THE GREER TRAGEDY.

Inangahua Times, Volume II, 20 August 1880, Page 2

THE GREER TRAGEDY.

FURTHER PABTICULABS. [ We (Sketcher) have stated that Mr and r Mrs Greer arrived on Sunday, the 18th July. "On Tuesday or Wednesday," said Mr Berliner, • about 6 o'clock, Mr Greer hurried into my office in Elzabeth- | street, just as I was about to close up. | He said, • I want yon, if yonr are Mr ( Berliner. I want to be divorced from my wife. She has treated me shamefully.' I told him be had come to the , wrong place, as I did not concern myself with cases of that kind. I said I had only conducted one divorce suit, and that L was where a lady, whose husband had , married twice, wished to obtain proofs of , the second marriage, which took place in America. When I stated that I did not believe in divorces.be replied, • Ton are very cool to say that.' I said > *I am . not cool ; I only speak from experience. But if you will tell roe the circumstances, and I can assist yon in any way, I will be glad to do so.' He eat down and told his story. 'lam a married man,' he said. *My wife is about 20 years of age, and we have a little boy 18 months old. We now lodge in Belmont-bouse, Drummond* street, Carlton. We arrired by? tbe Garonne. She met a Frenchman on board named Soudry, one of the French commissioners. She told me shortly after she first spoke to M. Sondry that she bad been improperly intimate with a Dr Marsden in Bristol. That news upset me. I began to drink heavily, and gamble. In the presence of the Frenchman I spoke of her by a cnminon name. From the day she told me that story about Marsden she would not let me live with her as her husband, and never h I done so since. The Frenchman and she walked up and down deck every day. The; talked in French. I believed him to be a gentleman. Soudry pointed out to me and certain friends that her head 1 was bad.' (Mr Berliner, as he repeated thjs, stated that Mr Greer meant that they thought her a little out of sorts) ' At the Cape of Good Hope a party was made up to visit some spot, and we were to start from the ship at 5 a.m. M. | Soudry was to go, but my wife said she was ill, and neither- he nor my wife went. Tbey stayed behind."' 'He was satisfied now/ remarked Mr Berliner, ' that an improper intimacy oc« enrred between tbem then. She told him that she had first met Dr Marsden at the opera, and that if he had asked her to elope with him she would have gone. By ' Dr Mnrsden,' she alt the time meant the Frenchman, but had pot the case this way for her own purpose. There was no Dr Marsden. Mr Greer told me hid taken an advertisement to The Argus for insertion under the head of 'Missing Fr ends.' It was to the eject that Dr ! Marsden wished to meet so-and-so at a ' given boar. By my advice, the advertisement was withdrawn. Mr Greer said that if he met the Frenchman he would j shoot him. He took a revolver from his pocket. I told him that it was foolish to talk like that, and that if be came to me with a revolver I would not act for him at all' I reasoned with him, and pointed out that as he bad no power to restore any one to life, he had no right to take life. He put away the revolver, and said 1 had spoken sensibly. He became less excited and asked me to help him. He said he was comparatively poor— that he had only £50 or £60 in the bank. He win ted to save his wife and his owe life —he was very fond of her and bis child. He had no idea, at first, that his wife hrd behaved ill with M. Soudry, I said that money was not any consideration o me, and that if I could re-establish amity between him and his wife I would be glad to do so. I stated that I would put his wife under surveillance, and that if T found anything wrong, I would talk with her in his presence. I placed her under surveillance, and ascertained that each daj she drove out in a cab with M. Soudry. Tbey met in some appointed place, and went for a drive. I told Mr Grrer to see M. Soudry and ask him whether they had driven out together on a particular day. If Soudry said ' Yes,* he was to tell him to mind his own busi ness, or else we should deal with him. He met M. Sondry at the Exhibition on Friday, and asked him if he had been out with Mrs Greer on Thursday. Scudrv said • No.' Mrs Greer was at the Ex* hibition with him. M. Soudry said. 1 Ob, I have just given your good lady a pass for the Exhibition.' Mr Greer told me he replied that ' She does Dot require anything from you. As you have denied that you were out with her yesterday, I [ shall say no more till I see a friend whom

I hare consulted.' They were out for c drive that very day as well as on Tbur*< day. Mr Greer said that up to that trrrsf be bad not suspected his wife with M, Soadry. Now {bat his eyes were ope njdbe recalled some incidents that took phec on board the ship, and saw that Marsaen was a myth. He asked what he sho-AC do. I said, 'Do you really lore yom wife and child ?' He replied, ' I lore the hoy, but sbe does cot. She has give him to a nurse. I lore her dearly. I am and always haye been infatuated wit : i her,' I sa i(] De mnß fc j r y an j gave her Mr advice was to send her home by ?. sailing vessel to her mother. A chan£3 of sceDe and absence from bad con: panions might bring her round again. That seemed to me to be the only chanc , He wrung my hand, said I was a good fellow, and wondered why I spoke o kindly to him. I told him that as I<e seemed a nice young fellow and was a stranger, I w«s sorry for him ; that as a stranger de deserved every assistance. Tc wag decided that he should bring 1 i wife to m« next day— Saturday. They came up at half-past 2 o'clock. He led her in, and then retired to a room separated from the one I was in by a tliic paper partition. Mm Greer assumed a haughty, indignant demeanour with me. I fold her I intended to speak to her as s father would to a fallen d»nghter. I sad that she had played with her husband and tried to excite his jealoofey about Marxden. bat that I believed Mars den was Sondry, the Frenchman. She laughed and said, ' You are qaite right, I do love him.* I said, 'Take care that your infatuation does not bring you to ruin. What will be your fa'eP He wi 1 throw you off, as you have thrown cS your husband. *It does not metier.' sLe replied ; • though he has done tl>o same in Philadelphia, still I love him.' 4 How do you know P* I asked. •H« told me so himself,' she replied, ' and I know exactly my position. I would sooner be bis mis'ress than that man's wife.' I said I was astonished at her 1 mgnage, as she had evidently been I L'bly tnined and well educated. I spoke to her very calmly. * Can't you give up this infatuation ?' She said, •No. I will not.' She went on; *I wes with him on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and to« day.' I said I only knew that they bad gone out together, that they had not been followed. * Well, never mind,' she said, ' I am not ashamed to tell you.' I said, '.You shall never see him any more —if you do he will lose hit social position. I will warn him to* night, and he will not speak to yoa again. You shall go on board ship and sail direct to England to your mother, who may bring you back to yoor senses. If you don't go I will bring yoa before two mddicat officers, and when they near yoa say you would sooner be • mistress than a wife they will send yoa to Sew Asylum, where indeed yoa osgbt to be now.' ' What will become of him if he loses his position P* she asked. I t-ild her he would sot lose bis position anises she saw him, that I had advised her husband not to ruin him if it eontd be helped. Mr Greer then came into the room. I told him he most take his wife to Carlton, and let her send out; no mes« sages or letters to Soudry ; that I would s >nd word to Soadry to see me on Mon« day, and that she must sail at once for England. Sbe went into tears and said, ' Let me see him once.' I said. * Never again.* She said she would go borne in a steamer. I replied, ' Certainly not ; that would give yoa a ehanee to get oat somewhere, and come back.' 'I bate him,* she said, as she looked at her husband, ' and love Soudry. I don't lore either him or his child. I don't care for the child, because I never loved the father! Fie married me when I was too young to know my own mind. Before they left I asked her if I bad treated her kindly, fhe said my conduct had bees (bat of a gentleman, bat she could not accept ray advice. She took my band and said, •Do me one favour ; don't ask me to stop in the hruse till Monday. He ha j taken tickets for the opera— let him take me to the Hugnenots, and the time will pass a little easier.' Mr Greer said be would take her to the theatre. I told him he had spoiled her by over-kindneja. To- d»y (Sunday) when Mr— —met me *t the railway station, and told me that a Frenc-iimn had been shot at the Open-hno-e, lat once named the parties. Mr Greer, when he left me on Saturday, sai>i he dirt not know how to thank me. They were at my office till 5 oVoek. They left in a cab. I promised to write at once to M. Soudry and tell him to meet me at 10 o'clock on Monday. I sent a format nite to Ms address by a messenger, but I expect be did not get it on Saturday night. Mrs Greer s»emed to scorn her husband. She asked him why he did not meet Soadry in a duel. I told her that Englishmen did not fight duel*— only used their fists v On Monday night the three persons who figured in the tragic affair lay in a ; critical state in the Melbourne Hospital. ' M. Soudry's wound was comparatively I slight, but erysipelas may eupemne. (The recovery of Mrs Greer was considered probable, tot her husband's case I was very grave, although it was believed j that the bullet is not in his brain, bat lying at the base of the skull.