The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-04-08
HIS YOUNG LIFE RUINED.
eugene Dunnivan's Serious Charge
Against Millionaire 0rrin
w. Potter Of Chicago.
A Fathers Alleged Plot to Send
His Daughters Lover to
Prison.
Convicted of Participating In n Burglary
with Which He Declares Ac Had
Nothing to Do.

CHICAGO, April Eugene Dunnivap, a
former newsboy, is plaintiff in a suit for
$1OO,OO damages began in the circuit court
here. Dunnivan claims his life has been
wrecked as a result of a conspiracy be-
tween Orrin w. Potter, the millionaire
president of the Illinois Steel company,
and Tom Fox, James Hutchins and Frank
Allen, who are also made defendants. 1t
is alleged that a deep plot has been laid by
POTTER to break up an acquaintance be.
tween his daughter and Dunnivan, and
with this end IN view the plaintiff claims
! he has been made to serve four years in the
e,enitentiary. A charge is also made that a
aashen editor of a newspaper in Chicago sup
pressed the boys story on receiving $4,000
from Potter. A New York paper procured
and published the story, which created a
decided sensation at the time. Dunnlvan
tells the following story:
In the spring of 1884 he and Miss Pot
ter met in the vicinity of Clark and Schil-
let streets, where she was in the habit of
going to drop letters in the mail box. Dun
nivan had a newspaper route in that vicin-
ity. The two became fast friends and often
met in the park and on the streets. About
a year after they became acquainted Miss
Potter went with her family to their sum
mer residence at Lake Geneva. Wis. Dun
nivan followed, and seeing the nurse girl,
gave her, a note to carry to Miss Potter.
The girl handed the note to Mrs. Potter.
and Dunn1van, when he reached the trysting
place, instead of seeing the Young lady,
met the coachman and o Thorpe, a
nephew of the millionaire. Theythreatened
to throw Dunnivan into the lake unless he
left the place at once. Not wishing to make
any trouble for Miss Potter, he consented
to leave. That night he WAS arrested on
suspicion of being. concerned in the many
burglaries which had been committed in
the neighborhood, but was discharged next
morning. This Dunnivan says was the be-
ginning of the prosecutions which finally
landed him in the penitentiary.
When Miss Potter returned from Lake
Geneva. Dunnivan declares that her father
employed Detective O'Donnen to force him
to give up the young lady. They continued
to meet clandestinely, however. I'm No
vember, 1885, says Dunnivan. II met
Frank Allen in a South Water street pool
room. At that time I had given up my
newspaper route, being forced to sell out
because of the Potter family's persecution.
Miss Potter wanted to get me a situation at
the South Chicago rolling mills, and Mr..
Thorpe promised her he would do some
thing for me if ! came down to the mills.
In the latter part of November Allen went
with me to the mills. Mi. Thorpe told me
that he had no use for me, and threatened
to make it hot for me if l did not cease my
attentions to Miss Potter. 1t was while I
was at the mills that the robbery I I'M here
for was committed by Allen and an accom-
plice. / went to the saloon after leaving
the mills, and found Allen there with
another man. This fellow, who was a
L. -a- orA ILL., IT, -~~- l. r
entered it. Allen had been drinking and
induced me to take several drinks. which
upset my head What makes me believe
the robbery was a put up job to get ME sent
to the prison are two things. The
house which was robbed was occupied by
John Farnsworth and his family. They
came from Hancock, Mich, which is the
home of Frank Allen. The two families
were neighbors in Hancock. Then it was
very suspicious that the family should lave
been absent from the house. except Cora.
an eleven-year-old daughter, at the time
the robbery was committed. The robbery
consisted in entering an open back
$50 from the house. and leaving
them in the yard when it was found
there was no money IN them. On our way
TO the depot we passed a clothing store, and
Allen said, i am going to swipe a coat from
that dummy I said, Don't you do it,
hllCA budbCucA UIo COhb anu UOlO Itc W IuLi
with him. / was dazed by the liquor l had
drank and ran, hardly knowing what / was
doing. Allen was caught with the coat in
his hand, and I was arrested shortly after
wards at the depot. Allen confessed to the
Farnsworth robbery and accused me of be-
ing his accomplish.
Miss Potter, with her money, retained a
lawyer to defend me, and he advised me to
plead guilty, but | would not. The jury
were out four hours, and returned a verdict
of guilty. The judge sentenced Allen and
me to four years each in the penitentiary.
Our lawyers entered motions for a new
trial, and when the day set for arguments
arrived my case was heard first. The mo-
ton in my case was overruled, n I was
finally sentenced. Not so with Allen. He
had his motion for a new trial continued,
and instead of proceeding with it he went
on the stand and swore he was under sew
enteen years of age when he WAS past TWEEN
ty-one, and that it was his first offense
when he had served a term in prison. His
sentence was cut down to one year in the
Bridewell, while I was sent to the peniten-
tiary."
Dunnivan also claimed that he had beer
visited in prison by agents of Potter, wht
sought to induce him to sign a retraction o
his story on condition of his pardon. II
refused the offer.