12 



KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL. 



his business^ which is most lucrative, and pre- 

 sents the greatest security. He has for several 

 years been an established foreign commission- 

 merchant in the city of London, enjoys great 

 respectability and credit in the trade, is banking 

 with a first-rate firm in Lombard-street, and in 

 fact, can give the best references for the period 

 of the last twenty years. He is only hardly 

 a middle-aged gentleman, foreigner by birth, and 

 is living in London. He has a dwelling-house 

 for himself, entirely for him, and it is furnished 

 the same as any lady or gentleman of 6tyle can 

 wish. "With the rest, please to state your terms, 

 as these must be settled beforehand. Enclosed 

 you will find five postage stamps. I remain yours 

 truly. A B. — P.S. Please address the letters 

 only Mr. W. Jones, No. 10, the Grove, Clapham- 

 road, Surrey." 



A prompt reply from Mr. Hugo Beresford was 

 sent, asking for the usual registration fee of 5s. 

 in postage stamps, on the receipt of which a 

 printed form of application would be forwarded. 

 The stamps were sent, the plaintiff in exchange 

 being supplied with the said form. In this he 

 was to state his age, weight, height, complexion, 

 color of hair and eyes ; and, in fact, describe 

 himself as he would a horse he had to dispose 

 of (laughter/ He did all that, after which Mr. 

 Hugo Beresford again wrote to him, intimating 

 that he had a very choice collection of ladies on 

 hand, the charge on an engagement with either 

 of which would be between £30 and £40 ; and that 

 a small deposit was required, which, if, after 

 forwarding, the plaintiff should not be " suited," it 

 would be placed to his credit, and deducted from 

 the gross amount when he was. Plaintiff there- 

 upon enclosed in an envelope to Mr. Beresford a 

 cheque upon Messrs. Glynn, his bankers, for £5, 

 which had the effect of causing Mr. Beresford 

 to make another demand upon plaintiff's purse, at 

 the same time intimating that the Christian name 

 of the lady he was to be introduced to was 

 " Fanny" (loud laughter). His client, still under 

 the impression that this was only the legalised 

 ordeal of bachelorship, and the name of his per- 

 spective wife invigorating him, transmitted another 

 cheque of £5 — hoping he should be introduced 

 to the lady. Mr. Beresford, however, judged he 

 had got a flat in plaintiff, to whom he made a 

 communication that on the receipt of another 

 £10, his wish should be gratified, but otherwise 

 it could not be. The plaintiff then, for the first 

 time, began to feel a little doubtful of the affair 

 he had blindly embarked in, and resolved to go 

 to the company's office, in Portsmouth-street, 

 where on asking for Mr. Beresford, he was intro- 

 duced to the defendant, who, having taken him 

 into a dark, dirty apartment, more like a den 

 than a room, asked him his business, which he 

 told. Defendant upon that, having locked the 

 door, said, Mr. Beresford's abroad ; my name's 

 Hunter ; I have been corresponding with you for 

 him, and I suppose you have come to pay the 

 required £10." Plaintiff assured him that he 

 meant no such thing, and should not advance any 

 more money till he could see the lady, or have 

 some reference given him as to the respectability 

 and honor of the company he had entered into 

 dealings with. On uttering these words, the 

 defendant complained of the slur thus cast upon 



an association having in its banker's hands up- 

 wards of £3,000 ; and his fierce looks frightening 

 the plaintiff, he promised to send £10 on the 

 morrow, and was allowed to depart. On reach- 

 ing the street, he ran away ; not stopping till 

 within a few paces of his own residence. This- 

 was on the 29th of September, and on the follow- 

 ing day he sent a note, declining any further trans- 

 actions with the Matrimonial Alliance Associa- 

 tion. The Association was, however, not to be 

 so easily disenthralled from a person who had got 

 into their meshes, and threats of proceedings 

 against him in the Sheriff's Court were made 

 unless he paid the £10 by twelve o'clock on a 

 certain day ; when, if the lady, on an interview 

 did not suit, it would be returned. His client 

 was inflexible ; and being on two occasions refused 

 the £10, which had been fraudulently, as he 

 considered, obtained from him, he instituted these 

 proceedings. Subsequently to that event, Mr. 

 Hugo Beresford was loth to lose his game in the 

 person of the plaintiff, and sent him the following 

 rich morceau : — " Mr. Beresford would be happy 

 to arrange a meeting with a lady, another 'likely' 

 character, with whom an interview can be given." 

 Plaintiff was proof against this and other over- 

 tures made to alter the course he had adopted, 

 and he was determined that, through an exposure 

 by the press, the public should be put on their 

 guard from being defrauded by an alleged bona 

 fide association, not worth a straw. 



The plaintiff, a good-looking gentlemanly 

 young man, of mild demeanor, in broken English 

 corroborated the facts in chief, as narrated by his 

 solicitor. 



Cross-examined by Mr. Eoberts : He had never 

 before speculated in marriage. His father wanted 

 to bring him up a priest ; but he did not like it, 

 and came to this country. He was under thirty 

 years of age. He did not care about his wile's 

 age, as he wanted a companion in a woman, and 

 money might give her a favorality (laughter,). 

 He should, he thought, have objected to marry 

 a woman more than middle aged. On seeing 

 the Matrimonial Alliance, he said let us try. He 

 knew of no firm of that name (laughter), but said 

 so to himself. 



His honor observed, that no doubt the money 

 had been obtained by fraud upon the plaintiff, 

 and the defendant, who was the only person he 

 had seen throughout the transaction, was liable, 

 and he should, therefore, make an order for its 

 payment. — I propose, then, ten shillings a month. 



Mr. De Jersey : What ! ! By an association 

 boasting of having in their banker's hands £3,000 

 (laughter) ! I press for payment forthwith. — An 

 order was then made for immediate payment — 



WITH ALL COSTS. 



An occasional exposure of this kind is salu- 

 tary. Let us hope that " wives by advertise- 

 ment" will be laid aside for a long time to 

 come. Connected with " Matrimonial adver- 

 tisements," to catch flats, the subjoined is 

 far too good to be lost sight of. It is now 

 appearing daily and weekly in the news- 

 papers; and would not, we imagine, be so 

 industriously kept up, unless it amply 

 repaid Madame M., the flat-catcher, for her 



