A HOBART ROMANCE

Waihi Daily Telegraph, Volume XVII, Issue 5606, 1 May 1919, Page 2

A HOBART ROMANCE

REMARKABLE DIVORCE STORY. (Wellington Post's Correspondent.) SYDNEY, 16th April. A divorce case with most extraordinary features is .reported from Hobart. Thomas Barker, a sawmiller, in De-, comber, 1905,married a Miss Rough, and between then and 1917 they lived at vanious places in Tasmania. Their fcurtli child was born at a place railed Lady's Bay, where they had Hived for several years. They had a number ot friends there, and Barker's mate was a man called John Thomas Martyn. Mrs Barker expressed a wish to go to another place, AA'aratah, and it was arranged that she and her children should proceed thither., and that Barker should follow five weeks later, his wife to meet him at Burnie, and when, iu Jui'.y, 1917, he reached AVaratah, he found only a note from her raying that she had gone away "for good'." She .said he need not try to rind Tier, for ! she would not come back. She ended I the note by begging her husband not t let "Tom Martyn'' know what she bad done. The husband placed two of'-the' deserted children with relatives, and two in a Salvation Army Home. In June, 1918, he was in Hobart, and unsuccessfully sought information of his missing wife. He then weint down to ihe lish'ing boat Foam to look up Tom Martyn, his o'i!d friend. There was a woman with Martyn, whom he introduced as • his wife. He had tea with them., and he tu'd them about his children in the home. Mrs Martyn said she would like to see them, .so he met Mr and Mrs Martyn later in the town, and they hoarded a and set off for the Home. -'On the way, Mrs Martyn had an argument with a tram-conductor, and in the excitement her voice assumed what to Barker was a curiously familiar ring, but he could not place it. i The children f were dully inspected. Tlr» children liked Mrs Martyn. "Oh, Daddy," cried one of the youngsters, "his arms round the woman's neck, ••Isn't she like mummy?" That started a train of thought in Harkei'V; mind. But his wife had been very dark, and Mrs Martyn had fair hair and eyebrows. Still, when they took him to their lodgings, he watched the woman carefully, and his suspicions grew". Barker called two o r three times at the lodgings,' and finally was able to got a look at Mrs Martyn's big coat, and easily identified it as one his wife look away. That afternoon, in the presence* ol her landlord and landlady. Barker began to question the woman, and she became confused. "You are my wife.' ho accused her. "1 am not," she said, in her assumed voice.. "Don't bo ridiculous, I have I.cvn married to Martyn for ten years." 15nt the evidence was too strong, and she surrendered, and admitted, in !>or natural voice, Ihat she had been merely hving with Martyn. She had dyed her hair and eyebrows and removed two moles from he,- cheek. The Judge granted a decree nisi.