ROMANTIC ELOPEMENT

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXIV, Issue 3241, 11 December 1930, Page 2

ROMANTIC ELOPEMENT

LOVERS OUTWIT PRIORESS. The romantic tale of how a young Abeland abducted his Heloise from a gloomy convent, through guile, and married her against the will of her father, was unfolded recently in the District Court in Jerusalem. “Abelard’s” name is Yusef Mohamed. He is 20 years of age. Yusef, answering the charge of forgery brought against him by the father of the girl, told the story of how he had plotted elopement and marriage with the young Christian girl, Miriam Mansour.

“I used to visit my uncle,” Yusef said, “who is married to a Christian woman named Hilaly. Hilaly told me she had a beautiful relative at a convent and that for a sum of money in advance and a similar sum after the marriage she would be the matchmaker for us.”

One day Hilaly brought the girl from the convent, and Yusef and Mirian met and loved each other. They agreed to be married secretly in order to cheat Hilaly out of her money. They wrote a letter to the convent and, forging the signature of the father, asked the convent to let the girl go away. Yusef wrote the letter as they had planned and brought it to the prioress, who allowed the girl to go. The Sharia (Religious) Court refused to give them a marriage contract without the signature of the father. Yusef concluded with the words: “I love her, and I want her.”

Both the father and the girl gave evidence before the court. The father accused Yusef of trickery to take away his daughter. The girl, however, complained of ill-treatment at the hands of her father, and told the court she loved Yusef and wanted to marry him, though she wished to remain a Christian.

The young Abelard was sentenced to two months’ imprisonment for forgery, but the prison term will give the young woman time to prepare for her nuptials, and the boy to rereflect in his coming happiness. They both expressed their determination to be married as quickly as possible.