Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-11-03
AGAINST AN ATTORNEY.
Action - Disbar Brought In 81
Superior Court.

Acsiom 10 Disbar Brought In the
superior Court.
Fanny Verona Baldwin Adams yester-
day fled with the County Clerk vol
luminous, but neatly written, document,
executed in her own hand, preferring
charges against o. E. Mason, Esq, a
lawyer, for unprofessional conduct,
which, she alleges, warrant his disbar-
ment.
She alleges in her accusation that Mr..
Mason, on the Goth of February last,
agreed to undertake the conduct Of q
suit against Richard Garvey for $50, 900
damages; and that after drawing up
and fling the complaint in the cause, he
brought her an undesirable acquaintance
named Rose. whom he introduced to her
ss q son of Senator l.. j. Rose, and
represented that Mr.. Rose would interest
himself in procuring the necessary bond
for her to insure the costs in her suit
against Garvey. Subsequently she dis
covered that Rose was not the son of L.
]. Rose, but that he was disreputable
character, and that her reputation was
damaged by having been seen convers-
ing with him in public places.
She says that while Mr.. Mason still
had her confidence she intrusted him
with the rude schedule of suit that she
proposed to bring against Elias Jackson
Baldwin, with the understanding that he
should observe secrecy thereto until the
complaint was filed. 1t was during this
period that, during business conference
with him as her attorney, Mason tried to
extract promise of marriage from her
on "becoming free from her present in
cumbency or husband" She refused
his proposal with indignation, where
upon he apologized and promised never
again to propose marriage to her or at
tempt familiarity. Subsequently to this
he sent her a message that it was neces-
sary for him to have audience with her
relative to the business in hand. There
fore she repaired to his office, where
instead Of confning himself to business
he soon branched off on to the subject of
matrimony, and threatened that if she
would not marry him or enter house Of
prostitution and earn money, which she
should divide with him as partner,
he would have her suit against Garvey
thrown out of court, and would also pre-
vent the action she was about to bring
against E. j. Baldwin. Further than
this, he threatened that if she would not
yield to his proposals he would traduce
her in every way in his power.
She alleges that her nerves were pros
trated from the shock and fright for some
time; that she was taken ill with con-
gestive chill, and that she suffered
partial congestion of the brain from the
righteous Indignation aroused in her
opirst Cha rof,,aoI h;c rroroco1c do
cidedly and emphatically, in conse-
out his threats. She alleges that her
suit against Garvey would have been
thrown out of court by default, but for
her timely action in asking an extension
of time.
She also alleges that Mr.. Mason tried
to make her all the trouble possible with
her suits instead of trying to advance her
interests, and that she believes him to
have been bribed to work against her, at
the same time he was acting as her at
torney; and that he violated professional
courtesy by snatching letter from her
hand and reading it against her will and
that from secrets SO learned, and the in
formation she has given him, regarding
her proposed suit against E. j. Baldwin,
he caused warped account thereof to be
published in the now defunct Euening
Telegram and gave her other damaging
newspaper notoriety.
Reference is made to "the snares oi
millionaires and villains to prevent her
from acquiring finances necessary for life
and moral safety; )" and in this, or a SINH
lar connection, she says that o. E. Ma
son, knowing her desire to study law and
become member of the bar, whereby
to earn q livelihood, being
incapacitated by i'll health
to do housework or other hard labor, has
been active in efforts to prevent her from
accomplishing her ambitions. =
In closing she alludes to the question
Of the right of suffrage and the disfran-
chisement placed on women; and she
winds up her complaint against Mason
by characterizing him as man mot fit
for decent woman to wipe her feet
upon.' The document is signed Fannie
Verona Baldwin Adams, attorney