The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-05-11
THE BENNETT SCANDAL.
Statute of Limitation Prevents
His Prosecution.
The Society for the Suppression Of Vice VIII
Investigate It's secretary-Dam-
aging Letters.


consultation yesterday morning. It was
found that the statute Of limitation forbade
either civil OK criminal proceedings, as the
crime of seduction. as alleged, and the
criminal operation occurred more than
three years ago.
But the matter will not rest here if the
directors of the society OF which Bennett is
secretary are as much in earnest as they ap-
pear to De.
The president Of the society, Ira P. Ran
kin, called on Director Nathaniel Hunter
yesterday and declared to that gentleman
his intention Of ordering an investigation OF
Mr.. Bennett at once.
President Rankin says Bennett called on
him the other day and offered his reSlgna-
ton. Mr.. Rankin declined TO accept the
same. and advised Bennett TO hold off few
days 10 see what turn the matter would take
Director Hunter says he thinks the proper
course to pursue would be for the society TO
suspend its secretary pending an lnyestlga-
ton.
Meanwhile Secretary Bennett himself re-
fuses 10 talk for publication. lie Will
neither deny nor affirm the charges that he
betrayed and then bounded Miss Ella Gray.
His friends are not so reticent. Director
Hunter IS one of the latter. He told
reporter for The CALL yesterday that nc
did not believe Bennett was guilty.
Eve use0 to work together a great deal,
Bennett and l." said Mr.. Hunter, "and l
came 10 know him thoroughly. do not be-
leve he could be guilty Of such thing. L
don't believe the GUays' statements and II
would take great deal Of proof TO convince
me. / remember that about year ago Ben
nett came TO me and told me OF the great IN
terest he had taken In this young girl lie
said he had found out that some one In San
Eron huH tad her a
her to her mother, or induced her 10 go TO
her mother, il was something like that, aud
confess all her troubles"
FOR A DEEP-LAID PURPOSE.
When it was suggested to Mr.. Hunter
that Bennett might have told this little story
for deep-laid purpose or I'D turtherance OF
his general scheme to blaeken her character
for his own selfish ends, lie declined to take
that view of it.
And there's another thing" said he.
that makes ME discredit the Grays. The
mother and daughter say they did not know
Bennett was married until after he had
seduced Miss Gray. l can't believe that,
because the Grays and the BENEFITS all went
to the same church in East Oakland, you
know. Mrs. Bennett attended church regu-
larry and all the congregation knew they
were husband and wife aud the parents OF
the children who often accompanied them.
| can't see but what Miss Gray and her
mother knew all the while that Bennett was
! married man."
II Mr. Hunter could have heard the Mayor
OF Oakland explain this seeming cOntradic-
tion yesterday afternoon his faith in Ben
nett's santliness would probably have been
shaken a little.
"As matter Of fact" said Mayor Chap
man, when that man Bennett came here
about five years ago and joined the little
church in East Oakland, il was generally
thought that he was single man. Mrs.
Bennett and the children did not material
lie fer fully a year after his appearance.
And it was during this year, when Ella
Gray was but IS years old. that Bennett
caused her downfall. All his attentions 10
the girl after it became known that he was
married man were forced upon her under
threats Of publicly traducing her unless she
continued 10 yield to him.
''Al The church members remember that
Bennett paTaded as a single man the first
year Perhaps he never declared himself
single. but it was generally understood
among the ladies Of the cnngTegaliOn-yes,
aud the men, too. When his wife and chill
dren came - where they had been all
the time no one knows-eyeryb was
taken by surprise, and when they queS-
toned Bennett, his reply was:
Why, never said | was nOtmarried.'
Even the most steadfast OF Benefits
friends do not think the Grays have been
trying 10 biackmail him. for it is notorious
that Bennett IS DoOr man.
NOT BLACKMAIL.
HE has only lis salary Of 500 month
as secretary Of the society,"" saws Director
Hunter, "and sometimes he doesn't get that.
No; il can't be blackmail, for Bennett is as
poor az church mouse. Hell is a devil-may-
care sort of fellow, you know. 1 mean by
that he never looks out for the future"
Another point that Benefits friends
make in his favor is his wife's denial that
she ever called upon Mrs. Gray TO denOunce
an orphan girl in New York.
Mayor Chapman says, and 1t Is eOrrobo-
rated by many others, that about i year
and a half ago il became generally known
in the little congregation Of the Christian
Church that Mrs. Bennett had gone to Mrs.
Gray and vigorously denounced Mr.. Ben
nett, and that Bennett had struck her when
he found t out.
This is not Mrs. Gray's statement
alone" said Mr.. Chapman, but the COM
mon gossip Of the congregation. 1t was an
open secret at the time.
The letters of Bennett to the doctor in
San Francisco regarding the criminal opera
iiOn that was performed on his victim. said
to be in existence. are now in possession of
Mayor Chapman. They are signed Miss
L. ). Ferris, and are written in feigned
feminine hand. Those familiar with Ben
netl's handwriting however, declare that
be alone is their author.
Bennett now Claims that they were de-
coy letters, written for the purpose of ascer-
tanning whether the doctor addressed was
an abortionist, said Mayor Chapman; "Dut
If that Is true, how came these letters in
our possession"
How did they get in your possession?"
was asked.
In this way. Benefits last letter to the
doctor contained the request that it and all
his previous letters should be returned.
Accordingly the doctor sent back Benefits
letters. This put oil the correspondence
that passed between them in Benefits
hands. Now, how did we get the letters?
well, frst OF all, this doctor did not per
form the operation about which the letter
speaks. That was dOue by another phys
ician. Why? Because when Miss Gray
came to this doctors utfice lie found her
well-dressed. refined young lady, quite dill
ferent in appearance from the poor sewing
girl Bennett had described in his letters.
DICKERING WITH THE DOCTOR.
Nov Bennett in his letters had been
dickering with the doctor about the fee to
be charged, and upon his representations
the doctor had agreed to give his services
for $50 When the physician saw the
standing OF bis patient, however. he at once
jumped 10 the conclusion that there was n
rich man behind the affair, aud declined to
render the services required unless a much
larger fee was forthcoming.
Negotiations were chen broken off with
this hysician-though Bennett had already
paid him the S20-and the services Of
another doctor procured.
A few months later Bennett wanted his
$50 returned, and proposed to Miss Gray that
she should go to the doctor and demand the
money. To this end he gave her the letters
signed Miss l.. 5. Ferris" that they might
Identify her TO the doctor and prove her
claim.
"Miss Gray pocketed these letters and. of
course, never went near the doctor. Ben
nett tried TO get them back from her by all
sorts Of threats, so finally she told him they
were destroyed.
1T has been stated by Benefits friends"
continued Mayor Chapman, that at neither
OF the interviews recently held between the
friends Of both parties concerned did the
Grays make any charges Of criminal mis-
conduct against Bennett
"Of course they did not. nor would they
ever have done so had Bennett kept his
mouth shut and acted Railways like a man.
Those conferences were palied for tho aola