The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-06-09
HE LED A DUAL LIFE.
A Remarkable Suit Brought to Re-
cover $25O,OOO.
From the Ne,o York Star.

From the Nelc York Star
In the supreme court of Kings county
there is suit pending, in which Corabella
Knapp is the plaintiff and Ann B. Barnes,
Cora F. Barnes and Demas W. Dewey, ex-
ecutors of the late Demas Barnes, are the de-
PENDANTS. 1t is expected the suit will be
called for trial soon. The suit is brought to re-
cover $3.50, 900, which the plaintiff claims
Demas Barnes promised to pay her before
he died. Miss Knapp is said to belong to
one of the best families in the interior of
the state She alleges that she was married
to Mr.. Barnes some two years before he
died. AT that time, Miss Knapp alleges,
Barnes represented to her that ne was
widower. She came to New York with him
and he installed her in handsome home.
In summer she accompanied him to the
leading summer resorts, where she was
known and introduced as mis- wife. In the
spring of, 1888, she discovered that the
man she supposed to be her husband had
another wife. He had married her some
six years before hs met Miss Knapp, and
she was living at his handsome residence,
No. Al West Fifty-seventh street, with her
own daughter and Mr.. Barnes daughter,
Cora F. Barnes, the child of his first wife.
When she discovered these facts she ac-
cused Barnes of dsceiving her and threat
ened to leave him. He implored her to re-
main, she claims, and promised to settle
$3.50, 900 on herself for her support and that
of the child which had been born to them.
On May /, 1888, Mr.. Barnes died from the
effects of injuries received from being
knocked down by the horses attached to a
Broadway street car. When his will was
read all his property was left to his son and
two daughters. No provision whatever
was made for Miss Knapp. The latter says
it was the intention, she believes, of Mr..
Barnes to pay her the $3.50, 900, or make
some provision for the payment of the
same, but he was prevented from so doing
by the accident that resulted in his death.
She claims to have number of letters
from Mr.. Barnes couched in phrases which
show that he persuaded her to believe that
she was his wife. Miss Knapp is now seek
ing to force the executors of the dead mans
estate to pay er the $25O,OO Which she
claims he agreed to pay.
Demas Barnes was a very we'll known
character, both in this city and Brooklyn.
He went into the patent medicine business
10 1860. AT the time of his death ne was esti-
mated to be worth from $8,000,000 to $10,-
100000, all of which he mad made since
that time He was proud of stating
that he had just $40 when he commenced
business. After he became wealthy he be-
came ambitious for political aud social dis
tinction. He was at this time living in
Brooklyn, and served term as g represen-
tative in congress from the second district
of Kings county. He next aspired to the
mayorality, and in order to further his
ambition ne established the Brooklyn
Daily argus. He sunk $3.50, 900 in the paper
and then retired from politics and sold his
newspaper His estate owns large amount
of real estate in Bro klyn. He married
lnir ,nrosnnt rridoru in 1870 in ST I.nnis