Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-09-08
A NAN WITH MANY WIVES.


Scoundrel- Several Women Married
ling Transactions.
For more than year past, at tolerably
regular intervals, there have appeared in
the daily papers dispatches from various
cities between Boston and Richmond, and
rs FAR west as Missouri or Kansas, giving
particulars of the achievements of profess
sional bigamist and swindler. who operated
under the names of Marvin, Morton, Adams
and other fictitious appelations. His meth
DDS in almost all his adventures have been
nearly alike, and the descriptions of the
man have SO closely tailed that rs fast as
the announcements of his achievements
were made his previous victims recognized
hirl rs being still on his travels. This reckless
individual was arrested yesterday at Lynn,
Mass, through the efforts of Pinkerton's
detectives, and is now in Jail awaiting ex-
tradition to Virginia, where he is charged
with forgery, bigamy and obtaining money
under false pretenses. Captain 80 Bob"
Pinkerton, who is in charge OF the New
York office, and has directed :he detective
movements against the swindler, says the
man who is widely known rs Marvin is n
most remarkable fellow. He is about fifty
seven years Of age, about five feet nine
inches in height and weighs about 80
pounds. His head, which is well formed, is
covered with growth of white hair, and
rather thin ut the crown, and he wears a
white mustache and long side whiskers.
His complexion is florid, his eyes are of a
dark blueish gray, and he has deep-set
lines in hi checks. He wears Prince Al
bert coat, kept closely buttoned, always wears
black or blue-black clothing, and has dis
tinSue, semi military air. Added TO this he
is what is sometimes called "a beautiful
talker,o and has unbounded nerve and en-
prrss.ment. Some eight or nine wives have
already been traced to his transitory posses
sion, with no one Of whom he has ever lived
longer than week, while his forged or
fraudulent commercial notes are too nu-
nerous to be catalogued. He has been
hunted down mainly through his Virginian
escapade.
In May last the Hartford Comm Church
man contained an advertisement, from
which it appeared that one Thomas A. Mar
vim was in need OF a goyerness, he being
widower, for his eight-year- daughter.
Among others who replied to the advertise
ment was Miss Turpin. of Richmond, Va,
a lady OF good family, but in moderate cir
cumstances, then living with her mother.
Miss Turpin was about twenty years old.
She received reply from Marvin, dated at
New Haven, in which he said he was very
favorably impressed with her written appli-
cation, and would like to see her. but he
wished TO know her terms. Again she wrote,
giving her terms. to which he responded,
saying the terms were rather high, and ask
ing her for references. She answered, Civ
ing him the name of Judge and minister
in Richmond, and asked him for his refer
ences. In return he gave her the names of
Judge Cowan, of Germantown, Pa; w. \.
Taylor, OF Camden, y. j., and the Rev.
John Danforth, of Media, Pa. Miss Tur-
pin wrote to these parties and receiyedfrom
them most eulogistic Endorsements OF Mr..
Marvin, rs a gentleman Of wealth, culture
and responsibility. In a few days Miss Tur-
pin received note saying Mr.. Marvin was
about going to Richmond to visit her. He
called on her accordingly, appeared to be
pleased, and concluded an engagement with
her as q governess. Then he left, saying he
had some business to attend to In New
York, and saying he would be back in
week to take Miss Turpin to New Haven.
The letter OF recon mendation frem w. A.
Taylor was signed by Mrs. Taylor, who said
she had opened her husbands letter be-
cause he was absent from home, and
that she could indorse Mr.. Marvin. A
few days after Marvin left Richmond
Miss Turpin received second letter
from Mrs. Taylor, in which she said
Mr.. Marvin had just called on her, and that
he was highly pleased, and Mrs. Taylor
also said she could not avoid committing an
objectionable breach OF confidence by in
forming her that Mr.. Marvin had told her
that Miss Turpin was his ideal, and that he
proposed to seek her as his wife. Mrs.
Taylor closed her letter by again recon-
mending Marvin as a paragon of conjugal
goodness to his first wife, and saying that
Miss Turpin would do well in accepting
him should he offer his hand and fort
une to her. Two or three days later Mar
vim turned up in Richmond and did actually
propose marriage. Miss Turpin accepted
his offer, but told him very frankly that she
could not yet love him, but could fulfill her
duties faithfully as wife. On July 20 they
were married, and Marvin gave her an in
strument in writing by which he settled on
her a marriage gift Of $4,000. Not long
after the wedding Marvin went to A. NJ.
Brownell, Miss Turpin's brother-in law,
and got him to go to a bank in Richmond
and identify him as the holder OF the drafts
drawn by the First National Bank OF Madi-
son, Wis, on the First National Bank Of
Chicago. The drafts were in favor OF
Baird & Bradley, but were Endorsed payable
to Marvin, for S7G5. He received for them
$3.50 in cash and the balance I'm two smaller
drafts on the Merchants National Bank Of
New York. He next borrowed 800 from
the clergyman who had married him to Miss
Turpin, when he left Richmond with his
bride for bridal tour. A few days after
he left his wife's relatives found out by the
return of the drafts that they were worth
less, and beginning to suspect Marvin, they
wrote to ex-Judge Shipman, in this city,
who put the case in Pinkerton's
hands. All Of these letters of rec
ommendation, it is almost needless
to say, were written by Marvin
himself. or at his instance. There were no
such people living in those places as those
whom he named as references After Miss