St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-01-22
DECIDEDLY ROMANTIC.
A Love Affair and the Usual
Happy Ending.

A Love Affair and the Usual
Happy Ending.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo-, Jan. 21.-A we'd
ding of more interest than is usually
attached to events where the parties are
so little known occurred to-day about
four miles west of st. Joseph. The
contracting parties were w. H. Potter
living near Denver, Col, and Mrs. Julia
Crumm, who for a few years past has,
made her home with her brother,
Henry Withers, in Doniphan county,
Kan. Both the parties are of middle
age and had not seen one another for
years until few months ago. When
they were children they went to school,
together in Carroll county, KY, and
when Potter was young man OF
tWenty-One years and came West he,
was betrOthed to Julia Withers, who
was the belle of the neighborhood. Pot
ter went tir.t to Kansas and then to the
mountains, returning to visit his old
home twice in five years. On the last
visit it was agreed that the marriage
should take place the following spring,
by which time he hoped to have enough
money to make his home what he
thought it should be. He returned
West and was not heard from for
years. Some one who had known
him i'll the mountains happened to pass
through his Kentucky home and circu-
lated the story of his death, founded
upon a rumOr, as it afterwards ap-
peared. His sweetheart mOurned him
as dead, and i'll two years welded his
rival, with whom she lived happily for
about eight years. Her husband died
i'll 1855, when she came to DOniphan
county to make her home with her
brother, having no children and no
near relatives in Kentucky.
Her husband left her a considerable
fortune. and as her forty years sat
lightly upon her, she soon became the
center of an admiring circle of friends.
A few months ago Potter came
through st. Joseph, quite accidentally,
on his way to Chicago. He met WitherS
at the union depot, and, what is most
| singular, the men knew each other.
| Explanations followed, and Potter was
driven to the pleasant country home of
the Withers family. He met his sweet
heart of early days, and the old love,
which had not ceased to burn in theil
hearts through long years, soon made
itself felt. The cOurtShip was com
menced where it had been broken Off
and the two were married, leaving this eV-
| ening for Mr.. Potter home near Denver
The strange part of the story is yet te
come. Potter, while working in the
mines, had been accused of numbering
his partner. Not being able to estab
fish his Innocence at the trial, he was
| convicted and the sentence cOmmuteC
to Imprisonment for life, several goO(
reasons appearing for this. Too prout
to inform his sweetheart or family o
his disgrace, he did not write any letter.
home about it, and the story of tn.
crime did not reach them. The murder
was committed in a new claim which
Potter and his partner had just begun
to work in New Mexico, and it was no
known there what part of the East III
had come from. After he had been il
prison nearly five years man who wa
to be hanged made confession, clearl.
establishing Potter's innocence, and III
was released. He went at once t
Client, KY. but found his INTENDED
bride was anOther's. Without maxim!
himself known he left the place and re
turned to Denver, where he sool
amaSSed considerable fortune b,
Speculations. He was on his way t.
Chicago to dispose of some propert
when he accidently met his old school
mate, Henry WitherS, in st. Joseph
The wedding is one of the most Singh
lar, because of the peculiar history con
nected with it, that has ever occurred il
this section of the country.