Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1895-11-13
TIE ROMANCE OF A SLAVE.
Story oil a Hsgrtss and Her Two White
Husbands.
a Lawsuit 90 DstermIss WHISTLER sh q
10 Esiitied 10 the PfopsrU
of oas OF Them.

CHICAGO, Nov. lathe romance OF
slave, tho strange story Of two capri.
oious iovcs, which endured until death,
was brought 10 light In the trial Of n
suit which will be called for hearing In
Judge Brelano's court this morning.
Tho central figure Of thu romsnoe, be-
gun moro than half q century ago,
survives In Maria Evans, or L,urencs,
= nogrcs., who Ia now lighting In the
courts for her dover Ia the estate Of
DR.. Henry Laurence ns his widow.
Opposing her tuit Ia DR.. WIN. j. Lsu-
rencp, Of OAkwoods boulevard, snu
twenty other rtlauves Of DR.. Henry
Laurence, who died In 1891. They set
up thu contention that tue com plain.
ant was mol the lawful wife OF their
dead relative. The amount Involved
I'm the litigation reaches the sum OF
800, 900, the property left by DIR. Lsu-
renee, who died intestate anu childless.
The widows d,wer IL two.thirds the
whole estate.
Maria Evans Laurence, tho com.
| plainant In the suit, still preserves the
comeiiness which gained her freedom
and as she elaine, two white husbands,
| Of distinguished family connections
and possessed OF means. Her kinkod
hair, long for one OF hsr race, Ia whitsn-
cd with tue SHOWS OF ~ ysArs, her
face IL scared with the burrows OF time,
but her carriage " erect, her step Ia
light aud her eye lustrou,.
She wa. born Ia Adams cou nty, Mls-
sissippi, In 1893. Tho first chapter OF
tue romance o. her lie began In the
slave market Of Vaxoo, Mlss., when
che wa, ~ years old. A youug clerk,
John IA. Evan, who csms OF AN old
anu prominent Virginia family, saw
her there ana fell la love with her. He
made vow that he would secure her
freedom AMI then marry her. lie had
no money with which 10 buy her free
dom, but sci about 10 earn and save II.
| II took him sevon yeAts TO do II, but
he was trus to his dark skinned sweet
heart who In tho mt nntino Ind been
sod to "a new master and takon to
| Kentucky. Evans followed her tn 70
aud In ls4S piid down $1,000 to her
master, btougnI hor 10 Cincinnati,
where he gave her liberty, and, IL 10
alleged, made her his wife. They TO.
turned TO Yszoo, where he continued
In business.
Shortly after moving from this place
she made the acquaintanoe OF Henry
Laurence, q young EnglishmAn, a
enlist, who became n frequent visitor
Mt the Evanh's home. He was an abo.
Iitionist anu later lott YaLoO Ruu came
to live In ChicsgO. just before the
war broke out Evans ana his wife
went 10 i've In Now Oflsaus. la 1861
they received = letter from Laurence,
who was not prosperlng in Chicago,
aud hs was advised by them to move
to New Orleans, which he did. The
Evans couple o inJucted q fashionable
boarding hous ION Canal street in that
city, and which WAS n rendezvous for
politicians OF this time. In 1865 Evans
died. Dr. Laurence was living witA
them and no fell in love with the
widow.
Two years after the death OF Evans
there came another epoch IN the lie OF
tho Mississippi slavs. From thence
she called herself the wifs OF DR..
Henry Laurence. Whether che was
In the queslion that will be determined
by the court In ths trial to 10 beguB
today. hhs claims u was only q COM
mon law marriage by which they
consented to live together as man aud
wife until death parted, and this con-
tract, she sage, WAS faithfully carried
out by them both. For twenty-five
years, she says, abe was wife 10
Henry Laurence ant closed his eyes
when death finally separated thom.
The couple came to live In Chiosgo In
1877, IN q house which DIR. Laurence
bouyht.
Ths defense to the suit IL that the