The Idaho world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1864-1918, 1871-08-10

HER EARLY LIFE IN NEW oRLEANs-PARTICULARs OF
tsA HER DIVORCE FROM STONE.


The New Orleans Times has the following
article concerning Mrs. Fairs first divorce
case. It is very interesting in the light of re.
cent events:
Since the hanging of this condemned woman
will necessarily be postponed until after the
meeting of the Supreme Court in California
her chances of escaping the gallows may be re.
garded as having immeasurably improved. By
the time specified much OF the existing excite.
ment will have died out, and the hand of mercy
will find less resistance in assisting her. Now,
however great public interest centres in every
thing connected with her strange and varied
career. We have exhumed from the musty
records of the Courts of this parish the history
of the first divorce suit in which the fair Laura
made her appearance before the public. AL.
though sixteen years have passed, we doubt
not there are many li7ing who remember the
suit before Judge j. B. Cotton, of the Sixth
District Court, in the year 1855. 1t was en-
titled Laura Ann Hunt against VIM. III.
Stone, her husband" the plaintiff being the
identical Laura who to day rests under sem
tence of death. The grounds upon which Mrs.
Stone sought to break the slken fetters appear
from the petition to have been: "That few
iuUHLus dItcE Hct W w lllIdui CtOuc
he began series of studied vexations and
provocations towards her, which continued
down to the period of her departure from the
matrimonial domicile that shortly after her
marriage she was prostrated with weakness,
her health became impaired, and her bodily
condition required great care, attention and
delcacy of treatment but that her husband.
instead of extending toward her the attention
,xhta afa 70 huo
band, he was bound to do, and instead of treat
ing her with the forbearance and delicacy
which her condition demanded, conducted him
self toward her with cruelty, excesses and
outrage; that he inflicted upon her personal
violence, and that he frequently threatened to
take her life; that under the morbid influence
of an unfounded jealousy, he debarred her
from the companionshp of those friends with
whom she had associated with previous to her
marriage, and whose society constituted one
of the chief pleasures of her life; and that in
other respects his deneanor. conduct and bear
ing were such as to render their union intoler-
able to her.
THAT consequently, on the 18th of Noyem-
Der. lc54. she was forced to leave the matri-
monal domicile, and take refuge with her
mother in the clearinghouse of Mrs. Harm
stead. on Royal street That not content with
bis cruel and unmanly conduct, he publicly de-
famed her character and fair name after their
marriage. That he poisoned the minds OF the
community with slanderous, wicked and mali
cious falsehoods touching her character"
Mrs. Stone goes on to say, that being young
and cheerful in disposition, she found natural
and innocent pleasure in mingling in society,
but that even this pleasure, through his sullen
jealousy, she was permitted to enjoy but spar
ingly. That the slightest attentions, the SIM
plest circumstances, trifes light as air. were
by his jaundiced mind represented as proofs
OF her criminality, and tortured into guilt.
That by reason of these wicked representa-
tons her reputation was severely injured, and
her name brought into disgrace and scandal"
Wherefore she prayed for divorce, etc.
The husband filed an answer, in which he
denied all the allegations made by Lau-
ra, averring that he had always conducted
himself toward her in kind and affectionate
manner, and treated her at all times with that
forbearance and respect which he owed to her
as man and husband. He repels Indignantly
the charge that he inflicted upon her persoal
which charge he considers public
defamation of his character, in view of which
he becomes plaintiff in reconvention, and asks
that he may be divorced from her.
A supplemental answer filed by him reveals
the fact that few days before she quit the
domicile an agreement for separa-
ton was entered into by them, in which it was
that she was to go to Texas, and
in consideration of the same was to receive
5 900 in cash, and draft for 81 500, payable
March 4th, 1855. That the understood desigR
and intention of said agreement was to virttl-
ally dissolve the bonds of matrimony by CON-
mon consent, and thus avoid the publicity and
scandal of O suit i'm Court. In view of the
fact that Laura failed to stick to her agree
ment, preterring rather to enter suit tor d.
vorce, he asks that she may be compelled to
return the $4,000.
The case was fled January 18th, 1866, and
was tried on the I'd of July Of the same year.
The testimony was vouminous, and among the
we find the names of her sister and
several relations, including her mother, Mrs.
Hunt who is now with her daughter in Cali
fornia. The testimony of John II. Roberts,
Mr.. Stones partner, shows that Mrs Fair con-
suited him on the unhappy state in which she
lived. Roberts spoke to Stone about it, and
Stone told him that he chose to absent himself
from home, and that he had not the affection
for his wife that he once had. He assigned as
4 reason that o gentleman by the name of
Grayson had been showing her too much at
tention. Stone told him that his attention was
first called to the imprudence Of his wife at
Ocean Springs by several of his friends. He
demonstrated with her, us her conduct had at
tracted the attention OF others. Mrs. Stone
told him that the attentions Of Grayson were
nothing more than those of gentleman. Stone
asked her to repel his attentions, which she re-
fused to do. She complained to Roberts that