MARRIED A MONTH.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 145, 21 June 1926, Page 9

MARRIED A MONTH.

HUSBAND'S ARREST FOLLOWS. j MANDREWA WOMAN SEEKS j DIVORCE. i • ! WILL, PETITION PARLIAMENT. Oy Telegraph.—Parliamentary Reporter. , ! WELLINGTON. Saturday. 1 Alleging that her husband is a criminal, known to the police under several aliases, that he was convicted in , October, 1922, sentenced to five years" ' imprisonment with hard labour, and declared an habitual criminal. Mrs. . Mildred Elaine Smyth, of Glen Eden, i will petition Parliament this session for j the introduction of a private bill which I will make it possible for her to hare j her marriage with Maurice James i Walkington Smyth, formerly of Manurewa. dissolved. It is said that, prior to Smyth's arrest, he was a company manager. When Smyth is released from gaol !he will insist on a renewal of marital relationships, and will not permit hie wife to obtain a divorce, according to the facts sent out in the petition, which has been forwarded to the Examiner of Bills at Parliament House. I Mrs. Smyth has apparently had a ! most unhappy married life. She married Smyth in April. 1522, when she was only IS years of age. However. Smyth was arrested and charged with arson within the course of a few weeks. jit was alleged that the crime was committed only a day or two after the marriage, when Smyth was at Kaikoura. The law took its course, and in October. 1922, Smyth was convicted and sent to I gaol for fivp years, the judge declarI ing him an habitual criminal. i Smyth's criminal record date-; hack ito the years "before the war. In 1911 he was convicted at Stratford on two . charges of false pretences. Four years later he was before the court at Wellington. on several charges of false , pretences and two of forging and utter■ing. Again, in 1910 he was convicted { of°false pretences and of attempting to obtain by false pretences. In August, 1922, he was in trouble again. When Mrs. Smyth accepted Smyth for better or for worse, she wae unaware of the fact that he had ever seen the inside of prison walls. He conducted himself as a gentleman, and had all the marks of a respectable man, being of good address. He represented himself asipossessing means, and posed as a man lof strong religious belief, being a member !of the sect known as the Plymouth Brethren. It ie stated that Smyth has informed petitioner that he will insist on a resumption of marriage relationships when he is released —whenever that will be, since a declared habitual criminal may be detained for an indefinite period, at the discretion of the Prisons Board. Mrs. Smyth further alleges that her husband has declared that he will never allow her to divorce him. 1 There were no children of the marriage. Mrs. Smyth feels that it is impossible for her to continue her relationship with Smyth. She states that she has no meane, and that only recently she was provided with the necessary means to enable her to take the necessary steps to lodge a petition for a private bill. A committee of the House considered the matter last session, and rejected it on the grounds that it did not comply with the requirements. It is understood that petitioner has been instructed to obtain a certificate from a Judge of the Supreme Court, setting out that there is no authority on the statute books under which a divorce may be granted a woman in petitioner's circumetancea.