St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-11-08
AcoUNrER FELT MARRIAGE.
Raising an Extraordinary Question ia IN e
Pennsylvania Matrimonial Latrs.
rPhilsdelphia Times.

Proceedings will be entered In the COM
mon pleas court tomorrow on behalf Of Mrs.
Jane Hall, Of New York, but now residing at
the White Bear hotel, on 4th st. that will
raise an extraordinary question OF marriage
law. Mrs. Halls maiden name was Powell
Ten years ago she was poor seamstress in
this city. In 1876, while attending the In
ternational Exhibition, she was introduced to
Aaron r. Hall who owned some property in
this city and large tract of land in Colorado
of little immediate but great prospective val
ne. Hall became devoted TO Miss Powell,
who is still uncommonly beautiful. He pro-
posed matrimony after brief courtship; he
was accepted and they were married. The
marriage was at Halls request, conducted
secretly at the house of gentleman, whom
he represented to be clergyman and a
friend OF his.
Hall aud his wife lived for time at the
Continental hotel aud afterwards at a board
lug house onSEighth street, below Walnut
Their life after the first few months was not
happy one. He apparently had grown tired
OF her aud treated her cruelty. She wss in
trodueed 10 some of the other boarders IN
the house on Eighth. street rs Mrs. Hall, but
/ her husband scarcely ever went out with her
and never presented her 10 any Of his rela-
lives OF immediate friends. In January iSTS
he left for Colorado. for the purpose, as be
said, Of attending 20 pressing business mat
tiers there. His wife heard nothing about
him from that time until last August when
she learned that in the preceding May he had
been thrown from 4 horse near Colorado
springs aud killed, She had in the mean
time moved 10 New York and opened
dress-maling establishment at Twenty-third
street and Sixt avenue. She at once came
back to this city for the purpose OF protect
ing her dover interest in her late husbands
property. She then learned that her husband
had, SO far as known, died intestaIe and that
claims 10 bis property in this state as well as
TO that in Colorado, that had become of con-
siderable value, had been put in by relatives.
Her claim ms wife surprised them. An in
vestigation was set on foot and the discovery
made that the marriage had been a pretend
Cd one and Halls friend counterfeit clergy
man. The 'friendr had himself been I'm
posed on and led to believe that the whole
matter was jest The fact, however, that
the marriage was mockery was proved be-
yond question.
Attorney-at-lsw John V. Ripperger, into
whose hands the matter was put, contends,
however, that though Hall was guilty Of
treaehery, he defeated his own purposes, and
the marriage is, under the laws Of Pennsyl-
vania, valid one. Marriage here, he holds
is civil contract and Hall by saying that
he took Miss Powell to wife, made such a con-
tract His introducing her afterwards as his
wife is admissible, under the laws of this
state, as corrrborative evidence Of the exist
ence OF the covenant. The suit to be en-
tered 10 morrow win be one to recover Mrs.
Halls dover interest in the late Aaron R.
Halls property, md win rest on the lawyers
Interpretation of the Pennsylvania law. It
is said TINT there Is no case similar to It in
any Of the law reports of this state.