The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-12-24
Crooked piYorce Rua.ness.

There are lawyers in New York who
make specially OF getting divorces with
out publicity, and particularly in cases in
/ cases in which no cause for divorces exists.
/ OF course. the divorces are fraudulent
/ and worthless. Tie documents which
these lawyers give to their dupes, and which
upon their fecs appear 70 be copy of the
/ judgment OF some court. are, ns rule.
written by the lawyers themselves. The
seal and the signatures Of the officers Of the
alleged court are forged.
An interesting case in point has Just been
brought to light in New York W. s. Pen
delton, of Fort Worth, Tex, a married man,
fell ia love with a pretty telephone girl Of
that city. He and his wife did not, Of
course, get along very well after that. He
wanted TO marry the telephone girl and tie
telephone girl wanted 70 marry him.
He noticed in New York paper the ad-
vertisemsnt Of two New York lawyers TO
the effect that for a consideration they
would get any one Q divorce without pub
licity. Their names were Patrick A. Camp
bell and William Duryee Hughes. They
composed the firm Of Campbell & Hughes,
locking for. PeudeltOn applied TO them,
and in tbs course of few months they gave
him copy Of what purported to be a decree
Of a Chicago court, divorcing him from his
wife. He paid them s2o7.
He thought he was freq man, but he
did not attempt TO exercise his freedom i'm
mediately. When he returned to Fort
Wrrfl he - his nbfldran
ana he concluded not TO tell Mrs Pendelton
about the divorce until the child recovered.
the child lived ten months. In the mean
time Pendelton was urged to run for
mayor, and was elected.
As soon Rs his child died he told Mrs
Pendelton about the divorce, and took the
telephone girl to New Orleans and married
her. The announcement Of the divorce and
the marriage created a sensation in Fort
Worth. Inc local papers sent to Chicago
TO get the details OF the divorce proceedings.
There was no record Of any divorce in
which Mayor Pendelton figured. Then
there was a high old time at Fort Worth.
An Indignation meeting was teld and
Pendelton was asked to resign He objected
AZ 40 ~ W ASoiS hthBg OAb hAdAAG TAEiLS4 W
public sentiment. His wife-not the tele-
phone girl-began suit for divorce, and
won it, and she got all OF Peadelton's Texas
property, amounting to about 10000
With less than $1,000 the ex-maysr left
Fort Worth with the telephone girl, whom
he married again. He is now in New York
trying to get this money he paid TO Hughes
and Campbell.
Campbell is not known in this part Of the
world, but Hughes is. Hughes is said 20 be
brother-in-law Of ex-Attorney General
Williams, who figured in Washington as a
member of President Grants cabinet. In
1893 Hughes. finding it hard work to get
bread in New York. enigrated TO Jackson
vile, Fla. He hadn't dollar. but he was
rich IN cheek. He started republican
paper, and in 1884 made it red hot Blaine
sheet. After the election the paper died.
There was no longer any reason for its
existence. Hughes Jacksonville friends lost
some money by the venture, but he found
Others who helped him to start the South
e1-n Illustrated World. That publication
disappeared after a few issues. Jackson
vile did not appreciate art-the kind that
Hughes gave it. Some of the Savannah
business men recall him, probably. He was
10 this city about the time he started his
illustrated publication, soliciting advertise
ments and the privilege Of publishing pict-
ures and sketches of prominent men for
consideration.
Hughes has been in Jail In New York, and
be will be there again II he doesn't abandon
the fraudulent divorce business. II is
probable that there are good many people
in different parts Of the country who con-
tracted a second marriage while the first
wife was living on the strength of the
assurance OF Hughes and his partner Camp
bell that they were divorced This divorce
business is getting to be huge national
scandal