The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1882-05-30
FEMALE DEPRAVITY.
A White Woman and her Black
ParamOur Sent to Jail
for Six Months.

negro man, named Tom Roberts. and
white woman, named Annie Lawson w1o
resided In Sedalia as man and wife some
lew months ago, but removed from here TO
Lexington, came 10 grief In that city. last
week, having been arrested In log cabin,
between Wellington and Waterloo, in La
fayette county When taken i'm custody
they We're in bed, but were taken to Lex
ton and placed in Jail. The next morn
ing
THEY PLEADED GUILTY
to a mi>demeanor, and were both sent To
the county jail for six months. An Intelli-
gencer reporter interviewed each Of them,
and found the case rather a bad one. The
woman is not 50 depraved looking as the
above statement would suggest. With a
good cleaning up and Il nice dress ON. She
would not be bad-looking woman. Her
statement was secured by the applicaticH<
Ct numerous questions, and is as follows:
My name IS Annie Lawson, and | will
oe twenty. five years old the 22nd of nexi
December; have been living with Tom
Roberts SIX months; my father and
my s,ep-mother are living in
Miller county father owns two large
farms, and is a squire; had three Sis
tiers and we were all driven from home by
our step-mOther father never interfered
In our behalf one sister is married, and
living in GascOnade county, one is dead,
and one Is living with grandmother:
IHAvE GONE HOME FOUR TINES,
but my stepmOther would not let me live
at home; / was living at Jefferson Civ
when | got acquainted with Tom; he was
serving a term in the penitentiary, and his
term being nearly out, he was 'trustv
his term expired while l was in Jefferson
City, and as he did not leave the county
he was sent back to the pen, and made 10
serve out his full term. About five or sig
months after his term was ont we COM
menced living together at Springfield,
Mo-; | did not think it was exactly right
To live with a negro man, but / could pos
do any better; We lived in Springfield
about a week, and
IN SEDALIA ABOUT TWO WEEKS.
and then came to Lexington; we lived in
the willows near town Just before Christ
mas We left there about shutdown one
evening, and the officers came there that
night; while i lived at Springfield |
worked at hotel had gone to the bad
before had commenced living with Tom:
for awhile / staid at Sue Whites, who is
married TO and living with a negro man
in Springfield"
Tom Roberts said 81 am TWENTY-FIVE
years old i have never been in the pen
itentiary; got acquainted with Annie Law
son IN Springfield: was married to her a .
year ago last September, by Justice Of J
the peace in Springfield have forgotten his
name;
NEVER WAS IN JEFFERSON CITY
more than two hours IN my life; lived in
Springfield six months after We were mar
ried; then came to Appleton City awhile;
then to Sedalia one month, then to Leav-
enwerth about three months, and then TO
Waterloo"
The above is a short outline of his
statement, given with mnch hesitation,
after being thoroughly piled with ques-
lions. He stuck to the statement till he
found, that the woman had been inter-
viewed when he acknowledged that all his
story was false, and gave statement veri-
living nearly every statement the woman
had made. He said he was sent to the
pen from Jackson county for being
FOUND WITH SOME STOLEN GOODS
in his possession. He says his name IS
Tom Roberts, but went by the name OF his
old master (Purvis) while in the pen; SAYS
he can read and write, but did not know it
was contrary TO law for a white woman
and black man to cohabit. He is a
teavy 1t, dark brown fellow, about FIVE
feet eight or nine inches high, with heavy
chops, thick lips, low forehead, and looks
as though he would not long hesitate at
any piece of meanness.