第5章

LordAbingerrefusedtheevidencewhichLordWynfordhadwarnedLordGrantleywouldbefatal:theevidenceofwhichLordWynfordhadsaid，thatifitshouldevercomeout，itwouldbeattended"withlossofcharacter"forMrNorton。

Itwassuppressed:andbecauseitwassuppressedthecasewasdecidedforMrNortoninsteadofagainsthim，asLordWynfordhadwarnedhimmusthappen。

Afterthis，MrNortonproposedoncemoretohave"referees。"HenamedSirF。Thesiger，whoseopinionI

giveinhisownwords:——"TheaccommodationproposedbyNortonisoneinwhichyouaretogivewayuponeverysubject，andheisnottorecedeuponone；anditseemstometoberidiculoustotalkofconciliationuponsuchafooting……ItisimpossiblenottobestruckwiththevacillatingandvexatiouscoursewhichNortonhaspursued；excitinghopesonlytodisappointthem，andmakingpromisesapparentlyfortheopportunityofbreakingthem。"

Page76

Whyshouldtherebenotribunalofcontroloverthese"vacillating"husbands，whorefusetoabidebywrittenpledges，andmakepromises"fortheopportunityofbreakingthem"?Whyistheabsurdfictionof"non-existence"，tobekeptupinlaw，wheninfact，twoalienatedpartiesexist，withadverseinterests，strugglingandantagonistic?

Oneoftheepisodesofmy"non-existence"inlaw，atthistime，consistedinmyhavingtoendurealibelofimmoderatelengthandbitterness，inthe"BritishandForeignQuarterlyReview。"Ihadmadelittlestruggleaboutothermatters。IhadyieldedtoLordMelbourne"searnestrequestthat，whilehewasminister，Iwouldnotpublishmyownaccountofthecasebetweenhimandmyhusband。

Butresolutely，passionately，andtillthefinalhourofsuccess，Istruggledagainstthelawwhichenabledanotherwomantotakemychildren。

Inthecourseofthatstruggle，Iwrotetwopamphlets:one，"OntheSeparationofMotherandChild；"theother，"APlainLettertotheChancellor，byPierceStevenson，Esq。"ThereviewinquestionattributedtomeapaperIdidnotwrite，andneversaw；"OntheGrievancesofWoman；"andboldlysettingmyname，intheindex，asPage77

theauthor，——proceeded，inlanguagestrangerabidandvirulent，toabusethewriter；callinghera"SHE-DEVIL"anda"SHE-BEAST。"

Nolessthanonehundredandforty-twopagesweredevotedtothenominaltaskofopposingtheInfantCustodyBill，andinrealitytoabusingme。

Notbeingtheauthorofthepapercriticised，IrequestedmysolicitortoprosecutetheReviewasalibel。Heinformedmethatbeingamarriedwoman，Icouldnotprosecuteofmyself；thatmyhusbandmustprosecute:

myhusband——whohadassailedmewitheverylibelinhispower!Therecouldbenoprosecution:andIwaslefttostudythegrotesqueanomalyinlawofhavingmydefensemadenecessary，——andmadeimpossible，——bythesameperson。

"Oh!but，"——saythosewhohavenotstudiedandsufferedunderthelaw，asIhave，——"inreturnforallthis，thehusbandisresponsibleforhiswife"sdebts:thatweallknow!"Doyou?Iwillshewthatnotonlyheisnotresponsibleforhiswife"sdebtstoothers——butheisnotresponsibleforhisowncovenanteddebtstoher。Heis，asIhavesaid，legallyresponsiblefornothing，butthatsheshallnotcomeupontheparish。

In1848，myhusbandrequiredreadymoneyPage78

toimprovetheestatelefthimbythewomantowhommychildrenwereatfirsttaken。

Inordertoraisethismoneyonthetrust-fundsofourmarriagesettlements，mysignaturewasnecessary。

Toobtainmysignature，Mr。Nortondrewupacontract。Hedictatedthetermsofthecontracthimself；vehementlyurgeditscompletion；andreproachedmysolicitorforthedelay，distrust，andreluctance，whichIshewedbeforeIsignedit。Idideventuallysignit；andsodidMr。Norton；andso，also，asIhavealreadystated，didtheHon。EdmundPhipps(marriedtothewidowoftheHon。CharlesNorton，myhusband"syoungerbrother)。

Theeffectofmysignaturewas，thatMr。Nortonimmediatelyraisedtheloanfromourtrust-fund，toemployonhisestate。Theeffectofhissignature，andthesignaturesoftheMarquisofNormanby"sbrother，andthesolicitorwhodrewitup，wasabsolutelynil。

In1851，mymotherdied。

Sheleftme(throughmybrother，toguarditfrommyhusband)asmallannuity，asanadditiontomyincome。Mr。Nortonfirstendeavouredtoclaimherlegacy，andthenbalancedthefirstpaymentunderherwill，byarbitrarilystoppingmyallowance。Iinsistedthattheallowancewassecured，Page79

byhisownsignature，andthoseothersignatures，toaformaldeed。Hedefiedmetoproveit，——"as，bylaw，manandwifewereone，andcouldnotcontractwitheachother；andthedeedwasthereforegoodfornothing。"

IconfessIthoughtthefearofexposurewouldpreventhisdisputingthecontract；Ithought，——thistimeatleast，thememorablewordsofLordWynford，——"GeorgeNortoncanhavenodefencetotheactions，andhisdefendingthemwillbeattendedwithlossofcharacter，"mustoperateasacheckuponsounfair，somonstrousanact，asavailinghimselfofthelegalfictionofmy"non-existence，"

toescapefromawrittenbond，whichanyonenothiswifemighthaveprosecutedupon。

Iwasmistaken。NotonlyMrNortonheldbythequibblethatmanandwifecouldnotcontractwitheachother；notonlyhedidthis，——buthehadthebaseandcruelhypocrisytooncemoredragforwardLordMelbourne"sname，inordertomakethatseemmyshameandmydisgrace，whichwasinfacthisshameandhisdisgrace；andtopretendwrong，whereheknewhehadbeenthewronger。Oncemore，forthesakeofmoney，——asintheactionfor"damages，"——heendeavouredtocovermewithopprobrium!Creepingbacktohisoldplace；scramblinguponthemoss-Page80

coveredandforsakenpedestalof"theinjuredhusband"；hemetthemotherofhisgrown-upsons，withtheaccusationshehadadmittedtobeafalsehoodintheirchildhood:bruisingthoseboyishheartswithforgottenslanders，firstraised，andfirstretracted，whentheeldestwasbutsixyearsold!

Hemetmeinpersoninthelawcourt；heinstructedhislawyer，inmyverypresence，whatquestionstoaskmethatcouldinsultmemost:andwhenthatgentlemanafterwardsapologisedforthetoneofthosequestions，heassertedthatMrNorton"sinstructionswentbeyondwhathehadevenventuredtoask!

Heaffected(Ogrossaffectation!)

tobehurt，as"aninjuredhusband，"atmyacceptinganyassistanceinmoneyfromLordMelbourne"ssisterorfamilyafterhisdecease；andaffirmedthathehadmadeconditionswithmeaboutit。WhenIcontradictedthisonoath，——disprovedit，andcommentedontheshamefulpretencebywhich，inadisputeaboutmymother"swill，hereviveddiscussionsaboutLordMelbourne，——seeingthathehimselfretainedonethousanda-yearfromLordMelbourne"spatronage，——(steadilypreservingTHATmemoryofpastfavors，eventhroughalltherevilingofhisdeadpatron)，——Page81

MrNortonprintedthewonderfulfalsehood，thatLordMelbournehadgivenhimtheplaceheheld，"beforeheknewMrsNorton!"Theridiculeofthis——(eveniftrue)——mighthavestruckanyone；thisnewwayofdividingtheledger；thisabhorrenceofaman"becauseoftheseductionofmywife"——butsatisfactionintheplaceobtainedfromhim，becauseitwas"beforetheseductionofmywife。"ButIproveditnottobetrue，byLordMelbourne"sownletters。Itwasasheerinvention；andgivenwiththemostcarefuldetail。YetMrNorton，——convictedofitsbeingutterlyfalse，——contentedhimselfwithsaying，"thematterhadhappenedsolongago，"hemadean"unintentionalmistake。"Howmanymoreofhisslandersagainstthedeadandthelivingare"unintentionalmistakes"?

Iwillnotpauseoverthatquestion。Iwillnotpauseoverthestilldebateablepoint，whetherthatsignedpaper，evenifnotacontractwithme，maynotbeheldgoodasacontractwithmycreditors；——awrittenandstampedagreementwiththem，madebyamagistrateandabarrister；thesoleconditionannexedbeing，thatwhileitispaidtheyshallnotapplytohim。NorwillIenlargefurtherontheabuseandinsultwhichwasshoweredonmethatdayincourt，onlyforPage82

assertingajustclaim。INSULTisnotDEGRADATION:

Queenshavebeeninsulted，asIwas:andthefamoussummonsinHenryVIII。"stime——"Katherine!comeintocourt，"——wasaboutasjustasthatwhichcalledmethere!Itisenoughtoknow，thatinthisdisputebetweentheexistenthusbandandthenon-existentwife，theexistenthusbandhadeveryadvantage。Thedeadfriendandpatronwasscurrilouslyabused，bythemanwhostillholdsplaceunderhisappointment。Thelivingbut"non-existent"

wife，waspubliclyinsulted，bythehusbandwhohadwrittenhertheGreenacreletters，andentreatedherreturnhomeonthepleathatshemight"forgive"

thetrial，sincehedisbelievedinitsaccusations!The"existent"husbandsubpoenaedmybankers；compelledthemtoproducetheirbooks，andsenthisattorneytomakeextractsattheirbank，ofallsumsenteredinmyprivateaccount。Healsosubpoenaedmypublishers；tocompelthemtodeclarewhatwerethecopyrightstheyheldofme，andwhatsumstheyhadpaidme:

for，(amazingtosay，)thecopyrightsofmyworksarehis，bylaw:

myverysoulandbrainsarenotmyown!And，whenallwasdone，thisgreatdictumwasimpresseduponmymemory；thatthecontractwasnil，becausethefictionofPage83

thelawis，that"manandwifeareone，"——andnottwocontractingparties；andMrNorton，therefore，wasnotbound"inlaw，"only"inhonour。"

Iamnotnowdiscussingthis，withanyreferencetohimindividually。Gone，——past——buriedinunutterablescorn，——arethedaysinwhichIappealed，eithertohim，orfromhim。Icomplain，——notoftheexistenthusband，butoftheexistentlaw:

andofthat"nationofgallantgentlemen，"whoscarcelycare，andscarcelyknow，whatistheexistinglawonsuchsubjects。

Afterthecreditor"scasewasover，MrNortonenquired，(theoldenquiry!)——whetherIwould"submittoreferees"thepoint，whetherheought"inhonour"toabidebyhissignature；

andwhetherIwouldnamearefereeonmypart。Iansweredintheaffirmative:

andInamedasmyreferee，onewhomayfairlyclaimtoinspireasmuchconfidence，respect，anduniversalesteem，frommenofallranks，ages，orparties，asIthinkiteverwasthelotofanypersontoenjoy:——InamedtheMarquisofLansdowne。MrNortonproposedhisownbrother，LordGrantley；

whichnominationwasdeclined，asanimpossiblechoice——impossible，recollectingthePage84

circumstancesofthetrial，——theresidenceofthewitnesses，——andthenearnessofconnection。Nootherchoicewasproposed。MrNortoneitherfelt，(ashemaytrulyfeel)，thatnounprejudicedgentlemaninEngland，wouldsupporthiminhislegalquibble:——orhehadneverintendedtoproposeachoicewhichcouldbeaccepted，——whichismorethanprobable。

NowIwillprayyourMajesty"sattentiontotheeffectofthisnon-existenceinlaw，ontheseveralpartiesinvolvedinthediscussionofthiscontract。

AndfirstIwilltakeMrNorton"sposition。

Fromthedateofmymother"sdeath，hehaswithheldentirely，andwithperfectimpunity，myincomeashiswife。Idonotreceive，andhavenotreceivedforthepastthreeyears，asinglefarthingfromhim。Heretains，andalwayshasretained，propertythatwasleftinmyhome-giftsmadetomebymyownfamilyonmymarriage，andtomymotherbyyourMajesty"saunt，H。R。H。theDuchessofYork；——articlesboughtfrommyliteraryearnings，——bookswhichbelongedtoLordMelbourne；

and，Page85

inparticular，amanuscriptofwhichLordMelbournehimselfwastheauthor，(whenaveryyoungman，)whichMrNortonresolutelyrefusedtogiveup。

Hereceivesfrommytrusteestheinterestoftheportionbequeathedmebymyfather，whodiedinthepublicservice，holdinganofficialappointmentattheCapeofGoodHope，leavingafamilyofveryyoungorphans，slenderlyprovidedfor。Ifmyfatherlived，itistobepresumedthereisnomanhewouldseewithgreaterabhorrencethanMrNorton(consideringwhatthefateofhisdaughterhasbeen)，yetsuchportionashewasabletoleaveme，goesfromthe"non-existent"wife，totheexistenthusband，inthegeneraltrust-fundofourmarriage。

Ihavealso(asMrNortonimpressedonme，bysubpoenaingmypublishers)thepowerofearning，byliterature，——whichfund(thoughitbethegrantofHeaven，andnotthelegacyofearth)isnomorelegallyminethanmyfamilyproperty。

Nowagain，Isay，isorisnotthisaridiculouslaw(iflawsbemadetoconducttojustice)?I

cannotdivorcemyhusband，eitherforadultery，desertion，orcruelty；

Imustremainmarriedtohisname；hehas，inrightofthatfact(ofmyPage86

linktohisname)，arighttoeverythingIhaveintheworld——andIhavenomoreclaimuponhim，thananyoneofyourMajesty"sladiesinwaiting，whoareutterstrangerstohim!Ineverseehim:——Ihearofhimonlybyattacksonmyreputation:——andIdonotreceiveafarthingofsupportfromhim。Hisreply，byattorney(dated10thofApril，thissession)，toanysuchdemand——istobidthecreditor"examinethewillofmymotherinDoctors"Commons"(therebythrowingoffthemaskofpretencehewore，andstandingopenlyonhislegalirresponsibility):andwhenwefirstseparated，heofferedme，assoleprovision，asmallpensionpaidbyGovernmenttoeachofmyfather"schildren；reckoningthatpensionashis!

Thatisthepositionofthehusband。

Thenextstartlingpoint，isthepositionofthetrades-peopleunderthis"non-existent"rule；andiftheopinionofpersonssohumblewerelikelytoreachyourMajesty，theycouldtellyouwhattheythinkofthelawwhichleavesthemutterlywithoutanyremedy。

Inthecreditor"sactiontriedonMrNorton"sPage87

contract，theplaintiffwasMrThrupp，oneofthecoachmakers"byappointment"toyourMajesty。MrThrupplosthiscauseasagainstMrNorton；andperhapstheuninitiatedimagineitwasmerelyaquestionwhichofusshouldpayhim；orpayanyothercreditor。Thosewhothinkso，aremistaken。Inconsequenceofthisruleofmy"non-existence，"MrThrupp，andthegroupofcreditors，canclaimpaymentfromnoone。Theycannotsuethe"non-existent"marriedwoman；thehusbandcannotcontractwiththe"non-existent"marriedwoman；andthe"non-existent"marriedwomancannotbecompelledtopay，ifsherefusestodischargethedebt。"Oh!

butyouwillnotrefuse；youwillpay，surely，"saythebystanders。

How?Myhusbandowesme#1，500，orthreeyears"income。Ihavenomeansofraisingthislargesum；noonewouldlendmoneytoamarriedwoman；

shecangivenosecurity。Besides，Iamindebttomybankers:obstinatelydisbelievinginthepossibilityofthelaw"sinjustice(beforeitwasprovedtome)，Iborrowedfromthem，whenMrNortonstoppedmyallowance:

andthatloan，withinterest，isstillunpaid。Iamindebttomyprinters；

forworkarisingoutofthisveryinjustice。IhavepersonswhoreceivePage88

regularinstalmentseveryyear，onpastdues；Ihaveotheremploymentformymoney，thanmakingupMrNorton"sdefalcations。

"Oh!butyoushouldnothaveotheremployment:youshouldwriteandearnmoney，andpaythesepeople；

andtheneconomize，andretrench，soastogiveupthe#500ayeartoMrNorton。"

Why?

Why，becauseIammarriedtoaname，——amItostriveandlabour，toenabletheownerofthatnametocommitadirectfraud?WhyamItopayMrNorton"sdebts，torenounceallclaimonhim，andadmitthatmylegal"non-existence"madeoursigningthatcontractamerefarce?simplybecausehehasgrosslyandcruellyinsultedandslanderedme，inanopencourtofjustice，ongroundsheknewwerefalse；andwithadefenceabsolutelyfictitious?

IwouldnotifIcould!

IfallEnglandweretoagreetoraiseashillingsubscription，——orifsomeoneweretodowhatMrKennedyoftheWoodsandForestssayshasbeendoneforhim，——namely，comeforwardandsay，"Ithinkthisbusinesssounjust，thatIwillsettleforlifetheincomeyoulose；nowpayyourpeople，"——I

wouldnotadmitthatthemattershouldendso!Page89

IdonotconsiderthisasMYcause:thoughitisacauseofwhich(unfortunatelyforme)Iamanillustration。Itisthecauseofallthewomen，andofalargeproportionofthetradespeople，inEngland。IfIwerepersonallysetateaseaboutitto-morrow，thatwouldnotalterthelaw。Thesameinjusticemighthappennextdaytosomewomanwhocouldnotstruggle，orearn，orwrite；forwhomnoonewouldcomeforward；andtosomepettytradesman，——notlikeMrThrupp，coachmakertoyourMajesty，inalargewayofbusiness，——butgrievouslyinjuredbythelossofevenasmallsum。Whatisneeded，isnotthearrangingofoneparticularcase，butaTribunalofControl，aTribunalforMarriageandDivorce；todecideALLsuchcases；——andtopreventthepossibilityoftheshametoEnglandandtoEnglishlaw，entailedbythrowingthesumsecuredbyamagistrate"ssignature，thesignaturesoftwopeers"brothers，andalawyer，——amongatradesman"slistof"baddebts。"