The Johnston Divorce Case.

Manawatu Times, Volume 304, Issue VIII, 3 July 1883, Page 2

The Johnston Divorce Case.

The following evidtnco was taken at Wellington on Thursday and Friday lastou the petition of Paiiiel Jobnston.a medical practitioner at Peildin^, praying for a dissolu;ion of bis marriage with Anuie Jane Constance Johnston, on the ! ground of her adultery with one William Moore. Mr Iz:ml appeared for the petitioner, ami Mr Quick for the respondent, who has filed a general denial of the peti* tionei's allegation. There was no appearance of the co-respondent, who was stated to bo at; present managiug a store at ilakaia, Canterbury. CLvtrlea Rickey deposed that he was a baker, residing at Opuuake. He formerly resided at Feilding. He was there m 1879, and then lived at the Immigration Uartacks. Oa the 17th November he was at the barracks. He went into the building about 20 minutes past 10 o'clock. It was a beautiful clrar moonlight night. He first went into a place that was kept for a schoolroom, and for a church on Sundays. As soon as he got inside he struck a match. He j at once heird a rustling sound, and, on looking towards where the forms were plactd, he saw the figures of a man and a woman. Just as he looked the former I got up, and the latter was m the act of ! rising. As soon as the woman got on her feet, she ran away down the room. Witness asked tbe man what he had betu doing, and the latter replied that he had | been gluing nothing. . Witness accus d '< him ( >f telling a Ho, and said tbat he had a woman with him. The man denied^ this. Witness then locked, the door, ; so that neither of them should leave the buildiug, and, on searching the various rooms, ha came across a wonvn standing behind the door of the apartment occupied by witness and his wife. She hod her bands before h«r face and was | trying to escape observation. Witness's I son, who had ome m, exclaimed, " On, I father, that is M>s Johnston." Witness i asked her what she was doing there, and she replied that she had come into tbe building out of tie rain. Witness poiuted out to her that it had not been raining the whole night. Witness got her to g > up with him to where the man was standing, and asked the latter his name. He replied, " It's Jones." Witness asked him whether lie was Jones, tbe minister, and he repliel that he was. Witness told him that he was not Jones the local clergyman. Witness th«n directed bis son to go for a pqlieeman. but couutermanbed the order on Mrs Johnston praying him not to send them to gaol. Once or twice be had seen the couple walking together on the Awapouri.road, Albert Flummer, butcher, formerly living at Feitding, deposed that Moore the co-respondent, resided opposite to the petitioner. Witness had several times 8 en the respondent and the corespondent walking together. Sometimes they were out m the dark on the public roid. He had seen signs from, thp. res . pondent, an I vice versa. Sometimes a handkerchief was waved and sometimes a hand. A sign of that sort would always result m a meeting betwoen the lws>. Witness had on two occasions seen the co-respondent leavo tbe doctor's house at an early hour iv the morning. Both times he left by the back door, and went towards the store, where witness be'ieved he had a bedroom. One day witness missed a horse and went m 8< s aroh pf it, Hp went down the road m company with pq,m.pbell, a bqotraake*. They were walking dqwn a crpek when they saw Dr Johnston's two boys rolling about on tho grass. Some yards further on tboy (Mine across the r«.s pondent and the GOrreaponndent lying down on the ground. Campbell sai4 'Meet's catch him," and tbe co-resp mdett a- once ran away. Mrs Johnston rust from the ground and, calling to her sons, walked m the direction of the township. The position of the couple left no doubt tha fhey bad been having criminal intercquxsa. The pefijtiqner's sons wore playing only 2Q or 30 yards. distant, but jt was very unlikely that ihey saw wha' was going on. !phe children were between 10 and 14 years of age, After Moore had {jone some distance he found that be could n -t espapp by the way ho had gone, and was obliged to return almost to tUp same place fhat they had seen him first. When witness and Campbell dropped across thp couple Mrs Johnston w«s very much confused. She could not look witness m the face. When he saw tbe co-respondent leaving the doctor's house ;it daylight, it was some time m September or October. 1879. By Mr Quick— He thought the doctor wa- blind not to have seen the the relations wbi h existed between the respondent and 00 regpondpn'. The signalling always tqo£ place during the time the petitioner was away on his rounds. Moore, being manager of the shop, could go out whenever he wished, and was enabled t~> visit the respondent pretty frequently. If Moore had not run away when he was found m the flaxbusb witness and big companion would probably have given him a H jolly goo'l licking,'* so disgastgd were they at Uis cond»p f . "" ' Ale^auder Johrston, eon of the respondent, gave evidence. Witness knew Moore when at Feilding, He had seen him with respondent several times. They were frequently out walk--ing together. They had two or three meeting places. He used to hear them arranging on a rendezvous. Witness was 10 years of age at that time. He did not always keep aloneside of tbe couple, because sometimes he was told to remain behind and watch that no one came along. Walter Claridge usually accompanied witness m these walks. \y itness recollected the day that .Campbell and Pluramer had seen him and Claridjje playing amongst the scrub. After dinner the petitioner and witness and Claridge went for a walk. They met Moore on tbe roat? and that person accompanied them down the road. The party entered tbe scrub, but witness and hie companion did pot go vary far, as they were told to stop and see that no one came up. Plummer and Campbell came up to the spot quite unexpectedly, and witness was unable to give the alarm- Witness recollected the night referred to by Hickey. His mother and Moore were strolling along the Kimbolton road m company with witn.-ss and Claridge, when it came on to rain. The re»pon« dent aud co-respondent went into tbe barracks for shelter, aud instructed witness and his companion to remain outside and watch • He was unable to give the alarm about Hiokey, because that individual did not came along tbe road. The couple remained inside the building for some time. Letters were frequently , exchanged between tbe couple during the time Moore was at tbe stare, Re* spondent and the ce- respondent had a regular code of signals, Sometimes his mother would sigual by placing a light m a ce. tain room, and sometimes she would signal by mean? of tbd blinds/ On one occasion Moore went into the doctor's house. He remained .. mi n the-

kitchen for some time, aud then entered an upstairs bedroom m company with the respondent. The couple remoined m an apartment for about an hour. DuriDg the time they were together the petitioner returned home, bat went away again soon afterward. Witness entered the bedroom twice that evening. On the second occasion he took some tea up for the co-respondent, who was sitting on the bed, Mrs Johnston being alongside of him. He had not told the doctor about these occurrences, because the respondent enjoined him not to do «o. By "Mr Quiet— His mother bad left her; home about four or five years ago, and he bad corresponded with her pretty regularly since then, the petitioner being aware of the circumstance. During the time Moore was upstoirs with the respondent, Dr Johnston entered the room,. but did not see Moore, as he was concealed behind a skirt that was hang, ing up on the wall. Dr Johnston, the petitioner deposed J that he was married m 1870 to Annie Jane Constance M'Sawley, the respondent, who was then living at Tokomairiro. Shortly after that time witness resided at Havelock, near Dunedin. After liviug there for about 18 months witness and his wife went to Blenheim, whare he was m 1876. H« remetedjto, ,* , Feilding m due course, his wife of course accompanying him. The respondent co. habited' with him until the end of 1879. They di-J not agree froni the time of their tnirriage, the respondent : bejiig ' possessed of * very b»d temper. IJp to ' ' the end of 1879 he did not find anything f dishonorable about the respondent. The first occasion he suspected anything was one Sunday afternoen m 1879. S c and Moore w.ilked home from school together, and soon after she had patted with him she tola witness that she bad invited the co-respondent to tear Wit* ness objected to Moore coming to tea, saying, that he was not a proper person to visit the boiise. She replied that* she/* liked Moore and did not see any barm ' ' m bringing him to tea. On another occasion witness, came home one night, p and as be was putting the horse into - the stable he saw 'Moore walking from witness's house over to, the store, and qb, going upstairs he found bis wire m tog r bedroom. He psked her wbethe? ;■ Moore had been with, her, -and she re» plied m the negative. Begarding the affair at the barracks, he was sitting at his fireside one evening when his wife came m and informed him that a most : ■ unfortunate occurrence had just taken place. She then told a story to the , effect that she had taken shelter m the barracks ; that when she got jnsjdp alje found a man of the name of Jones ; that as she was conversing with him abOuiif the weather, Micky came m uneX* pectedly ; and that, m order to prevent a scandal, she ran down the hall m the hope of e?capfng fih^eryatipi). Sgipe time after this be brought Hipky face fq face with Mrs Johnston, and fhe attempte4 to confuse' that person with a number of questions. JBespoud>n£ continued to co-habit with witpess nutij. the end er'Peoeinber, wbei} SQ P iff* *h§ place of her own a.ccord, Before sh;§< ?*" left she t»ld witpess that she could pat jj. li\ eiq the town because there was jo much scandal about her. Witness and his wife usually occuppied different bed* rooms. She had been maintaining herself since | then by her own exertions and by a little i. .. money which he occasionally sent her. Iv June of last year bis wife returned to Feilding and desired to resume co-» , i ; habitation, but he declined to allow her to remain iv the housp, as be was abnj}| . to institute dijrorge jjioc^edihg's. Counsel hiving addressed 'the Gqurf. ■•. on behalf of their respectiye clients, big : Honor granted a decree fthtj. ■ ] ■■.-.'