GIRL'S INFATUATION.

Woodville Examiner, Volume XXVIII, Issue 4627, 7 May 1915, Page 2 (Supplement)

GIRL'S INFATUATION.

BIGAMIST WHO POSED AS MARQUIS.

DRAMATIC SCENE AFTER THREE YEARS’ SENTENCE.

“ Tell her to wait for me, whatever happens!” Rushing to the side of the dock after hearing his sentence, a prisoner at the Old Bailey created n scene in court by calling out this message to a young lady, the sister of a girl (a ward in Chancerv) whom he bigamously married. “I’ll tell her; I’ll tell her, the young lady responded in an excited voice, as prisoner was removed to the cells. The drama wound up the trial of Raymond Frank de Lafaye Biard, 26, who pleaded guilty to marrying Jean Home-Douglas, his wife being then alive.—Mr. E. C. P. Boyd (prosecutin"-) said the bigamous marriage toot: place in Julv last at Winchester. Jean Douglas was'the daughter of Dr. HomeDouglas, who went abroad with Ins lamih in 1913 for the sake of his wile s health. They made the acquaintance ol prisoner, who was going about in tiie name of the “Marquis dc Lafaye. His real name was Biard. and he was the. son of a French schoolmaster. Prisoner paid a great deal of attention to the iri,-! and followed the family to Jersey. —Mrs. Home-Douglas died m 1914, .and soon afterwards Dr. Home-Douglas had to return to Edinburgh. _ He letJean and her sister, aged IS, in charge of an old servant, and soon after ho had gone they proceeded to Winchester, where the marriage took place at. a Roman Catholic Church. _ In the register prisoner described himself as the “Marquis de Lafaye.” The girl would inherit €IO,OOO when she came of age, said counsel, and her family and the trustees endeavoured to hnd the coupm after marriage. They were not traced, however, until the beginning of tins vear. Prisoner married Ins wile, Elizabeth Price, a girl of 18, in Jersey. On his arrest he told the police offic t he did not care for her, and lie told tho magistrate that ho did not think the marriage was valid because he was under a"-e and had not obtained the consent of liis father. There was evidence that two years ago the couple wore hvir<=- together in a London boardinghouse.— Sergeant Broadburst said that at London Sessions, in March last pi isoner was placed under probation lot two years fo‘r obtaining money by means of worthless cheques, and other offences. Four warrants had been issued for his arrest for defrauding the London and South-Western Railway. He had obtained motors at Windsor, Maidstone, and Brighton, and not paid for them. He had cards printed described himself and Miss Douglas as “The Marquis and Marquise de Lafaye. —Mr. Cm tis Bennett : Do you know that his fathei claims to be the Marquis de Lafaye C Xo —Counsel said the girl was

DEA'OTED TO PRISONER, and had written daily to him in prison expressing her desire to marry him. At the time of the marriage, Mr. Bennett added, she was not a ward m Chancel >, and had not a penny. Her kmthm afterwards left her the money and abe became a ward in Chancel j. - . Douglas, tho elder sister, said her sister wanted to marry prisoner very mueb if he could get a divorce.—Mr. Boyd • AVould your father consent ?• -I dor. t know, but she could wait till she Mas 21. She would do anything to go married to him.—Us she still devoted to l this man ?_()li, very, very much—Has iio alwavs been absolutely kind to her and ‘treated: her wifi?— Nobody could bu kinder.—'Witness added that she had attr tended the court at tho earnest request of her .sister.— Cross-examined, said that prisoner wrote what purported to be the consent of her fatbei to her sister’s marriage with pinsoner.-—-Counsel; You arc not here with the approval of your father?—No. 1 never told her his real name was Isi.iia. or that ho had been married before— Judge Rentoul: You have heard how this man has been living by theft ant fraud for vears past. Apart from l.li ouestiou of the previous marriage, whawould vou think of your sister mart-y----in.' a man like that?—Witness ; fehc 10 ve7v fond of him, and sometimes people do right when they have done wrong before. —The Judge: Has he anything to live on. besides your sisters moneyr -He has plans. Ho wanted to enlist, but mv sister did not want him to.--The Judge ; The desire of this unfortunate young girl to marry a man of Inis reputation is so deplorable that I am inclined to think he should he put out M the way for a considerable time.—Prisoner's wife was called, but said she did not w ish to give evidence. —Replying to the judge, she said prisoner's h-.thc-i had told her that her marriage was not legal.—J udge Rentoul maid t!|['i.t prisoner had palmed himself off as a marquis to a child, and in marrying hoi had brought disgrace to the whole family. He had largely ruined the child’s life. —Prisoner ; I did have the father’s consent. —Judge Rentoul. I could not believe that. No man in his senses would do such a thing. You will go to penal servitude for three years.