction. Mr. Lush: I hope you have distributed it ' properly amongst these ladies. (Laughter.) Witness: Yes. nearly all. ' ! Questioned hy Mr. Duke, the witness sasd j that he received two letters from the Mariquls at Wiesbaden subsequent to the mar- ' j riage, and he sold thosi to a Landon news--1 | paper for £1". ' | Mr. Duke: And so you. the honest broker, \ j are waiting for your £2500? (Laughter.) Witness: I am entitled to my coniuiisslo*. ! MR SUTUKIIST'S STORY. j On Thursday the chief witness was Mr : ! J "Thomas Sutherst, tho father of the mar-, | ehioness. Invited by the judge to make a j 'statement, lie first produced a letter dated j | 23th June, from Mr Dunn, ihe Somerset ; i House r-lcrk, making an appointment with I [ ' lvmself and Mrs Sutherst, and other mem- i | ocrs of the family to meet the Marquis ; i nr dinner. After that dinner party wit- ; -.lept Invited the Marquis ami Mr Robins to j ] -.'.end the week-end with his family at Tuu- ' ; bridge Wells io discuss a proposition which | j had lien made l«y Lord Townshcnd. Witness said tin* financial position of the Mar- j j guis was discussed, and be said to Robins | and Dmm: "As we are strangers l shall be I very candid with yon. nnd tell >-yu that I I am an undischarged bankrupt, and that my j affairs are In the hands of trustees. I have irvcr applied for my discharge, because 1 prefer to work and pay my creditors 20/ in ; ihe pound, and so get the whole of the | bankrnptcy annulled. 1 have two or three largo undertakings ou hand, from which I am receiving two-thirds and my creditors - one-third." Witness was asked if he could » find £20.000 or £30,000 if n marriage be- - I wop n his daughter nnd the Marquis was arranged, lie replied that thnt was an aliso- ' i lule Impassibility, but he might be nble to I j lin.l n smaller sum. and it was then sug--1 g.-st-d that he might get. £3000. to be paid l j upon the man-luge taking pine.-. Witness , : said thai was too much, but he might he ? able to find £20011 or £;i«Vy.. Witness then asked as lo the position of the Marquis, i and Mr Robins said he had just come into , i Important estates, and that a loan of £12,- - ."<••.' had been raised on his life Interest. t 'The margin from Ihe estates at present. - Mr Robins said, was about £4000 a ye;ir, i f but added thai with economical manage- I ** ment and a fair increase of Hie rentjls - the income oughL to b" £SOOO a year. s Mr Robins told witness further that the. t actual sum needed to moot the require- ' l meats of the Marquis was between £20,000 and £30,000. The £12.500 loan had to be - paid off, but he (Mr Roblusi was entitled to £500 a year for fourteen years, for which 7 he would take £SOOO in settlement. Witi ness said, providing the statements were correct, ho would raise a loan of £27.500, % I but there must be a settlement of £2300 > I n year on his daughter, providing she I i- agreed to the marriage. She did agree be--1 cause she liked him. quite apart from his , rank, and thought he would make her n . suitable hnsband, and witness drew up four . documents on the lines discussed by him- I - self aud Robins. He took them to Hove. » where they were discussed and the mar- I riage settlement signed, the witnesses be--1 Ing Mr and Mrs Robins. He did not know whether the other three documents were , signed then. ; RVIDEN'CE OF SANITY. t Witness" evidence was interrupted while r Dr. Scott, of Hove, was called on behalf of - Lord Townshcnd. He said he had been at- - tending bis lordship at Intervals from 11)02 ns family doctor, lie was of opinion that ; Lord Townshend's intellect was perfectly sound. He was exceedingly shrewd. Mr Duke: It has been suggested, in effect. lhat Lord Townshcnd was a xuere puppet in the hands of Mr Robins. Did yon see anything in the course of your knowledge to g/ive grounds for any such suggestions?— - 1 No. 1 In reply to further questions witness said ' that so far as he knew. Lord Townshcnd c had no habits which were not those of a s gentleman and a sane man. p Dr. Thomas Lister, physician to the Royal 1 Exchange Insurance Corporation and a Bum- ' i her of other life Insurance companies, said " j that in company with Dr. Robert Jones, of " ' the County Council Asylum, at Clay bury, s j he visited Lord Townshend by ihe authority 1 i of the Lunacy Commission to examine him. r I He came to the conclusion then that his :> j lordship was not of unsound m.nd. '" I Mr Lush, cross-examining, read an ex- ■•* I !ra.*t from a letter from the Marquis to • j Mr Robins, as follows:—"My sine qua non. - j occupier of my heart, and mind. If this r preys on my mind nnd I go -,o a lunatic f asylum it will be the entire fault of all '• who have separated us. . . Rely on mc, i- love mc, pray for mc. bless you." Mr Lusu said he would read another let - ter. and ask witness if the two taken together did cot indicate a weak mind. The d letter dated June Tth last, read:—**l am i- free, and regard myself as a victim of tho ■- malignity of my late secretary, Mr Robins. I. and Mr Dunn, a Probate Court clerk, and a t- blackmailer and others, all of whom have :- been working in collusion, so much so. n In fact, that Robins cam/- here with a gang to try to gel mc back to England, and tv stated that he came with the knowldge and d consent of the official solicitorr." o Witness said the letters supported the i- view that he had always held about the Marquis's case—that it was one of more cr less -permanent adolescence. MOTHER-IN-LAW AND THE HONEYMOON. »t Dr. Robert Jones, medical snperintendent lc of Clay bury Asylum, spoke to examining c . the Marquis iv February laat, wfcen he

came to the conclusion that he was of sound mind. He was depressed, however, on account of his being detained under the orders of the Lunacy Commissioners, and kept to his bedroom. It seemed there were a jrreat many conflicting interests in his environment in Brook-street. The Marquis spoke of his honeymoon, and said that his mother-in-law- accompanied them. Mr Duke: Did he speak of that as Jin added pleasure to his honeymoon? (Laughter.) Witness: I gathered that there were some complications. He said he had suffered a great indignity from his mother-in-law. whom he accused of having boxed his ears. (Laughter.) Witness added that so reasonable and cleat* was the Marquis in his conversation that witness and Dr. Lister at once wrote to the Lnnacy Commissioners expressing the opinion that the Marquis was being improperly detained. He examined tho Marquis again a week later, and his opinions were confirmed. On Saturday last witness made a further examination. He found the condition of the Marquis unchanged except in one respect. He had changed, his view of Mr Robins, and that was a perfectly intelligible proceeding, bavin*? regard 10 what the Marquis stated. The witness was still under examination when the Court adjourned. I