STRANGE DIVORCE CASE.

Western Star, Issue 143, 3 June 1876, Page 6

STRANGE DIVORCE CASE.

At the sitting of the Divorce Court at Wellington, ‘ Smith v. Smith and King,’ was, a Case furnished by the Wellington district. Petitioner, who is a Chinese storekeeper residing at Otaki, stated that he was married to a person named Catherine Darling M'Cormack on the 6th March, 1875. After being married they remained at Wanganui for two days ; then they went to Otaki together. They lived there together till the 26th of March, 1875, when his wife told him that she wished to go to Wellington to see her friends. He gave her £ll, and.she said she wonld~return in a week. At the end of that time she telegraphed to him to the effect that she had lost all her money, and wanted some more to take her homo. Ho then sent her £2 to bring her home. She did not go hack, but sent the following letter to him: —“Wellington, April 4, 1875. —Dear William,—l now write you these few lines, hoping you are in good health and good spirits, for when yeu get this letter you will have to be in good spirits. William Smith, when I married you I

did not love you, but thought, perhaps, love would come ; but I found how hard it was to live with one I did not like. William, lam leaving you for ever, and it will bo worse than madness for you to follow mo. There is one of my rotations turned up, and my uncle says (for ho it is) that ho will sooner kill mo than I shall ever go back to live with you. Ho sa-s I should have married one like myself; so, although you are m3' husband, m3' uncle will not lose sight of me or give me a chance of coming back. I am going to Auckland. The steamer starts in an hour from this, so by the time you will got this I shall bo far away from you and Wellington. So all you can do is to pray for me. If yau like you can gob a divorce from mo. Then you will be able to get married again, and I hope you will got some one better worthy of you than me. I must say that I did not love you, but you were so kind to me that I could not find it in my heart to leave you ; but I am compelled to do so, so you must forgive. Do not think ojf wasting your money to follow me, for my uncle says if ever you come within his reach you will either kill him or he will kill you ; so the best thing you can do is to keep away from his displeasure as mueh as possible. I would advise you to get a divorce from me, for I am sure we shall never see each other again. I hare no more to say. Time is on the wing. Death to you and me if you follow. Farewell for ever.— Hattie Darling.” On searching her box he found that she had had a child by a man named King before they were married. On the 4th of January he received another letter from his wife, asking him to send her parents’ likenesses. In that letter she also said she did not mean what she had said in her first letter about nob loving him; if ho would only say ho forgave her, she should be happy. He had married her on the recommendation of a Mrs Macaulay. The rule nisi was granted.