The Portland daily press., 1879-03-19
BREACH OF PROMISE.
Mrs. divers suit Against simon Cam


wAsurNcroN March 10 in the Oliver Cameron
sult for breach of omise yesterday Mr.. Dameiele
opened for the plaintiff and gave "a brlef statement
of the case Mrs. Oliver was then called to the
stand
General Butler asked permission to question the
witness before she gave any testimony, as to her
position in life and the relation she sustained 10
man o whom she was married. II she was mar-
ried and the man was still living, and there had
been no divorce between them, them there was an
end to this case. objection made and the court
ruled that the question was not now proper.
Mrs. Oliver then gave her testimony. She became
acquainted with ex-senator Cameron at the Con-
presslonal Hotel in Washington in 1874. 1t was In
the spring OF 1875 in New Orleans that Cameron told
her she should be hi future wife. When che came
here in 1875, Cameron gave her letter to the
Secretary of the Treasury. 1t was in 1878 that
Cameron proposed marriage to her, and she ac-
copied him. Quite a correspondence passed between
them. She had Of the letters she had received
but most of them had been returned to Cameron at
his request. Three letters here submitted by
her One was the letter to Secretary Bristow.
recommending her for an appointment 10 position
in his department. The second stated that she
should be conducted to better place than where
she was. where relatives would look after and pro-
tect her. and closing with the sentence: "Will you
be my wife?" The tn I'd read as follows:
My Dear Mrs. Oliver. send you letter to Mr.
Bristow. in accordance with your jequesc. l Would
be glad to hear that you agree lin me 10 De mine
hope so You had better see that this letter
reaches he Secretarys own hands"
| Witness (Iesuming) said that she had urged MIR
Cameron frequently to comply with his request. He
said that relative of his miss Davis, at No. 1876
| street, Washl gton,) objected, and he could not.
| She went to zee Miss Davis and try and remove the
| oI;o ND uuhou che hoa Mr. Gop,
sent for her to come the of the committee
| foreign relations. He said, "You went that
woman miss Davis. She is no relative OF mine,
but when was Secretary of War she had control of
my papers, involving considerable amount of mon
ey and have to be careful of my treatment of her..
Witness first saw Cameron in 1874 the year she k,e-
came acquainted with him. When she lett here she
| went back to New Orleans; in 1875 she met him in
that city, he had written to her that he was coming
| with party on senatorial tour to Vera Cruz; she
| met him at the st. Cloud Hotel and he introduced
her to his son-in-aw, Wayne McVeagh; he then told
her that she ust leave the person she was with and
come to Washington to be his wife, and he gave her
| the money to come with. They had repeated inter-
| views from that time; Mr.. Cameron did not come
to the house where she lived, she said the people
there did not like it; he would come from Harrisburg
about once every two weeks until Congress met, and
| then she would see him at the committee rooms
The letter he gave her to Secretary Brsow got her
| into the department, where she renamed from
october, 1875, to August 1876 then she was hort
l while in the Interior Department There Was nc
correspondence between Them while Mr.. Cameron
was attending at the Senate. He required that all
his letters should be returned, and he wrote ONE
side of page, and she would send the letter back
with the answer upon the other. She is now out Of
employment and very poor. She had tried to obtain
employment but failed little time before Congress
adjourned in 1876.
Gen. Butler-lf this is to show that the contrac,
was broken, we admit it. We never promised tt
marry The woman, never intended to marry her, and
never will.
Witness (resumng) Mr.. Cameron did not always
| treat her the same during the engagement. In thu
beginning he was very kind and thoughtful but af
ter he found her insisting upon falflment of the
contract he was very unpleasant and harsh in his
treatment; there were improper privileges taker
with her by Mr. Cameron during the engagement.
| Butler objected to this testimony and after argu
ment Judge Carter adjourned the court to consider
his decision.
Today Judge Carter decided to admit the testi
mony.
Plaintiff testified that relying upon the promise
Cameron to marry her she permitted him to enjoy
improper privileges with her. Cameron sent fol
| witness to GONE to his apartments at the Oongres
sional Hotel. When she entered be locked the dool
and took the key out. He had champagne in thu
l room and she took little of it. She asked hin u
go home with her and he said he would send her in
carriage. She sat upon the sofa and requested hin
| to open the door He refused. Cameron insisted
upon her staying kept the door locked and held her
| She remained in the room all night. Cameron sale
| that she was to marry him and insisted upon hel
Il pnplu wifi Ipou
it and in the sight of God it would be no crime. Sht
did comply with the request. She had given severa
interviews to the press. Reporters came to see he
and made up what they printed. The article pub
shed in the Post Jan %, 1878, was a slanderou
| piece in reference to her numerous husbands. L
| was libel. She then told her history as she haG
related it to Cameron. When young friend named
Mrs. Oliver placed her at school. This womant
son, Thomas NJ. Oliver, kept her in private room a
| school and promised to marry her. She lived will
| him about ten years and had children by him
She did not know he had wife living at that time
| He told her she was dead. Cameron wanted her t
live with him. She thought she would ike Came
ron, he was so kind and gentle. She first met hin
| in 1874 and told him about the marriage wit
Oliver. I asked him if it was lega
He said if she had not Oliver since the war the
ceremony which was not performed by an authorized
person amounted to nothing. After she had toll
bin of her past life he agreed to make her his wife
That was as true as anything she had sworn to, Tb
| marriage contract was not even sealed with kiss
In answer to question as to her age, witness sale
she would not like to attempt to tell it. She coul
not say accurately but supposed she was not muc
under 81.
Gen. Butler-Nor either. will agree with yo
J there perfectly. Will you swear that you are moi
30?
Witness would not swear to that Her husband
was older than herself but she did not know hoy
much.
photograph was here shown her.
Witne,s-Tbat is not him.
Gen B.Cal MIR. Oliver, perhaps you may recog
nize him. (Sensation in the court.)
Mr. Oliver entered. He is stoutly built mar
about 80, with light moustache, partly bald hi
hair being gray.
, Witness identified him though she had not seen
him for several years. She did not know whethe
he was living or dead. She had written to him a
different points but got no response. After Olive
| deserted her he was married to third woman M
merous letters were identified by witness and sever
| al read, but nothing further elected,