Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1883-09-28
ANOTHER FEMALElDIOT
A Divorce Case of Unusual Inter.
est.
WASHINGTON BLUE BIZ
Charges His Wife With Undue Intimacy
With Her Business Manager"-Tte
Lady Handsome and
Charming.

yesterday. Vincent vs.. Vincent is the Gtlt
of the case. Charles Vincent the husband
is son of one of the IF. F. "" his family
having been couuted among the leader:
OF society in Norfolk in years agone. Mrs
| Vincent is one OF the handsomest OF thu
many beautiful women of Washington
Tall, we'll formed and developed, with 1
face of remarkable beauty and an indie
scribable grace of manner, she has beer
considered woman OF many charms. Ado
10 this the fact that she is immensely
wealthy in her own right, and it will moi
be wondered that Vincent was warmly con
| graduated when he married her in lS77, in
aristocratic old George town, where they
both lived. She was the daughter OF Frank
Steele, the founder Of the city of st. Paul
| and man of great wealth and high stan
ding. one of her sisters is the wife oi
Admiral Barney, and another of them
married the famous commander OF the
| Constitution, Tom Morris,
| Whose Name VIII Live
| in the records of the country while the
| history of the greatest naval engagement OF
| its greatest war is tod or read.
The case was originally brought by Mrs.
Vincent on charge Of drunkenness, cruelty
| and general worthlessness OF the husband.
| She charged that he bad treated her cruelty,
| had come to the nuptial couch drunk, that
| his general habits were OF dissipated
| character, and that he had squandered
thousands and thousands of dollars of her
money, and was in fair way, il he con.
| tinued in charge of her business, 10 reduce
| her TO absolute want, and their children to
| beggary. On the other hand he charges her
WIN worse than this. Two years ago last
spring they went TO Minnesota where she
owns q hotel, an opera house and much
other valuable property. and prepared to
spend the summer at White Bear Lake,
near Minneapolis, where her property is
mostly located. They were to live at the
hotel there, she amusing herself with doing
nothing, as the ladies do at the summer
resorts, he to give attention to her business
affairs in Minneapolis and St, Paul, though
his was not expected TO require him to de.
vote much Of his lime to the work.
ldlentss begets wickedneSs, and the
charges OF that summers dongs are pain.
ful and pointed. She charges that he drank
heavily, coming to her room nightly in a
state of intoIication and at unseemly
hours, disgracing her and their children.
He Charges Worse Things
against her. While there they formed the
acquaintance OF one William Z. Kirk, Who
according 10 the tales that are told OF him,
bad had a varied experience as runner
for gambling houses and even for worse
places. His true character, il this was his
character, was not then known TO them
He is cot, ii is said, an attractive person,
but rather the reverse, small and insigniti.
cant in appearance, afflicted with a Catarrh-
al trouble, which causes deafness 1t is
difficult to understand how a beautiful
woman OF wealth, admired by everybody,
could have had any such regard for him as
is charged.
From the evidence taken in the ease it
appears that the relations Of Mrs. Vincent
and Kirk were a. that time such as 10 have
aroused suspicion in his mind il the has.
band had known the facts. But he did not,
and he unfortunately engaged the very
man to bring through from Minnesota to
Washington a fine team yalned at three
thousand dollars. He brought the horses
through with him, and after that he was
often at VinCent's home-so often that at
last the husband grew suspicious ald order
ed him never TO come again. There was
great trouble in the Vincent family. Not
many weeks after, Mr.. Vincent, coming
in Unexpectedly, found Kirk there under
pleasing, as shown by the extracts from
he evidence given below. The result was,
in brief that Kirk
Jumped Hastily Through n window,
and, making soRe remarkably good time
in the area at the rear of t. house, es-
capped, closely pursued by the husband,
through the basement door. Housekeep-
irg did not last IoEg with the unhappy
family after that.
Ihey wept to Wizards 10 board, and
after a good deal OF trouble she left him,
going to. Sew York. About the same time
Kirk disappeared, and she admitted on
crossexaniination that lac went on the
same train to New York, and put up Mt the
sane hotel. the Hoffman House. BY and
by she went TO Long Branch, and so did
Mr.. Kirk. 1t WAS rather too public a
place there, and directly they went
10 Spring Lake Beach, few miles
from Long Branch. There Kirk
figured as her business agent though
she has a business agent OF standing aud
reputation in Minnesota, where her prop.
eriv is located. They lived, it is said. at
the same hotel while there. In the fall
they went 10 Philadelphia. Meantime she
bad brought suit for divorce, engaging Jeti.
Chsndler as her attorney. While at Phil.
adelphia il is in evidence that they not
ONLY lived at the same boarding house, bat
that the rooms which they occupied com
municated by q doorway: Last spring they
went again 10 Spring Lake Beach, aud leas.
irg cottage here proceeded to take posses
sion of it,
The family consisted OF Mrs. Vincent,
her three Children for she has again be.
come a mother since leaving here nCIse,
a mbermaid, a coachman and
The "Business Manager"
He lived at the same houte, engaged the
servants and quarreled with them, attend.
ed TO the sffairs OF the establish ana
made himself generally useful. he was
spoken Of by the servants OF the neighbors
as the butler" by their own servants ss
the boss" srd the "Madame's business
manager" by the telegraph messenger
boy who called with her dispatches as her
husband " and by the neighbOrs as that
man Kirk" Her S3,0J0 team drove her
out daily in a handsome squipsge, but the
fashionable people looked askance as she
passed, and there were few, IL any. callers
al the pretty cottage in retired corner ol
the town where they lived. There were
scrndalous stories about the alleged disooy.
cries OF a servant in the household service,
but the evidence in the case il bad enough.
ard these were not evidence. Recently the
Court getting wind OF these proceedings,
ON m otiou of the husbands attorney. Or
dered The children here, and the 'hsppy
household' at Spring Lake Beach was
broken up. She is at the Ebbitt House
with her children. He, probably remem'
beripg that Vincent is in Washington, has
net been seen here.
Mr.. VIM. f. Earle, Vincent's attorney, iu
bis argument to-day made some quotations
frCn the testimony taken in the case, as
follows:
in the family:
Q-Do you remember at any rimeof Ar::
Vincent ordering 3 man by the name OF
Kirk away from tbsre7 A! know OF
Mr. Vincent ordering him out OF the honse.
He Didn't Stay Away.
O.-Whers about in the touse was Kirk
st Ihe time? AIN the kitchen.
O.-Did be ever come back there again!
A.-Yes, he came back the next 10 orning
lie came and got his breakfast erSy morn
irg.
Q-would be come 10 the trtchsn or ND
stairs in the house? A.-Ia the basement
n