FASHIONABLE EXTRAVAGANCE.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXV, Issue 3643, 23 March 1869, Page 5

FASHIONABLE EXTRAVAGANCE.

The following caie trial in England in the Uourc of Nisi Prim, before the Lord Ohi«f Justice and a special jury, will show the leuuth to which fashionable excravaganca will go a* the present day. Thit was a« notion by Messrs. Jcmer and Kneuatadt. a firm of fancy jeweller* and stationers, in Barn-street, against a yuuog gentleman of fortune who h*d lafcly come of age, to recover a sum cf nearly £200 for I various articles supplied t» him. Th« defendant I pleaded infancy, and that the articles were not necessaries, except a* to £40 t^id inti court;. Th« plaintiffs, in answer to the defence, insisttd that the articles were necessaries. I The \oung gentleman, it appeared, waa'tha son of a gentleman of property, whost grosi income (alttiough it was aaid to be encumbered) was said to j be about £8,000 a year, though it was afterwa'ds •aid to b» only £3,000 a year, tih father died while ht was btill a youth, and he only came of age in *.he summer of last year. It was stated by his own coaasel th*fc he had got into bad comtauj, who had let! him upon the turf, »nd engaged him in betting, the remit of which w*s that before he oame of »gt ke contracted betting debt* to the amount of nearly £20,000, and altogether debts to the amount of £40 000. In the meanwhile hit allowance was first £700, and afterwards £1,000 a year. Among the bills incurred ttero waa the one now in question, composed of two classes of item«, seme of which, being rather of the character of stationery, did not appeared to be disputed, but the otbera were for certain expeniive articles of jewellery, &o. Amonj; these were the following; — 1866.— Amethyst and diamond earrings, £12 123. : set of coral and diamond studs, £15 15a. ; coral and diamond vest buttons, £12 125. ; blue velret betting book, £4 14 a. 6d. ; a coloured gold pocket-book pencil, case, £2 5a. ; a bhw morocoo patent frame betting book, with nobly gilt lima, &0., £3 135. ; gold fluted npiral pencil with seal top, £2 12-». ttd. ;» coloured gold pocket-book pencil, £2 sa. ; * limp blue velvet cigar-case, with gold frame, £23 25. ; a brown mor coo oigar-oase, £3 3*. ; .making two gold and enamelled coats of arms in red, blue, and white, £12 123. : making two gold and enamelled monograms and coat of arms on the above cases, £7 7s. } making a smaller coatof arms, £8 Bs. ; making an engine- turned, eilvsr-eilr, registered eenW card-ease, £12 12*. ; green morocco iask «ith silver gilt cup, £6 10s. ? a black polished morocco betting-book, with solid silver rims &C, £4 10s. ; making » silver monogram ou one side, and crest and wotto o» the other, £2 15s. Aft«r •tidence Mr, Coleridge addressed the jury in a humorous speech for the plaintiffs. He observed that the objection to the new view of the case was that it would make the determination of these oaies turn so much upon the individual tastes or ideas of the Judges. For instance a» to smoking, Sir Bernj»mm Brodia vehemently objected to it; and perhaps » judgment «g*in«t cigar -cases might result from Baron Bumwul disliking it. He moantno disrespect to that able and independent Judge; ou the contrary, in proportion to the originality and independence of a man'ri mind he would naturally bs dispused to determine cases upon his own ideas, whereas surely the safer course was to let a jury determine it, Th» Loid Chi4f Justice then summed up the case briefly but clearly to the jury, upon the old principle that it was * question of what were reasonably necessaries, •with reference to the age of the infant, his income, and his rank aud position in society. He again observed that he could not think betting books necessary for young men, still less such, costly once. So as to the cigar case, he could not see that it was neoeesarj even to a young man of property. Would any prudent father, howtver much disposed to indulge bis son to any r«aHoriabU- extent, tUve sanctioned such expenditure as was iuormd in these items 1 The, jury, after a short, consideration, f'tind for the d»{ftMd»uV t^*t paid into court wMiiuffioiopt. ' < ——————— l—p»i^—M^»t«» ' ,1 {

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