Sham Marriage 1891 - two press reports
CHARGE AGAINST A CURATE - STORY OF A MOCK MARRIAGE
William Gregory
Tyler, alias C. W. Tyler, 29, of William's Cottages, Boreham Wood,
described on the charge sheet as a clergyman, and having recently been
acting as curate of Elstree, was brought up in custody at Barnet
sessions and charged with having
obtained a situation as curate or servant to the Rev. P. H. W. Peach,
rector of Elstree, by false representations, and by means of a forged
certificate of character. Further charges of forging the
certificate and various letters, and obtaining from the Rev. Mr
Barclay, of Amwell, a sum of £10 14s by false pretences, and of
uttering a forged certificate of marriage, were now added. The evidence
taken at previous hearings, and now read over, was to the effect that
in October last the Rev. P. H. W. Peach, rector of Elstree, advertised
in the Church Times for a temporary curate in full orders, and prisoner
applied for the appointment, representing that he held the necessary
qualifications, and had sole charge of the parish of St. Paul's,
Bermondsey, during the temporary absence of the vicar, the Rev. S. M.
Mayhew. He gave an address said to be that of Mr Mayhew, and a letter
sent there elicited a confirmation of prisoner's statements, and was so
eminently satisfactory that he was at once appointed. When he had been
a short time at Elstree Mr Peach became suspicious that all was not
right, and investigation showed that Mr Mayhew
had never lived at the address given, that the testimonial was a
forgery, and that prisoner had similarly imposed on at least one other
clergyman. The facts having been established, Tyler was apprehended on
a warrant, and Police-Inspector Nutt searched prisoners lodgings, in
company with Detective-sergeant Bradbrook. They found a book containing
marriage-certificate forms, some of which had been torn out without
entries being made on the counter-foil. They also found a certificate
purporting to be signed by Mr Registrar Hazzard, and recording a
marriage between William Gregory Tyler and Ada Emily Hall, solemnised
at the registry office, 228, Gray's Inn Road, W.C. There was no such
registry office, and there was every indication that the certificate
was in Tyler's own handwriting. There were, further, found among his
effects several ordination forms, some blank and others partially
filled in. One, which purported to be signed by a bishop of the
Reformed Episcopalian Church of America, licensed William Gregory
Tyler. Investigation showed that Dr Richardson had ordained a priest of
that name, but immediately afterwards withdrew the licence.
Ada Emily Hall,
a young lady of prepossessing appearance, said she was a
school-teacher. She first made the acquaintance of the prisoner in
September, 1889, when he was editor of the Hampshire Herald.
She was then, as now, living at Alton. She frequently met prisoner, and
he became at lodger at the house of her parents. They grew very
friendly and became lovers, prisoner proposing to marry her. He wrote
several letters after leaving Alton, and in some of them — particularly
those of Jan. 11, 13, and 15 of the present year — pressed her to marry
him. In consequence of his representations she went to London on the
following Saturday, and was met at Waterloo station by the prisoner,
who took her to 47, Tennyson-Street, and thence to the picture gallery
at South Kensington. At about three o'clock in the afternoon they went
to a place which she was led to suppose was Doctors Commons for the
purpose of being married; but Tyler said the license had not come and
they must call again. They returned to Tennyson-street, and later in
the evening the accused went out and said on his return that the
license had arrived, and he, as a clergyman, might then perform the
ceremony. He produced a book, in which she signed her name, at his
direction, and he then opened a prayer book and read the portion
beginning take thee to be my wedded wife etc., and she repeated the words with the necessary variations. Using the words With this ring I thee wed
etc., prisoner placed a wedding upon her finger. She was to have
returned to Alton that night, but prisoner assured her she had lost the
train, and she passed the night with him as his wife. The certificate
produced in court was that which she signed. The marriage took place
with the consent of her parents, but it was arranged not to make it
public just then, because of what the school-managers might say. Her
husband stayed in London and she returned to Alton. She had not the
slightest suspicions that she was not the prisoner's legal wife till
the Rev. Mr Barclay, of Amwell, made a communication to her. While her
husband was a clergyman at Amwell she visited him and stayed with him
for a few days.
Arthur Rogers,
registrar of marriages for the county of London, was called to prove
that no such marriage as that deposed to had been legally solemnised in
his district. If the ceremony were performed as the last witness stated
it would be illegal. The certificates was a fraud and a forgery, and
there was no registry office at the address appearing upon it, nor any
such registrar as John Hazzard. Sergeant Bradbrook having given
evidence as to the arrest, prisoner was committed for trial, and
reserved his defence.
ALLEGED SHAM CURATE
ROMANCE OF REAL LIFE.
The various charges brought against Mr. William Gregory Tyler, at
Barnet, opened up exceedingly grave issues. Boreham Wood is where Mr.
Tyler, by what are alleged to be false testimonials and certificates,
got himself appointed by the Vicar of Elstree to act as his curate, and
to take charge of a mission hall at Boreham Wood. The pretty village
appears to have been the scene of something approaching rival activity
between the Church people and the dissenters.
The Vicar of
Elstree on his part was determined not to allow the work of the Church
to fail. As a Church Army missioner proved unsuccessful, he dispensed
with his services and advertised in the Church Times for a duly
qualified curate. Mr. William Gregory Tyler replied to the
advertisement, and at the same time (about the 11th of November last)
sent a letter and certificate of character purporting to come from the
Rev. Samuel Martin Mayhew, vicar of St. Paul's, Bermondsey. The vicar
of Elstree, the Rev. Philip Herbert Wentworth Peach, was so pleased
with the testimonials that he engaged Mr. Tyler as his curate at £125
per annum, and he entered on his duties. He took lodgings at 2,
Williams Cottages, where for two rooms he agreed to pay 15s per week.
The vicar took him round the district and introduced him to some of the
principal families and tradesmen of the place. Then afterwards Mr.
Tyler called again himself, and did his best to persuade them to attend
his church. Many accepted the invitation. The new curate had such
winning ways, and the church mission hall was much fuller than it had
been for a long time before. His first sermon was a great success, and
the general opinion expressed was that there had never been such a
powerful and impressive preacher at Boreham Wood before. The Church
party were unanimous in their opinion that they had secured an able
champion at last. Some of them just peeped in at the dissenting
meeting-house a little higher up the road, and they were struck with
the fact that it was not so full as it was before.
While at tea
with some of the families of the district the new curate discussed the
best means of pressing forward the mission, and he was particularly
anxious to enlist the services of the young ladies in active village
work. He told them of the great good that had been accomplished by
ladies during the ministrations at other places where he had held
various kinds of special services. He produced different printed bills,
and urged that similar onea should be printed and circulated in the
district of Boreham Wood.
Various young
ladies acquiesced in the proposition, and efforts were at once made to
extend the mission. When the new curate preached the second time the
church was crowded; and the sermon was pronounced a greater success
ever than before. He took for his text, Awake from thy sleep, and after showing the various kinds of spiritual sleep, urged all to be up and active in the work of God and His Church.
After a
promising ministry of nearly three weeks, however, there came a sudden
reverse. On the evening of December 4th last Mr. Tyler was met in
Shenley Road, Elstree, by Detective-sergeant Bradbrook, who produced a
warrant for his arrest, and at once took him into custody. The prisoner
pleaded very hard to be allowed to get his box away first, but this the
officer refused and he was taken to the station. The news spread with
great rapidity through the village, and when it was rumoured that the
new curate had been arrested at the instigation of the vicar, there was
much consternation. At first the rumour was that, not being a duly
qualified clergyman in holy orders, the charge against him was of
endeavouring to obtain his salary by forgery and fraud. Some of tho
ladies wero inclined to be indignant with the vicar for what they
considered his arbitrary conduct. Others expressed tho opinion that
they thought it was a great pity to arrest him. He was really a nice,
clever, and educated man, and had all tho ability for making a splendid
preacher. They had never had such a preacher before, and it was much to
be regretted that the Church had lost so good a man.
In course of
conversation the vicar frankly said that giving the prisoner into
custody had caused him very great pain, but he felt it was his duty to
do so in the interest of the public. He considered it was his bounden
duty to do as he had, in consequence of a communication he in the first
instance received from the Rev. Charles Wright Barclay as to some of
the man's antecedents. Then when he began to make further inquiries for
himself he learned a very great deal, which, convinced him that the
fellow was an impostor, and not fit to be trusted in the position in
which he had been placed, even if he had been duly qualified. He rather
blamed himself now for not having looked into his credentials, and for
not having asked to see his ordination papers. It was not, however,
always customary to do so, as it was usually thought that a clergyman
ought to be above suspicion. This man, however, was not a clergyman,
but an impostor of a very dangerous kind. The rev. gentleman then
produced letters and post-cards, which he had received since the
prisoner had been in custody, thanking him for what he had done, and in
order to show the character of the man the writers gave the names of
various young ladies who had reason to deeply regret meeting the
supposed curate. The prisoner, he said, was a kind of lay reader about
1882 under the Rev. Samuel Martin Mayhew, vicar of St. Paul's,
Bermondsey. There was then in the parish a very respectable young lady,
who took much interest in mission work. Prisoner became very friendly
with her, and they were engaged to be married. In the meantime the
prisoner fell ill, and was admitted to Guy's Hospital, and while there
the young lady who was greatly attached to him, visited him. One day,
however, another young lady also came to see him, who claimed to be his
wife, and the two ladies afterward met, and a great scene occurred at
the hospital.
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