Judge — July 25, 1885 — page 6: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

A Modern Love Story. Mr. Timothy O'Rafferty, of Hester street, al, by peculiarly industrious — habits, acquired money and real estate up to the value of half a million dollars. © Mr. O'Raf- ferty was, however, a modest man, and made no great display of his wealth, — His residence was so lowly in its outside appear- ¢ that people were accustomed to call it 1 Dive. Mr. O'Rafferty was a pleasing young man, verhaps forty years old, who ed two fandeed pounds, and if his brain had been placed in the back part of his neck the clopment of that part of his anatomy Id have been greater than it ¥ He 1 a low, broad brow, projecting and beautifully yellow teeth, a a countenance hardened by exposure and various things to the consistency of cast iron, ILis clenched hands were remarkably hard, and his influ. ence with the statesmen of his ward and some higher men and officials was propor- tionately great pt unnaturally, his wealth for by adventurers of all kinds. Frequent cl were brought against him to the effect that he beat women. In all of these cases he was found guilty by the facts and innocent by the law; but, notwithstand- ng his innocence and the consequent escape from severe punishment, his experiences were rather expensive. “Twill end this,” he said one day, with characteristic determination. “I will so conduct myself hereafter that me enemies shall secure no mean advant of me.” Within the little Bower that was the Dive there lived several women, ; lived there because they loved him. Within twenty-four hours he had engaged himself unconditionally to marry the loveliest of his admirers of the Bowe and before the week was over he had also engaged himself, but with conditions, to marry all the others. “T think,” he remarked, ** that this will put a stop to the scandalous assertions of me King neighbors. One has a right to beat own wife, I believe.” | Things were going as merry as an impend- | ing marriage bell when there came to him a) freckle-faced Irish girl of indifferent parent- | age and wholly irresponsible origin from | every point of view. She said her name was Norah and she had just come over and was only fifteen years old, and what she wanted was honest work. Some remnants of Irish bog were still on her shoes, and some of the dew of Ireland still shone in her eyes. , 80 help me!” exclatmed Mfr. O'Raflerty, with thorough good humor, “I'll | make the reformation complete. I'll marry | orah, too.” Norah strenuously O'Rafferty u was sought They but Mr. “Tt has objected. y 1 his suit warmly been held by the courts,” argued Mr. O'Rafferty, ** that in certain cases the pro- clamation of marriage fe good riage itself, and I shall proclaim sume me rights without de! Ile courted the coy maiden with a club and all the muscular force he could command, and in due season there remained nothing whatever to be con- summated but the marriage ceremon: ‘There is no hurry about that,” said Mr. O Raffert. The troubles of Norah had been hai ough, but they immediately grew worse. The original female inmates of the Bower turned on her with ferocity and beat her | sorely. Why had she come into the Bower to interrupt its harmony? Why had she | added to the responsibilities from which the | THE JUDGE. genial Mr. O'Rafferty continually suffered? “Oh, women, women!” cried out Norah ‘on one or two occasions, as she rushed into the back-yard to escape the righteous ind nation of her radical opponents, appealing tothe women of the neighboring houses, “if there isa mother among you~ will she not save m hey would not let her go, ing their dislike of her. she escaped, and, notwithstand- Finally, however, enlisting the se: 3 of the public prosecutor, had Mr, O'Rafferty arrested. Ne was tried and convicted, and was about to be sentenced to imprisonment for a term anywhere between ten and twenty years. But the criminal lawyer employed by Mr. O’Rafferty was as able as Mr. O' Rafferty was rich I will spend a hundred thou lars to keep out of prison!” exc Rafferty. * My dear boy,” said the criminal lawyer, slapping him fondly on the shoulder, * speak not of such disagreeable things as’ prisons. You shall be saved. You can break the law pretty well, but I can beat you at it.” ‘There was a stay of proceedings on account of newly discovered evidence. Then came forward from Philadelphia, from Newport, from Albany, from Aust from Egypt from half the sections of the world, witnes ses who positively identified the girl Norah, and knew her to be # bad character. “Tt is certainly a bad sign that she lived for a time in Philadelphia,” said the presid- ing judge at the opening of the trial—and so it was. One Ph phi ss swore that she had lived in Kis family seven and a half years, and during that time she was out every night and ry Sunday. A letter from Arabi Bey, formerly of Cairo, said she served in his family eight years and finally went out with the avowed purpose of making the acquaintance of George H. Butler, then Consul for the United States at that point. An attache of the court of Francis Joseph, of Austria, testified by cable that she was a scrubwoman under the immediate supervi- sion of one of his supernumeraries for five nd dol- med Mr. | course of of years to his absolute knowledge; and a cable- gram from Rome reported her to have held peculiar relations with the late Victor Im- manuel for a long od, and to have had designs upon King Humbert which cau her to be summarily removed beyond the Italian border. It was also proved that she acquainted with General James W. Husted, hod corresponded for years withi’a. ancnber of well-known Democratic politicians, believed to have assisted in hauling down the flag in Evansville, Ind the opening of the rebellion in 1861, and had be been a Confederate spy of the most unserup- ulous kind, “1 find,” thoroughly the presiding judge with great severity after the evidence had all been put in, “that, according tothe testi- mony for the defense, this depraved woman is at least seventy years old, swears she is only fifteen, In the whole my experience on the bench I have previously known of no such amazing perjury!” And in due season Norah wa penitentiary for the full term pr that offer ‘The marri: bells ‘Timothy O'Raffert a terrible experience a like one hundred thousand dollars, but vir- tue had finally won, ‘The woman to whom he had engaged himself without conditions became his wife. “And what,” she fondly toying with his hair, f the rest of the girls to whom you promised this honor? Me own,” he said, asweet smile exhibit- ing his projective teeth, **1 am still rich. We wont borrow any trouble, but,” showing her his clenched , iron-elad hands, ** 1 don’t believe you'll last more than six months, and cure of the others. — If, how- st comes to the worst we'll take finery and kick them into the sent to the cribed for rily for Mr. the we their gutter.” ever, “Is this justic one day public pro the judge ++ Justi¢ was the stern reply; “fhat the divil is justice? asked the Cross Hvspanp—“What did you wake me up fur, I was on the cars going to Chicago!” Wire—* Oh, dear, I'm so sorry I woke you, then.” comicbooks.com