Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1880-12-24
VOL. LIV. NEW SERIf
A Girl in Mems Clothes.
From the Springfield Republican,

From the Springfield Repubiican)
Mrs. Leon A. Stanley, alias Mrs. Addi
l.. Stanley, alias Addio Walker, tn
young woman whose successful conn
dence operations and other exhibitions o
perverted smartncss made her SO notori
GUS in this vicinity nearly five years ago
has apparently turned up in Minneapolis
A native of West Warren, she was drag
ged mp in the early part of her life, ant
when II went into the Warren mills. Tive
years later she was taken into the family
of Columbus C. Orcutt, West Warrer
farmer Soon after the famous bank rob
berry at Northampton the state detective:
had her arrested for obtaining about 81,
300 IN money from Orcutt under false
pretenses. Orcutt seemed not to desire n
investigation of the matter. Addle was
in Jail here from March to May, 1876
Her trial lasted three or four days, hui
the sharpest questioning failed to unravel
the mystery of her transactions with Or
cutt, nor could he be induced totell much
about it. though on the stand a day and q
) half. The jury disagreed, and Addie
} finally got out of the jail, though the in
dictments are still pending against her.
She staid around in this section for some
time, mostly at Northampton, and began
a suit for so, 900 against Orcutt for SIAN
der, but did not push it. After while
] she went West and was heard from in
, Kansas, but since then nothing has been
known of her doIngs until her recent es-
capade in Minneapolis.
When Minneapolis first heard Of her,
last May, she was boarding with Mrs.
Watts under the name of Leon A. Bel
mont, and was engaged to be married to
her daughter. Mr.. Belmont" claimed
that he had been robbed of $500, and the
police were sent for to investigate the
matter. Miss Brackett, young woman
boarding in the same family, had also
lost some money. The detectives con-
cluded that Mr.. Belmont was an imposter
and that he had stolen Miss Brackett's S
money Their suspicious angered Mrs
Watts, and she stoutly defended her pros
pective son-in-law. Nothing moro was
heard of Belmont by Minneapolis people
at large until the latter part of October,
when the chief of police was sent for and
informed that the young man had con-
fessed to being woman. He or she was
then taken to jail to await trial for violat-
ing the city ordinance regarding the wear
ing in public of apparel not belonging to
her sex, and doctor was summoned and
pronounced the prisoner to be woman.
Mrs. Watts's story is that about year
and half ago, when living at Lead City,
d. T., young Belmont was introduced to
her. He was thin, pale and sick, and
claimed to have travelled from Kansas in
company with one Taylor, with whom he
was then living in tent. Belmont ap-
peared to have plenty of money, drove a
pair Of fast horses, and soon ingratiated
himself into the good graces of Mrs.
and Miss Watts, TO the latter of whom i'll
n little while he engaged himself. When
the Watts family returned to Minneapolis
Belmont went with them, and lived with
them until his arrest On the strength of
his engagement to Miss Watts he
''sponged" his board from her contiding
mother, and kept borrowing money from
Miss Bracket, to whom he afterward made
violent love, and this set the young wo-
men against each other. During all this
time he had no employment. except that
he studied medicine in doctor office for
a while Finally, yielding to the con-
tinued remarks of her friends concerning
Belmont's sex, Mrs. Watts set watch on
him, and discovered enough to convince
her that she had been duped. Charging
|
confronting him with her proofs, he con-
fessed that he was not man, but did not
try to avoid arrest
Belmont had told a very romantic story
of his life to Mrs. Watts, and when inter
viewed in jail by reporter repeated it
with embellishments. He said that he
was born in Northamptonshire, England,
and had always worn pants. Early in
life he fell and became humpbacked, and
was taken by his mother to Germany,
where he WAS cured by the baths. After
| spending several years and n good deal of
money in Germany, he returned with his
mother to their home in Northampton
shire, and lived there until 1874, when ha
WAS ID years old. His mother becoming
sick, they travelled again in France and
Italy, his mother dying at Florence. He
inherited some S12 900, which his nurse
took care of for him. Soon after his
mothers death, in company with his
nurse, be came to New York, where they
lived year or two, and then went to
Kansas, where the nurses brothers were
engaged III stock-raising. Here Belmont
learned to ride on horseback, and one day
being thrown from his horse was carried
INTO house unconscious, and his femi-
nine sex discovered. Then he donned
women's attire, for the first time III his
life, but ne was arrested after two weeks
for being a man III woman s clothes. The
sheriff's wife pronounced him genuine
woman, however, and he was released
but Immediately after donned hls old
garb. About two years ago, wishing to
go West, his nurse gave him $500, and
he set out IN company with man named
johnson, who afterward changed his
name to Taylor, for Lead City, where he
met Mrs. Watts. This is the substance
Of his story, which contained many side
adornIaents Of romantic nature. He
claimed to belong TO n very good family,
and tried to give the impression that he
was an illegitimate son Of August Bel
mont He confessed IN court TO being a
woman, and was fined so, but i'll default
of payment was committed to jail.
Minneapolis has been all agog with
wonder concerning the man-woman, and
various theories have been suggested as
to her true history and character No
clue was gained until man in that city
from Northampton expressed belief that
the adventures was none other than Mrs.
Stanley or Addie Walker. There seems
now to be no further doubt that Leon
Belmont and Addie Walker are one and
the same. A photograph Of Belmont,
taken few days before the arrest, and III
male attire, has been received here and
shown to numerous persons III tins city,
northampton and Warren who knew Ad-
die well. They have no hesitancy Ill de
claring, before they are told whom the
picture is supposed to represent, that 1t
Is that of the unconscionable young wo-
man who yictimIzed Farmer circuit
There are many other simllaritles which
strengthen the conviction that Belmont Is
really Walker, among them being his
love for horses and the description gwen
of HIM IN the Minneapolis papers winch
tallIes exactly with that recorded Of AddIe
Walker at the Springfield jail. Addlc
had fundness when here for male attire,
and III several places III this vicinity put
on men clothes for II prank, once spend
ing two or three weeks ut Palmer as n
young man and desperately flirting with
the girls all the while. What will be-
come of ''the Belmont is an interesting
question in Minneapolis. The last re-
port about her was that she was out If
Jail, still in male attire, and studying
medicine. 1t Is characteristic of Addle +
andncity that she should do so. But one
feature Of the case Is remarkable, and
lust like Addie." While one doctor
swears that she is woman, another IL
Just ms positive that she is n man. Be
tween the two Minneapolis is badly mixed
! about IT,
An OLD TALE
BY I,rSCF tFr