1
This Xssus of
JOURNAL CIRCULATION
YESTERDAY WAS , , ;
The Sunday Journal '
,. '. Comprises '. ,' '!.- j 'f'
7 Sections 64 Pcfles
732
,. The .weather Occasional
cooler; westerly winds. ,
VOL.' V. NO. 42.
C1HAIIIIE
JiJJ?fUUL-
ESTIMR r
.look-. Upon ; the Oregonian's
1 60,000 Guess . as ; Wanton
' and Wiolly Unjustifiable
Attempt to Belittle Port
land in Eyes of Outsiders.
Prominent men of Portland, Inter
ested la the growth and continued
prosperity of the city, hoot at the
contention of the ' Oregonlan that
there are less than 190,000 people
resident In the city. Those who hare
had occasion to watch the growth of
the city an to note its steady ad
vance are practically unanimous In
the opinion that the population estl
mate can be conservatively placed at
200,000, while some of them go as
high as 225,000 and 250.000. In only
one or two Instances is the estimate
placed below the 200,000 mark;
In making these estimates leading
citizens hare taken into consideration
the postof rice and Its growth of busi
ness, the Increase in mall delivered
and sent out and the large number
Of carriers necessary to Hellrer the
-malL They have estimated with the
school census as a baste, have Cal
culated from the registration of vot-
: ers. ' from-hy-KTnogBt of business
done by, the streetcar lines In com
parison 'with 1900, when , the last
census -was taken,. and have 'used
'many other bases for their calcula
tions, i la every case the result. has
mounted to the 200,000 mark and
above. "
' - Hurt City's Reputation.
Men who have been in business
for years In the city and have noted
Its great growth; real estate men
who have sold the land, business men
who 'bave sold the food, merchants
who have sold the clothes, men of
different creeds and occupations, all
Join in the conTSnironTbJ't the city
has more than reached
200,000
mark. Any estimate bel
that is a
wrongful one and harmfu
for the de-
velopment and reputation of the city
these men say.
Directory Kanagtr Talks.
"It Is the hejghth of the ridiculous
for the Oregonian or any one else to
aytth-t Portland has only 160,000 peo
ple," said Mrs. E. L. Clinton, manager
of the Polk Directory company. "The
Oregonian makes its estimate and fixes
its figure and expects it to be ac
cepted juat because It is the Oregonian.
It has no ' basis for Its reasoning. It
just seta the figure.
"I have no official figures as 'yet,"
continued Mrs. Clinton, "but I am will
ing to stake my reputation on the es
timate of 260,000 or more. No one with
common sense, who will estimate the
fopulation, on a basis of the census of
900. from the known and tried sources
of reckoning but will be forced to con
clude that Portland has now fully three
times the population of 1900. The popu
lation then was 90,000 or more.
"The estimate on the school census.
basis is too, low. There are hundreds
of children who are not In school. There
are many private schools. Portland is
not a. city of large families. All of
these ttfings count, and tend to make
the school census estimate too smalt
Portland s'murh nearer to 300,000 in
habitants -than to 160,000." ' '
ICannfaetursrs Ylsws.
Fletcher Jnnrpresident'xif the Manu
facturers' ;, association, and one of the
statisticians of the city, places his es
timate tf the population 1 Of Portland
at from 200,000 to 225.000.
"I believe 200.000 Is a conservative
(Continued on Pag Four.)
LAW HOT GOOD;
; LiLLEY IS SAFE
Court Decides Corrupt Prac
tices Act Contravenes --
the Constitution.
(United Pre LturS. Vf tr.
New Haven, Cona' Jun. 2. That a
cormpt practice act whi h will with
stand any test In, the courts will , bs
the outcome of the charges brought by
Oorge 1 1. Fox against Qovernor-elect
lilley of violations -of the present act,
which met" with such an abrupt '-death
today -when .fudges Robinnon and- Ben
nett decided, that the law Is unconstitu
tional, lie the jpinlon- of progressive
rolltldans. of both parties. This wa
he first Invocation of the law, and
now that its father. Fox. naa stated that
he will net press he present rase fur
ther, a new bill, or at least an emend
nv-nt which .will make -the .present law
Invulnerable, will undoubtedly be is
.trortuced Irr the coming lgislatnre and
supported by Influential members on
both sides of the aespmhlf.
- The act was declared to be iinconsllto
lonal In that it-contravenes the state
constitution.' .
rain or
.
E OF POPUtATOAl
SENATOR KNOX AND FAMILY
IK' "TO
BBS. S, tm-tj . Bk W "fc X,
V;
it.,
4
Senator P. ,C. Knox of Pennsylvania,
Who' has rjiuit; been appointed .secretary
of' sTat" ls- prsd.et-eict ' Taft';nel
cabinet. His home In Washlnaton.. D.
C, which magnificent"1" residence - lie
purcnaaea irom -jvirs. ueorge uniias, is
one of the finest homes there. The ap
pointments are superb and well adapted
1'JEDDIIie MAY
T TRIAL
ft
Lawyers in 'Breach of Prom
ise" Suit to Hold- John
son to Proirfise. .
If Peter .Johnson, a wealthy flour
and feed dealer of the east side, really
wants 1 to marry. Elisabeth , Bock and
save her the trouble of trying 'her $5000
suit for breach of promise, all he will
have-to do will be to say- "ready" to
morrow' morning when'. the case ,1s
called.
' It is reported' that the woman's at
torneys will have a marriage license
all. made, out and paid , for when they
go.liUo court, with her tomorrow morn
ing. Mr. Johnson is on record, as say
ing that he Is willing to beoome hers.
He said so ln'an answer flledvln ..the
circuit court on September 23, and Miss
Bock's attorneys eagerly snapped up the
offer by filing a written acceptance,
but the marriage has not taken place.
Tomorrow there will be no chance for
Mr. Johnson to dodge the Issue.-'; Ife
will be invited to-eo Into tha ln 1
cnambera and let the ceremonv be ner-
formed. Miss Bock wlll. be ready, the
license win d reaqy, and tho judge, will
doubtless prefer to- perform a marriage
ceremony, to - listening to the - "spout
ing" of the lawyers, even though the
testimony promises to be .racy ,
Miss BoVk was. formerly .the wife of
Joseph Bock, but obtained a divorcss
on February 27, l0.-r-ln- her; eolrfplatnl
sue auea-ea mat jonnson- promised to
marrv her on May 27. But sftr.r.tli
time came to fulfill his promise., she
assorxeo. no was'coia ana siuonorn.
Johnson filed n -answer .that revealed
a little more of the story. He said
that he beoama' acquainted -with" the
then Mrs. Bock on Labor day.- 1907, at
"a place where Intoxicating liquors are
sold on t. e Linn ton;-road." ' After that
he-met her many-times and they talked
of marriage, lie says he put tin (700
that his -charmer- said she . needed 10
get her divorce from Bock. He- also
let her. borrow a diamond ring worth
J176. ' jKt ter the divorce, he'says they
began -living together at 368-r Stephens
street, later moving to 374 Grand ave
nue. ' , .
Johnson S8lrt that,,U;, was. agreed thnt
they . should marry - six . months after
the Miss -Bock secured her. divorce.. th
law preventing her remarriage before
that time. He -declared . that he had
never refused to marry, and that he
was ready and wiyiug "any old-time."
All ofthls.WBs in. September. - Tlve
same da- that Jcjinson's , answer- was
filed." John-.F.' Togan, as attorney for
Mts Bock, filed with Johnson's: at.
trmiey written acceotance of his,
"proposition." -But-It appears that John-'
son was -not anxious enough to look we
his fiance, and the marriage has not
taken place. -. ' ;
- Johnson w..l have his - last chance
tomorrow morning: If he says -"toe-late."
he s will apparently be inv a di
lemma, for ha has admitted, the prom
lee, and - ahhiit the only . question for
the jury wll b to decide whether Miss
Bock's 'affidavits 'are- worth 5Kn, as
she alleges, or less. John- H. Rteven
son Is .associated with . Iogan. as. at
torney for the plaintiff. ,.. . T.-w .
SP0KA SKATING W
;;; ULNK IS DESTKOYED
- j "' ' ' ?" rv' ' ;r
; iSpeeist PUpatch tn The lewaal.t
Spokane, Jan. 2---The big Coliseum
skating rink at .. Third " and Lincoln
streets was destroyed "by fire tills even
Ins., The rink was built a year ago and'
cost many thousand dollars. ...
ILL vwr
8 XA
N mpBk -a v wv -w
PORTLAND, OREGON, L SUNDAY MORNING,
wsmi
J. Tfc. . .
S't'.1
1 1-
3 :
s.
. Z. -a
for re"elvlhg the diplomatic corps on
New Year's lay.. Mrs. .P. C. Knox,
wife- of the new It appointed secretary
of state. Is one of' the Inoet charming
women in official life. Her setjirtain-tneRts-are
tha-most- elaborate given In
Washtngton; The senator's grandson,
Philander Knox, III, who .UJth' pride
of -his grandfather's heart , '
IF
POISONED FUDGE
Denver 'Police Have a Dou
ble Mystery in Arsenic
. . , Candy Case. ,
. (Heartt Newt. by Longest Leased Wirt.)
Denver, Jan. 22. Following close
upon the heels, this rooming of an at
tempt to kill, through the medium of
Soisoned -"fudge," Mrs. Maria .Smith,
ivorced wife of A. C. Smith, a wealthy
Miles City, Mont.; business man, and
her two daughters, comes the announce
ment .from, police headquarters that an
attempt was made this evening to mur
der in a similar manner Mrs. Amelia
WItwer of 226 West Twelfth avenue,
and -perhaps her son. Charles C. Witwer,
a prominent young attorney. Mrs,Wit
wer w auspicious of the package and
did .not eat of 'it, but turned the . box
over to her son when he returned home
for the day, and' by him It was taken to
police headquarters.
The candy In both packages Is heav
ily charged with arsenic, the police de
clare; and half adoen detectives and
two police Inspectors are now at work
on the .case. Both packages were sent
through the malls, being dropped at the
central postoffice for delivery by regu
lar carriers.
Mrs. Smith and her two daughters
Ocle, aged 16. .and Violot. aged 11
were made violently ill from eating the
poisoned stuff, and their lives were
saved only by the prompt arrival of
physicians, who applied heroic meas
ures. Mrs. Smith lives not far fom the
Wltwers, but the families are not ac
quainted with each other.
Two theories are entertained regardr
Ing the sending of the poisoned fudge
through the malls. One Is that some
person, perhaps, a woman with i homi
cidal, mania. Is responsible for the crime,
or that the candy was poisoned through
being made in a copper vessel.
The fudge, the police say, was pur
chased in an upper Colfax avenue candy
manufactory.
DICK HI NT Hit SHOT
WITI I II IS OWN GUN
, (Hearst New by Lonfest Leased Wtrs.) .
South Bend, Wash., Jan. 2. Sam Geer.
a prominent logger of this city, was
accidentally shot dead ' . at about .1 1
o'clock this "morning while hunting
ducks In Mall Boat slough, near this
cltv. In company with Floyd Brown,
who' Is about 15 years of age. Geer's
bodv now. lies at the morgue with the
entire, ton of the head blown away.
According to young Brown's story,
Ueer was In the Dow or me Doai watcn
Ing for ducks,-, and hi gun was lying
across one of the thwarts behindr him
when the accident happened.
,Geer leaves a widow rtnd four chil
dren. The coroner is - now conducting
an- Investigationto- determine whether
an inquest is necessary.
SHEKIFP HAS-NEGK0;
7 iob;.o5;thk TiuiL
-fCilteS piMHis Lease Wlr.l
'" ' Chattanooga, Tenn.,- Jan. 2. 'A. sher
iffs po" in charge of a negro believed
tp be .the man who choked and crim
inally, assaulted Mrs. K. D. Moore, 63
years olfi. i hurrying to the mountains
near Cottewah. Tenn.. closely pursued by
a mob bent on lynching the negro, Mrs.
Moore'a condition Is critical. When she
Was found today - and told of the as
sault, the sheriff started to look for her
assailant. , A negro was captured war
fiilverdalc. 12 milerf north of Chatta
nooga,, and a. mob lmmedlatelyiformed.1
rue sherirr hurried towards .lire moun-,
tains, and at last reports was, trying to
eludevthe mob,' 1 .. .--
7
sT av .r , .i::::::::'.-:: m ."VHKt CC !
riirm is
BEGIN WORK
Ofj SECOND
.vim
Wright. -& Dickenson Now
Erecting Another Seven
Story Addition to Oregon
Hotel to Cost $200,000
Plans Are Ambitious.
Work has been begun on another sev
en story annex to the Oregon hotel. The
new addition, when completed, will make
the Oregon the largest hotel on the Pa
cific coast north of San Francisco. Like
the first annex, recently opened,' the
second annex will be of steel and con
crete, throughout. The cost of the ad
ditional wing will be $2 00,000.
Thompson Starritt & Co. of New York,
the contractors who are erecting the
Meier & Frank annex, are building the
new addition. Messrs. Wright & Dick
enson, proprietors of the Oregon, are
financing the building. The contract
was let severil weeks ago and the foun
dations for the second annei are nearly
ready. The addition is B0 by 100 feet
and the ground occupied at present by
a part of the old hotel. This will be
torn down In sections, as the work on
the new annex progresses.
Way Build BUg-her.
TI-!. . L 1. lt,l
T IICII 11115 Bd.UllU S1IHC. 10 bUIUlClCU.
seven stories high, the new Oregon will
extend through from Seventh to Park
street. The foundations are built Jo
Bupport 10 stories and in time Manager
uicKenson says nis nrm expects to
raise the hotel to this height The ho
tel will contain 400 rooms after the com
pletion of the second annex. The total
cost of the structure with furniture and
fixtures will approximate 11,000.000.
In the basement of the Seventh street
wing will be . established a rathskeller
for men only. Two more dining rooms,
a parler and another elevator will be
put in., .ins appointments 01 ino rooms
in the new structure will be sumptuous
and not excelled byjthose of, any hotel
ins-San Francisco. The' carpets will be
principally Wiltons and . Bundahrsw,
"' ' rralsae Travelers. ' '
The new sample rooms already thrown
open to the public In the first annex,
are pronounced by traveling mn to be
the most Commodious in the west.
Features of the new Oregon will be
the sneclal ventilating apparatus, capa
ble of supplying 20.000 cublo feet of
fresh. air a minute, an ice maklns- plant
and refrigerator system and an electric
lighting plant. The entrance to the ho
tel will remain at the corner of Seventh
and Stark streets and the lobby Is be
ing increased to double Us present ca
pacity. The building is absolutely fire
proof. The final . touches on the new annex
will not be made until late in the year,
slow progress being necessitated by the
fact that the portion of the old hotel to
be abandoned will be vacated and torn
down only as fast as it is replaced.
DIRECTOR NEWELL
HAS PRAISE FOR -OREGON
GOVERNOR
S Depaitment of the Interior, 4
4 I'nited 8tates Reclamation Serv- 4
4 ice. Washington, D. C, Office of 4
4 the Director. Dec. 26, 1908. 4
4 Honorable George E. Chambas4
4 lain. Governor of Oregon, PoiH- 4
4 land. Or. My Dear Governed: 4
4 I have received and looked over' 4
4 with great Interest the report of 4
4 tha Oregon conservation com- 4
4 mission, dated November. 1S08. 4
4 This is an admirable piece of 4
4 work; and. I think you have rea- 4
4 son to be proud of the excellent 4
4 work of your commission and 4
4 the promptness with which re- 4
4 suits were made known. I as- 4
4 aume that copies have been sent 4
4 to the governors of other states, 4
4 and I am sur they will envy 4
4 you the possession of, such an 4
4 effective board of men. Very 4
4 truly yours, 4
4 (Signed) F. H NEWEI.t 4
4 Director. 4
4 . 4
In the Want Ad Sec
tion of Today's Journal
'Advertise for
help
Advertise for -situations
Advertise furnished
rooms for rent
Advertise real estate for
sale
. Advertise business
chances
Advertise houses for
rent
Advertise flats for
rent 5
Advertise housekeeping
rooms for rent
63
35
70
252
91
55
27
54
Hundreds of new ads in
. the classified section of -this
paper .every day., if
:. you do not find what you t
' want today -
faad the Classified Section
of Tomorrow's JOURNAL I
JANUARY 3, 1909.
Potter Offered
Wife a Fortune
Mrs. Jan;es Rrown Potter, who ar
rived from Europe today.
(United Press Letaed Wire.)
New York, Jan. 2. If Banker J.
Brown Potter offered his divorced wife,
Mrs. James Brown Potter. $100,000 to
change her name when he heard she was
going Into vaudeville, his munificence
has all gone unheeded.
Mrs. Potter arrived today on the Lusl
tania. prepared to launch upon her
vaudeville career. She. will perform for
the delectation of hoi nollol, and be
paid therefor 12000 weekly, she sas.
She Will begin the week as the hcad-llner-at
the Lincoln Square theatre. In
an-interview she said;
'Tt am: Mrs.' Brown "Pot tor: anrt alwava
27Prct to rny hUsband Offer m
1100.0007 Belly IdU not- know my
name was worth so much. All it (a
"' wu.t 1 nave maue 11."
FOURTH BATTLE
FOB fl. BRYAH
But It Is for His Bank Plan
in NebraskaBig Fight
Js in Sight.
(United Pre Lrised Wii-e.)
Lincoln, Neb.. Jan. 2. William J
Bryan is now planning, the fourth battle-
It will be a fight, too.;. Led by
Dr. P. L. Hall, vice chairman of the
Democratic National committee, a num
ber of members of the legislature haye
bolted the Bryan leadership. Hall has
perfected a powerful political organisa
tion and intends to fashion the next leg
islature that all the radical features
of the Oklahoma bank guarantee law
will be omitted from the proponed Ne
braska statute. Bryan stands for Im
mediate payment to depositors when a
bank fails. He was amazed at the
strength of the opposition.
A number of legislators arrived to
be. present at -the session to be called
next Tuesday. Many openly favored
Clark of RlrharoVion county for speak
er. He is the ami-Bryan candidate.
Soon the friends of Mr. Bryan were in
the hotel lobbies. The Falrview states
man came to the city and gave personal
attention to the fight.
ThlH Is the first time lie hs "mixed"
in state politics .since he formed the
fusion combine, uniting the lemocracs
and Populists. In 1894. Anl i-Bryanites
are claiming victory tonight.
T.-ie -Bryan men, howev er, asserts J
that the revolt will soon be quelled.
GREAT EXEMPLAR
Membors of Throe Church
Societies to Make . a
Christly.Test.
(United Press Leased Wire
Cleveland. Ohio. Jan. 2. Tomorrow
afternoon representatives of more than
11.000 Christian young people will meet
In-lhe Epworth Memorial chun-h and
fr two weeks live as they believe the
Savior would. The Christian Kmieavor
society, the Kpworth Lagud and tlio
Baptist Young Peop'e's union.1 onmpri
ing 17S societies, have sent represent
atives to the meeting.
For the -purpose of making their
pledges permanent a gigantic meetiiiK
will bfc held at tha end of the two
weeks, at which time every member will
be asked to make a pledge to govern ac
tion, "word and thought by the question,
"What Would Jesus Dof
The workers in" the movement hope
to get every member of -the three as
sociations represented, ns well as ex
membere from other church societies,
to Join In making this moral text.
Wright Merciful to Vulet.
(United Press Lease WrM
Washington, Jan 2. fecretar of
War Wright today took up with the
president the case of the It West Point
cadets who were recently ! commended
for dismissal because of demerits aris
ing from deficiency In studies and of
laxity In discipline.-
. The secretary Is disposed to be leni
ent In several cases, especially where
the markings are only one are two
points, below the required figure. In
some "(Bases -the secretary considers the
markings against the cadets were given
for trivial causes and as a result sev
eral will beciven another chance.
I - 5 . .'
f r Of VJI C9
3
GRAPHIC TALE
OF ITALY'S
Monsignor r. O'Kelly, Who
Was Sent to the Front by
Church Gives an Account
of His Harrowing Expe
riences. (United Prei Leased Wire.l
Washington, Jan. 2. President
Roosevelt late this afternoon
sent the following message to
4 Patrick F. McGowsn of the
4- American-Italian general relief
committee. New York City:
"I earnestly wish success to
the American-Italian general re-
lief committee in its great mass
meeting at Madison Square
S Garden It is, of course, not
4 possible for me to attend in per-
4 son. I am doing everything that
w can be done to get aid to the
4 suffering and on account ef the
4) extreme urgency of . the case.
have sent two supply ships with
4r
$300,000 worth of food and pro
4 visions without watting for the
authority of congress, being con-
fldent that congress will approve
41 my action. I shall ask congress
v for; additional aid, and through-
outi the coming week will keep In
the closest touch with congress
S and, through "the state depart
4 ment, with Italy, so 4hat every
41 thing possible to be done by the
S Tntted States may be done.
Furthermore, I have cabled the
4 Italian ' government proffering
4 the servtces of any or all of the
battleship fleet if such can be
cf use In this crisis.
" '''(Slgned"''"'-- "
. "THfcODOBK ROOSEVELT."
-
By Monsignor P. O'Kelly.
' (Hearst News by Loagest Leased Wire.)
Reggio, Jan. 2. I arrived here last
evening after an arduous journey from
Palermo. Throughout it was a stren
uous struggle to push forward against
the stream of fleeing survivors.
I- found Palm! a scene of desolation,
most of the town destroyed and all the
houses uninhabitable, of Palml's 11,000
Inhabitants 700 bodies have already been
discovered." The constant spectacle that
makes me sad is the swarms of hunsrv
children crying vainly and seeking their
parents, xnan this there la nothing
more pathetic. I scarcely reached the
center of Palm I when I turned to and
helped the soldiers extricate two' chil
dren from a wrecked house.
My first Impression of the results
of the catastrophe is the extraordinary
apathy of the survivors. Literally they
are so daxed bv the tragedy that they
are not making any attempt to assist
the rescuers.
I pushed on from Palml. to Bagnara
and was able to direct the organiza
tion of the first relief train In Palml.
In Bagnara 300 dead remain under the
debris. The surviving population la
famishing. No succor has so far reached
Bagnara.
roar Days; Tet STo Jtsllsf.
Thursday night two sharp earth
quake shocks completed the wreck
caused by the first titanic shock. I
started on foot for Reggto, 13 miles
away, tramping with the troops. The
most distressing feature of the dis
aster in the appalling disorganization of
the rescue work throughout Calabria.
Friday night not a single morsel of
food hnd arrived to relieve the famish
ing, dewpite the fact that it had been
four days since the earthquake.
The spectacle In Bagnara horrified
me. It Ik the simple, shocking truth
that the stench from the piles of un
luiried dead unnerved me. Pestilence is
Inevitable unless sufficient help ar
rives immediately to bury these horrid
piles of bodies. The survivors In Bag
nsra attempted to seize food, but the
military repulsed litem.
After walking three miles from Bag
nara. I entered the village of Favaxlna.
There the same distressing incidents,
the same shocking .spectacle, was dupli
cated. At Favazina I found a boat to
lake me as far as Soylia. -
wins Prey oa the Dead.
After what I have already seen I
enn sincerely exclaim: "Merciful God,
what horrors!"
Hundreds or bodies lie in the wreck
rewn roan. line s pose revolts at
ihvioiiB effect of all these unburied
dead, which it is a pity the yawning
cracks In the eartn no not swallow.
I reac-lie.1 the hamlet of Canetello
where I found 100 stupefied peasants,
all that Ik left out of 3000 inhabitants.
The kin landed this morning and
promised M dispatch assistance, but
hone came When I arrived all Cane
tello was I terally destroyed. I dis
like to mention such a grisly ' thing,
but It i a ft t that T have seen pigs
eating the riead. There-Is nobody to
disturb their, horrid work. .
Praise fwr- SngUshmeB', Work.
Reaching the village of San Giovanni
T found KntHsh sallori from the war
ship Kxoiouih. whose captain merits
praise for having established the first
shore hospltwl . In alt the stricken re
gion. The Fn.otith's doctor. Burton,
was assisted bv Engineer Ranier in
attending the wounded. The hospital
was Improvised In railroad tiara Half
of San ;tovanni's population of "0uO
was killed Her. like Bagnara and
Palnat. the atmosphere reeks with; stag
gering odors. ' - -' . - .-
It seems an absurditv to attempt lo
describe conditions in Resnrio . Despite
the lapse of four days, literally nothing
has- been done to-.relleve the survivors.
Reggio seems-to have bee-n forgotten.
I ; saw hundreds of people frantically
searching for food in the half ruined
stores, risking their lives.
- yesterday soldiers were constrained
to fire on. a group of thieves, looting
a mansion. Otherwise the troops seem
to hsv'i received no orders touse their
rifles except to shoot dog end. hogs
found making' grim meals. This grisly
food the dogs and hogs find so abuiul-
Cauvd on Pare Xl-e V
PRICE FIVE , CENTS. '
llfllELtS.
1E OF
E
Never in History of PeniisyK
vanift- Courts Has Them
Been a More Pathetic
Story Than That of Mrs.
Erb.
(Ualted Preu LeaMd Wlre.t
Media, Pa.. Jan. 2. Never in the his
tory of a Pennsylvania court has there
been recited a tale of abuse of woman
by man such as was told on the wit
ness stand here today by Mrs.' Florence
Erb, widow of Captain J. Clayton Erb.
In her own defense for her husband's
murder.
It was a tale ef brutlahnesa that
has seldom been paralleled even In
fiction. And It was driven -home by
the very manner of the woman herself
as she sat, shrtnkingly responding; to
4Jtne interrogations of her counsel, w.
TJCloud Alexander, telling the things that
could be expected to Influence .the Jury.
wnue at tne sametime - skimming
lightly over those that might prejudice.
xet, sne-aia not spare nerseu.
'I threw, a cusoidor at mv husband's
head," she declared, "and a vase thrown
by tne shattered in his face, but he had
been beating me and I was in fear of
my own life."
Mrs. Erb scored heavily In the defense
of herself and half sister, Mrs. Belsel,
Indicted jointly for the murder of the
man who was In life the Intimate friend
and confidante of the members of the,
Quaker city Republican political ma
chine. The narrative carried a sense of
horror that can not have failed to im
press the Jury.
Bevoltlnr Cruelty.
She wss very Dale and her peculiar
style of beauty was well set off by the
mourning garb she wore. She'retated
to the jury circumstantial acts of many
assaults upon her, of beating with canes,
articles of furniture and bare fists and
culminated the entire story with an ac
count or a nignt or horror when, accord
ing to the witness, khe lay half fainting
on a couch while the man . who had made
her his wife threatened to torture her.
From, the verv Inatunt she went t.n R11I
Gables the captain subjected hereto in
dignities of the most brutal kind. -
He wanted to (ret rid of me," sha
aid, "and when I would not. consent to
a divorce he treated me as if J were not
human. When he drove me out of tha
house and I took refuge from his brutal..
Itres in the cupola he came and dragged
me down the stairs by the hair.
Makes Damaging- confession.
Mrs. Erb admitted that she had lived
with Captain Erb at Red Gables from
May, 1906. until November, 1907. as Ms
mistress, and that she had been unduly
friendly with him for six years. -
Bt- I stayed at Red - Gables and I
married Mr. Grb because I was ashamed
to leave him," she protested in a sobbing
voice.
"I could not face my mother, and ad
mit my disgrace. He had told the world
that I was his wife; ha told his sisters
and all his friends that he had married
me, and so I stood his cruelty and his
abuse." . - j ,
' But the most dramatic story of the
day was the recital of the events that
immediately followed the- shooting.
8eemingly unmoved dentally, although
her slight figure was occasionally shak
en by sobs, she had recited the earlv
events of the tragic night when she had
been beaten by Erb, had run away from
mm in terror arter she had been beaten.
In a frantic struggle had thrown the
electric hand light at his head and had
broken a vase filled with flowers In his
face. She told of his final strua-gla
with her sister while the revolver was
In his hand.
But when the lawyer asked" her about
the events that followed the. shooting
she seemingly lost all self-control.
"I saw his face the lhstant I came
out of the door." she sobbed, "and it was
not until that instant that I realized he
was hurt. It was awful, awful, and
Speech left her and she seemed about
to fall from the oaken bench on which
she was sitting. There was not a dry
eye In the courtroom, but the witness,
seeming to realise that every effort was
necess&ry, rallied her falling nerves,
pushed herself backward into the chair
and through eyes deeply inflamed with
emotion, stared at her lawyer, . her
white haired mother and her now lym-
pathetic weeping sister, cojolntly In the
shadow of the gallows with her. and
continued:
"But I did not then realize Just what
had happened. I did not know that he
was dead or dying. I Just ran. down
stairs to get help." .
-She totd of bringing the maid upstairs
with her. of calling In vain for a doctor
over the telephone. 0 seeing her sister
lying in such a faint that she thought
her oead. and of trying to-revive her.
Prosecutor McDade conducted the
cross-examination. Going Into the earlv
history of the witness, he demanded If
she had been operated upon by Pr.
(Continued on Pag' Five.)
tne Ca ml Mates fo r Speaker
.sliipvAuxiety QverPo
. litical Plums. ' ;
' (Special Wiipstek to The Jourmt V
Helena. Mont., Jan. 2. 1 hs .eleventh
legislative assembly will convene Mtt
day but the understanding now is thl.
the governor's message . will tint i,
transmitted; until Tuen.iay. n kn-snri
to contain many Important rmnnmrt.ii .
tions. but the matters exciting the tm.t
attention are the varl.ms ofri.ee m tt,
disposal -of , the-aniens, NuluTalij ti.
speakership claims first silent!..,,.
There are five candidate, with li
of Anaconda and M r-1 1, w v-l I of , ItMtt
parentis- in the lend.
Railroad (.""mmlsietoner Wlf
fi n ( J n i- -i h a -secretaryship
of 111; .-n.t. j,,.,
minor offices th , ,,,.i . . : . -s ,
thick sj bvses. Tli,- 1 ,,-f it.-,"
enme "befnre the In.
aMy be tli fu-imty
!5t w.
I
I 1
01 rnurwfl ihk-os.
illTilSOHS
com noKv
powers f th r:ilin
tiie .ct-Uth-n of 1