The herald., 1894-01-06
THE LASH WHlzED ABOUT HIM
Mrs. w w. Hnlcomh HorseWhips
Her Former Husband.
An Exciting Episode on Spring Street
Yesterday.
The Attorney Strikes His Ex-wife With
Cane and She Rerallates
Effectively with
Horsewh!p.

W. W. Holcomb, the lawyer, and his
divorced wife caused highly sensation
al scene opposite the Los Angeles thea
ter, on South Spring street, at IL o'clock
yesterday. Mrs. Holcomb succeeded in
horsewhipping her ex-husbsnd in o very
complete manner.
The affair created so much excite
ment that even the eye witnesses could
not all tell the story alike. AS near aa
can be learned Mrs. Holcomb was going
down Spring street in company with
Mrs. Hyland, also divorced lady. The
story is best told in Mrs. Holcomb's own
words:
'We passed Holcomb once on Spring
street before the affair took place. He
was in company with a Mrs. Casey.
He called us vile names as we passed,
which ] resented, and we then walked
on. When We reached the Stowell
block, we passed in, when Holcomb did
also. When l saw him pass in | stood
in the doorway, not wishing to go into
the elevator with him. My friend, Mrs.
Hyland. seeing that | did not come,
stepped out to see where / WAS, and
Hocomb followed her out. In passing
me, Holcomb again cast an insult
ing remark to me. My friend
and l crossed along the street,
going into the art gallery adjoining the
Saddle Rock restaurant. Holcomb b
stepped into the restaurant As we
emerged from there we were again met
by Holcomb, who made some insulting
remark. L answered by saving that he
was a scoundrel and that he ought to be
in San Quentin; that he had ruined
more girls and committed more crimes
than any man in Los Angeles.
'Holcomb then raised ms cane and
struck me. | warded off the blow with
my right arm and pulled whip from an
express wagon and struck him. Hol-
comb struck me again, cutting a deep
cash in my mead. Then a bystander
struck Holcomb and knocked him
down. | kept on lashing him
with the whip. When he got up an-
other bystander knocked him down and
took the cane from him. He again got
upand started to run across the street
toward the Los Angeles theater. | fol-
lowed him and lashed him with the
whip when the crowd shouted to me to
give it to him; good
"When Holcomb got across the street,
Captain Moody caught him just as he
grabbed the whip and took it from me-"
Mrs. Hyland, who accompanied Mrs.
Holcomb, gave the following version of
the affair.
"When 1 went into the Stowell block,
on my way to DR.. Wise's office, | sup
posed Mrs. Holcomb was coming into
the elevator with me, but as | entered
the elevator and sat down, Holcomb fol-
lowed. He sat down beside me, and
Immediately left the elevator to see
where Mrs. Holcomb had gone and
found her standing in the entrance, not
wishing to go in the elevator with Hol-
comb.
"Holcomb passed us.and asshe did 30,
again, he made come insulting remarks
to us both, to which Mre. Holcomb
made reply" aaa rJ
81 at no time spoke word to him,
hut did speak to Mrs. Casey, the wo-
man with whom Holcomb bad been
walking previous to his entering
the Stowell block. At no time did
have anything in my hand, as an even
ing paper says; nor did take any part
in the affair until after Holcomb cruelty
and brutally struck Mrs. Holcomb over
the head with heavy cane. cutting a
deep cash and causing the blood to flow
freely. | then begged the crowd to let
me pass, and getting to where Mrs. Hol-
comb was, took her to the drug store,
and from there to DR.. Hastings office,
where she had the wound dressed"
In the meantime, according to eye
witnesses, Holcomb lost himself in the
crowd and no arrests were made. He
was badly scratched about the face
Mr.. Holcomb could not be found but
his friends claim that Mrs. Holcomb
struck him first. 1t is also claimed that
Mrs. Hyland took hand in the affair,
but no absolute certainty is attached to
the statement
The trouble is said to have been
caused over the disbarment proceedings
instituted by Mrs. Hyland on the
ground that Holcomb bad used his wife
as dummy in prosecuting divorce
cases. The caae will come up today
and something lively is expected.