Strange Witch Woman Willed Thousands, Yet
IK,
1$
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By Gerald B. Burtnett
BEHIND an eight-foot high
stockade, solidly boarded and
topped with double strands of
barbed wire practically. Impos
sible to scale, a strange old
woman lived for years In the
center of the city of Loa An
geles. Only one door gave en
trance to the property, and that
was so closely fit that spying
eyes of curious neighbors could
not see a thing.
Only at night would the door
creak open. A padlock would
rasp and click shut, then she was
gone for several hours. Amateur
sleuths followed the mysterious
woman. They saw her begging
on downtown streets or pawing
over rubbish piles and garbage'
cans.
The lady next door was startled
one day when the old woman
approached to ask a favor.
Would she buy a bit of food for
a poor old soul once in a while?
Blip was 79 now and it was be
coming harder for her to get out.
Money was put over the fence In
a bucket and the food drawn
back over the fence, when the
neighbor agreed to the strange
compact.
More than a year later when
there had been no calls over the
fence for four days, the neighbor
called the police. When they broke
through the door, one of the
strangest cases ever to come Into
the public administrator's office
was revealed.
DEAD from undernourishment
and exposure, the body of tho
75-year-old recluse lay on a bed
made of newspapers on the front
porch of the little house within
the stockade. The door was
BE YOUNG AT 60
Help Your I Hands hv usini Dr. HtH
lowiw'i Vigor Treatment. ripma1
land medicine No. 1 for rwn
No. J for women Ynu have (run!
the rest; now try 'he beet- IV
DnriofB own private nnwrriptinn
IWt t Mltifl until ymi havf
tried VIUOH. rw youni at nn
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HOLLOWAV MEDICAL CO.
4304 Soulh Parkway Dopt. 4B-C Chicago, II,.
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thaioyvrf lormtw ywiraT ou will I mat at th r
ulta marW powibW with QLANNUX -a wmarkahl
preparation tnai up o incrtilimita wiiliww.1 iy phy-au-iana
in rtatortnt activuy to wlMini flan.ta and
timulalini nrrrt fynlrr Thmimntia ol satpahn! urn
fnt tn plain wrapt, poalpau! tor 12 cawh. a (.'. O I)
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WAITIN CO, Boa 4M, ttahMn D. SI. Jow. Mo.
Gallbladder
pi Irritations and Gall Stones
wnwror r itr.ri imomrirpiiiin-
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STOMACH
DISCOMFORT?
Vanr adalti who think tnv hir vm
dlffxtlv OJwordVr ictnallj- bvw WoilMK t
ItotiDd or Hlivitmrh Worrin Infect t'th
eMIdrr-n and adult, rntrrln tb ayttfta
on raw fKttnllf and frulla.
Man "In"" plnt lo Wurma, atirh aa
Naiiwa. Ilroaen Mlivp, Irrnttilar llnwfla.
Hell j ralna. Count Apatite and Weight,
Riwtal Itrhltm. t'l"t Mtomarh.
Javwi'i mint flavored Vwmri'fit t
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bottle aold.
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blockaded and officers smaahed a
window. They found the home to
be packed solid from wall to wall
and floor to celling with tin cans
and wads of paper.
When Investigators began to
undo the papers, they found in
the center of each, wrapped and
re-wrapped in sheets of waste
paper, coins pennies, old two-,
cent pieces, nickels dozens, hun
dreds, thousands' of them. As
they literally dug their way
through the house, they found
other money, shares of valuable
stocks and dividend coupons that
had never been cashed.
An old trunk came to light,
and it it was a faded photograph
Inscribed in a boyish hand. That
was the only clue to the pos
sibility of locating friends or
relatives of the dead woman.
A photographer's name and an
address in a little town In the
mid-West were barely decipher
able, and a telegram dispatched
to the chief of police there asking
if they knew a "Sidney Carleton,"
the name Inscribed on the photo,
bi ought back a response that he
was a resident.
ON THE settlement of the
estate it developed that this
man, a brother, was the only liv
ing relative. He had given the
picture to his sister 40 years be
fore. She had been In love with
a fellow in their home town, and
they were to be married when the
Intended groom had a change of
heart and ran away.
After grieving a few days the
girl disappeared, also, leaving a
note saying that her family would
Reno Preacher Says, "Real Divorce Occurs
Long Before Court Renders
By Brewster Adnms
For 29 Years Reno's Baptist
Minister
lirO you bellove in divorce?"
' J "Do you think I am
Justified In taking this step?"
Readers of this magazine have
been writing me these questions.
Folks have been asking me the
same queries for more than a
score of years. Scarcely a day
passes but I am anxiously so
licited, not only for an opinion,
but for somo moral approval and
support for this unfortunate un
dertaking aa well.
Obviously It is not an easy
question to answer. I think I can
sympathize with the ofllre seeker
who Is asked his opinion on the
Townseml Plan. I have also been
asked thai.
But the question conies with a
lot more sincerity than most peo
ple grant these divorce-seekers.
Il may seem otherwise to you. but
for me. so dally Importuned as to
the right or wrong of this thing.
I am Impressed not with Its flip
pancy, but rather Its seriousness.
MAHRIAGIC vows burn a deal
deeper Into human hearts
anil conscience thnn most news
stories would tell.
The papers will say: "Mrs.
Dunn, prominent socialite of Park
Avenue, waa divorced In Reno to
day. She left Immediately by
plane for New York, where It Is
understood that she will marry
JamM Mrown. Broadway play
boy" Bounds flitting and ephemeral,
does It not? Hut t happen to
know that while here she suf
fered such depression that her
physician advised her to seek a
clergyman.
Strange, too, one may not be
Quirks of the human mind bring
Investigation of a strange "witch"
of In this document, written on a
never see her again. They never
did and the brother bad given her
up as dead years before.
Eight thousand dollars worth
of bonds, 600 in uncollected in
terest coupons and $2,000 In small
change went to the brother.
Twenty-three years of begging on
the streets; of gathering bits
from rubbish piles and selling
them to Junk dealers; of near
starvation; went Into the odd sav
ings bank the old woman made
of her home.
Ben H. Brown, public adminis
trator of Loa Angeles County,
thinks the stockade case the
most unusual that has ever
come to his attention.
Brown's office takes charge of
the property of persons dying in
the county when no will has been
executed, and In the absence of
legal heirs entitled to be ap
pointed administrator.
Since the estates left in his
care consist of everything from
purely personal belongings to
real estate, stocks and bonds
and sometimes yachts his duties
combine those of a detective, at
torney, warehouseman, appraiser,
able to answer both these ques
tions with the same affirmation.
Plenty of folks, sometimes I
think even a majority, have said
Brewster Adams
to me: "I don't believe In dl
orce, but I can see no other way
out."
Indeed, I had a letter from a
Bishop In the south, who asked
me to. call on his sister, lie was
very honest, yet apparently much
perplexed and. good soul, his
sympathies overcame his convic
tions. That's a thing which hap
pens to a lot of us.
"I can't believe In divorce. But
I know what my sister has gone
through. What she seeks Is like a
release froqi hell. God knows. If
there is any Justification, she has
It." His wonts were so vivid I
have not forgotten them.
FRANKLY, 1 do not see how
one can answer these ques
tions for another. No man ran be
'conscience" for his brother. To
do that for ourselves is a pretty
big Job. Indeed. I think a lot of
the world's suffering Is caused by
a keen conscience which soate
some strange will cases Into the office of Ben H. Brown, publio administrator for Los Angeles County, Calif. Brown, snown left, directed
woman,. who lived In poverty yet left thousands. Right Is one of the odd wills that make his duties unusual. A large estate was disposed
matchbox, whloh Is displayed by one of Administrator Brown's assistants.
salesman and diplomat. He is
charged with caring for and sell
ing all the properties, if neces
sary, to satisfy creditors and
claimants.
AN AVERAGE of forty cases
per month Is handled by
Brown and hia deputies with an
equal number of cases where the
estates are $200 or less. Right
now he has BOO pieces of real
estate on hand and holds $4,000,
000 worth of ' material assets
which are going through the dis
tribution process.
Where wills are found, many
strange expressions of the
writer's personality are revealed.
Here la one odd case handled
recently:
A faKiily aervant, who worked
hard and saved a large sum of
money, promised at least 20 per
sons that they would receive all
her property. Competent attor
neys at different times prepared
seven different wills for her and
these she revised constantly. But,
she never executed one of the
written wills and all her money
went to a distant relative, whom
have, not for themselves, but for
their brethren.
Again, I have noticed that peo
ple have a perverse way of get
ting you to approve In sympathy
and then holding you responsible
for their mistakes. "I wouldn't
have done It If he hadn't told mo
It was the right thing to do." is
too frequent an alibi.
The Catholic Church can an
ewer it and I respect the con
sistency of Its position. It be
lieves that marrringe is a sacra
mentthat the vow is sealed by
the Church and therefore- cannot
be act aside save by the Church.
There can be only one .inclusion
to this premise and that la, that
the vows taken are Irrevocable.
That la final, authoritative.
But our position Is different
and more difficult. We believe
that love is the sacrament and
that this affection must seal, li is
this we recognlie and bless. We
do not give, but only solemnize
that which is given.
It is love that binda. What
shall we say when love is dead?
The cement which held Is washed
out and the walls crumhle. With
love, faith and trust seem to be
gone. This is death the only dy
ingspiritual death. Shall the
dead bury their dead?
THE divorce has already taken
place. Something beautiful
has passed from between them.
Something has gone out of the
heart and taken faith and trust
and love All the courts can do Is
to separate the unessential. What
ever was real has already been
annulled.
On the train going Kant I vis
ited with a woman who had called
to see me while in Reno. She
spoke this truth: "I came away
from Reno with my divorce. The
courts have separated us: but It
seems all mockery Just ta satis
fy a law. Ths divorce came years
she expressly desired to disin
herit! Another "black sheep" son re
ceived all of his mother's money
when she failed to have her will
properly witnessed.
Fate stepped into the life of a
baker, killing him in an automo
bile crash . the day before his
marriage. The $14,000 he had in
tended to leave his bride went to
distant relatives in Europe, from
whom he was estranged.
A LADY presented herself to
file claims for services
against an estate, and was ad
vised she would have to present
evidence of the liability for them.
In a few days she returned with
what she though was a written
acknowledgment by the deceased.
It proved to be a genuine will In
which she was left the entire
estate.
A woman In poor circum
stances borrowed money to make
a trip from New Jersey to Los
Angeles to Bee if a certain dead
man was her long lost husband.
Satisfied by her Identification she
went back, stating that she did
not mind the sacrifice she had to
Decision
ago. They only passed Judgment
on an empty shell."
So I do not want to say that I
believe In divorce no more than I
would say, "I believe in war." It
rather seems that it is something
that life has taken out of our
hands. It happens whether, we
would or no, courts or none.
I would rather say that I be
lieve in happy living and com
panionship and going down the
hill together. I think that is the
way Christ taught. He held the
Ideal before us as to blessed liv- j
Ing. He never spoke with excep
tions or In negatives. Two of the
three gospels give no reservation.
A Mosaic influence is apparent in
thn thlr1 Hi rnthitp hiM tin the
perfect standard of true happl- L
ness. He gave us the beautiful to
follow without legal loophole. Kor
our failure, we have His forgive
ness, but not His exceptions.
IF I were to put one test to di
vorce. It would be the need of
the soul for sincerity. Folks
don't have to live with each other.
They do have to live with them
selves. And in no narrow way.
we must save our souls.
Living in suspicion and without
trust, for appearance and without
honesty, in hypocrisy and without
genuineness, not only scparntes
but destroys. A front before the
world and an empty house within,
la soon occupied by the devils
which devastate False living Is a
consuming flame. I can under
stand how a man would wish to
salvage his soul when all else has
bumed to ashes
Good fortune to the lad who
can say:
"When evening comes I know
that she will be waiting at the
gate " A faith which Is much bet
ter than the fear that some day
"she may give him the gate."
Died of Starvation
make so long as she knew where
he was "for sure."
Claimants and heirs sometimes
make undue trouble for the pub
lic administrator. One will, illegi
bly written had a sentence that
might have read "valuable Jew
elry in safe" or "valuable Jewelry
in sofa." A small amount of Jew
elry was found In a safe, but the
heir insisted that a large sofa be
torn apart and into small pieces
Just to make sure nothing was
overlooked.
In another case, a friend of the
decedent Insisted that all the
property was promised to her and
a will was hidden in the resi
dence. It was necessary to almost
dismantle the house in the search.
During It, the claimant appeared
several times and stated that she
had visions. The wilt would be
found In the motor of a phono
graph; behind a section of wall
paper; or buried at various places
In the yard. No will was ever dis
covered despite her psychic aid.
WILLS are found In the most
unusual places and on the
most curious materials. Some of
the writing materials used have
KNOW - DON'T GUESS
DR. FRANK McCOY
Druglesa Phrttdao
McOOT BLDO., 1181 W. SIXTH ST.
LOS ANQBLES MUTUAL 1277
OAKLAND OLwDOoart 3836
SAN DIEOO FRanklln 7424
Arw you one who ia ailing and letting day after day slip byl Each day you wait
allowing your atrkneaa to develop, you ara making the job harder not only (or
your doctor, but or yourtelf. Don t wait until aomething T'hitt you with a bans "
Find oat what ! wrong yon can't afford to gueaa.
Tha following two-day lamination procedure la in omitted for tout
approval and comparison:
FIRST DAT OF EXAMINATION
Consultation History, Rjrmptomi,
Blood Pressure, Pulse Rate and
Respiratory Rate taken by the
diagnostician.
K Barium Meal and Fluoroscopic
ami nation of the structure and
filling tint of tha atomaeh.
3 Laboratory test:
(a) Complete Blood Count (red
fell, white cell and differen
tial count with hemoglobin
determination).
(b) Complete Chemical and Mi
croscopic I'rinalysis.
4 Hearing Test
Fluoroscopic examination of the
Intestinal tract. '
X-ray of the Colon when filled
by barium meal.
X-ray pictnrea of any part of the
bftdr as indicated hy abnormali
ties found during the fluoroscopic
eiamtnatton or aa indicated from
the history or ynipiotnt snrh as
chest, slnns, hed. spine, pelvic
region or any joint such as shoub
der, knee. hip. wrist or any bona
structure.
Ocular examination by an optnnv'
etril with explanation and recom
mendations. r'xaminatlon of month, teeth and
gums with Interpretation of den
tal X-rays and recommendations.
l.aKorati'rx Tett ; ot of the f
Kw int iet are tiia.ie as requested
by the examining doctors. .tri-r.d
ing upon hitory and symptoms
or phtiral findings, acme of which
Tre routine
CONCLUSION
Written dietetic Instructions .re tvade for you following rr consultation
The examination ran usually be completed Is two davs unl. i--required
bca.e of pathological delay. 7 1 " lon" time Is
THE TOTAL COST OF THE EXAMINATION IS US
Monthly payment ,ar D ,rrag.-d for any service
Consultations without char or obligation
been window shades, backs of cir
cular letters, handbills, bible fly
leaves and a scrap of paper sewed
into a blanket The rung of a step
ladder and the side of an ordinary
match box have been utilized for
last wills and testaments.
A PHYSICIAN, seized by a
heart attack and recogniz
ing the short period he had left,
wrote his in Spanish on a pre
scription blank. Notebooks, call
ing cards and memo books have
been called into play and one will
was written in shorthand.
A big warehouse that is care
fully guarded protects the fur
" nishings and. other personal be
longings of the estates in Brown's
care.
One recent estate had a large
California desert turtle as a
"movable asset." He was carted
off to the warehouse and the
guard swears that among several
hundred odd sofas that are on
hand, the turtle pl.-.ked out the
one under which he used to sleep
at home and went right to It.
During the winter months he dis
appeared entirely and It is as
sumed that he is hibernating in
his favorite domicile.
LONG BEA0H TeL 6177S
SAN BERNARDINO TL 20268
Electrocardfographia examination
of the heart.
fl. Full Set Dental X raya.
T. Temperature Readings.
S. Flnnrosrople observations of tha
emptying time of the stomach.
. Fluoroscopic examination of the
eheat with particular reference to
the heart and lungs.
10. Complete physical examination in
eluding the chest, heart and lungs
andomen, pelvic organs, extremi
ties and spinal column.
11. Examination of the ears nose and
" iransiimmina
tton of the acces.ory naoal ainiue.
SECOND DAT OF EXAMINATION
7. Basal M-taholie te.t to determln
glandular function.
(1 Schillings Hemogram.
(2) Blood Sedimentation Time.
(3 tUmd rhml,,rT D'termtoa-
(4) Icterus Indeg.
(5) Wasaerman Reaction.
() Kidney Function Test.
(7) Sputum Kxaminatfon
(8) Gaatric Analyaia.
(9) Fecal Analysis.
(10) Smear from flnmi.
(11) Examination of any exudates.
!lr ?J' Vmt "amlnatfona of
the kidney or gall bladder, using
a special dyea when indicated.
9. Temperature Readings
10. Summation and diaenosU with
explanation of th- nndmgi to you
oy the diagnostician.
11. Consultation with advice as to
diet and treatment.
, PAGE F0UR-B