and get some of your money. I don't want you, for I know that I would have a devil's life of it. You think you can worry me but you cannot do it. Now I am going to use you as bad as the law will allow me to do it. If you were poor I would not do anything with you, so rich, so gossiping, so deceitful, so fun making, underhanded and sneaking. I pray night and day that you may never prosper in this world. I just pray for every hair in your head to come out." The writer of the above letter realized $2,000 out of her broken heart. In passing it may be noted that juries do not relish silly letters written by men to women. They always have a tendency to make the price of hearts dearer. The price of hearts rests largely in the discretion of the jury, and is seldom inter fered with by the court except where the
jury is influenced by prejudice, passion or corruption. In West Virginia a heart that brought $10,000 was held not to be exces sive. In another state $4,000 was held to be excessive where there were no circum stances of aggravation, while in still another $4,000 was held not to be excessive. The price of a Texas heart at $7,500 was sus tained. A few years ago in New York City the silly letters of Baby Run to Darling Dumpling forced the price of a heart up to $45,000. The general value, however, of broken hearts in their market may be stated to be, that for an ordinary broken heart stripped of many of the elements that make value, the price is about $1,500. Location and other circumstances that make value, usually force the prices up from $3,000 to $5,000. Higher priced hearts are the exceptions.
