Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1893-11-04
MATED TO A BRUTE
The Niece Of the Late Cali.
fornia Senator
CRUELTY RoBBsD OF IN FORTUNE

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NEW YoRK, Nov. THE pagers Of Mrs.
Christine Lathrep Gunaing. niece Of the
late Senator Leland Stanford Of Cali.
Soruia. and cosrobocativs afIidavits. to-
gethsr with the statements VI her counsel,
In Supreme court chambe r., developed one
q tie most remarkable cases of cruelty ON
record. Cunning ran away from his wife
and his creditors il November. 1855, with
$1,000 Of her money. after squanderin &
her fortune Of <251.O00 He was lost in
snowstorm in the Andes mountains In
May. 1882 A Judgment on one OF the
notes for 5000 obtained from her by her
husband led to these proceedings before
Judge Barrett. Lawyer Joseph b Barcus
appeared for Mrs. Cunning and moved
that the Judgment secured in Connec,t.
cut by the Lincolp National bank. Of this
city. ON jan 2, 1850. and also At Saratoga
on Feb. 6. 1891. Be set aside.
A Legacy Of oioo. 900 Involved.
MI. Barcus argued that the Judgment
could Mt be collected. a. all of Mrs. Gun.
ning's money was gone. supplementary
proceedings In the suit were subsequently,
brought to recover on the note, and Walter.
r Butler Was appointed receiver Of Mrs.
Cummings property. II Was to prevent
the receiver from getting 1t the legacy OF
500. 900 left BY Leland stanford, her uncle.
that Lawyer Barcus moved that the judg.
ments be set aside in order to allow his
client to come in and defend the suit.
Her defense 10 that the note was obssiued
while she was under duress and that the
bank had been bottled before the note in
question was given that notes were hsine
Obtained from her BY force
Ne Seos Dsgss asbb;ag Hsr.
4nGunning's aniiavit statAd that after
her marriage With Cunning they went 70
Mount Vernon to live, aud four weeks
afterward b began threatening her and
her Of bet property. He made
her IN inmate Of an insane asylum for six
weeks In Hartford. Conn, beginning in
May. 1859. Since she WAS removed from
the asylum sue hes lived y 18th her mother
and two children q Saratoga Nra. Gun.
ning relates that on one occasion when he
wanted her 70 siga . note her husband
presented . revolver at her head. At an.
Oehef time he choked her until she faint.
ID. and once he knocked her down with
bio DIST and injured her spine To save
her life she signeu notes in those instances,
Dragged 0at - Red - sign.
On cold night In the winter Of 1851
wanted her signature ON another
note and because she refused he dragged
her ont Of bed and forced her to sign. On
Dfill another occasion wien she had pro-
Tested against signing any mo-e notes
0Unning knocked her down, and grabbing
her hands bent her fingers back until the
1esh was torn. >rsrs are now visible on
her hands ~ the re lit Of the injury thus
inflicted. Mn. Gun ,ing says he made her
sign another note on Sept. IS, 1875. when
she was about tn become . mother. He
drove everybody from her room and told
her that she must sign . note for money.
She protested. and fetching pen aud ink to
the bedside he grabbed her hand and held
It % that he caused her to trace her name
on the note.
Thrsatessa her with the Mod Hsuss.
On Oct. .. 1888, he Induced her to come
70 this city. When on the train he told
her that he wanted her 70 sign more notes,
And when she refused be- threatened TO put
her In IN insane asylum. He took her to
The Chemical National bank and she
there signed several notes. including the
pue that figured in the suit against her.
AnI Cunning sass that she notified Will.
lam 7. Cornell, cashier Of the Lincoln Ma
fioall bank, Of the duress she was under.
and that she would not b responsible for
the notes thus extorted from her.
Dank Dsosss Xsstacatioa.
Ex-Judge Noah Davis and Lawyer Ger.
Der, in opposing the motion. submitted
m AFFIDAVIT Of William T. Cornell In
which he denied that Mrs. Cunning had
notified him that she had signed the note
or any notes while under duress. 1t Was
shown that the hank had discounted notes
Of the couple previous to the one involved
In the suit. Officers of the Lincoln Ma
tional bank deuied that they had any
kuowledCo of fhe ouarrels Of the Cus.