CHARLES AND SARAH. A ROMANCE BY POST.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7070, 11 April 1901, Page 2

CHARLES AND SARAH. A ROMANCE BY POST.

AMUSING LOVE-LETTERS-AND £1$ DAMAGES. While Mr Charles J. Brennan wrote frequent and beautiful love-letters, bo was ihurfc by the irresponsiveness of his sweetheart. More often than not she signed herself "Yours truly," which — Mr Brennan explained to a jury in the London Sheriffs' Court recently— was why his affection expired and he broke off the engagement. The result was an action for breach of promise. It was when they were both scho-lars at the same school at Clifton that the couple first loved. Miss Sarah Ethei Taylor, the extremely pretty youug dady who was now suing, lived & ; t CTi'Pton. As 'her lover was afterwards an organist at Strabane, in County Tyrone, the courtship naturally proceeded very largely by correspondence. " The dual circumstance," wrote the swain on one occasion, "of &o lately leaving you ami iMivinji an engrossingly full prograunmoto get. through, combine to give me occasions for longings, strong and sweet and truly tamtn-lisiag." This was another letter which, whatever its effect on the recipient, undoubtedly amused the Court : — " My Own Sweet Love, — The photos are splendid, especially the side-faced one. . . . A sweet picture, while the former is a vision to inspire a poet's dream, or to give a commoner mortal like myself thoughts of the place where all things are bright and beautiful, though why I should be favoured with a c'.ose carthh- copy of the inhabitants of tha* celestial region is as great a problem as ever." AS A POET. On one occasion he sent Miss Taylor the following rhymes : — Much -thai! is joyous and bright for thee, Little of storm or of night for thee, All -that thy guardian angel might hope— Great strength of spirit and mind for to -cop© With whatever sorrow assaulteth thy soul. Love otf *by loved one's e'er constant about thee, Everyone trusting and ne er lone to doubt thee, Peace and ■cowtentmenfc and 'happiness come ■Stay in thy heart, ever there find » home Till heart yields to spirit and heaven does uniolt Its vast, ibeautifui brightness and glory "before thee, And unto thy soul's true, home God does restore thee. Mr Brennan dieplored 1 the remoteness of the happy day, with a sad reference to "the length of time it takes' for us to unify, as it were." He also feared that, as the result of their separation, "we are both developing hard and fast lines of disposition, not of assimilative quality, and not of combinative case." Still, 'he put off the wedding on account of his position not being sufficiently assured. , A curious phenomenon was that as his ardour cooled the lady became more demonstri^ive; so that he wrote that her " sudden growth of regard must be 'based' on merely a mental conception of me as a kind of ideal." VIRUS OF INDIFFERENCE. There was dearly very little passion left when the organist wrote this: — "My last letter was my last sentient phase. The virus of indifference has entered my soul, and I doubt the efficacy of any inoculation, or antidote." A striking contrast, indeed, to the period when he recorded the fact that " thoughts of you added a wondrous relish to the pancakes with which I regaled) myself." A ddfeter, appropriately enough, announced ibbalt ! i*he " affair <wos at an, end." In- the witness-box the smiling plaintiff admitted that she had been " pestered " to marry Mr Brennan even at school; and that their engagement was subject to the reservation that she loved him sufficiently a year later. The jury disagreed, but the verdict of the majority for £40 and costs was taken.