The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-09-08
SHE CAME UP FROM HOUSTON
TO ACCEPT A POSITION AS Gov
ERNESS WITH CHICAGO
GENTLEMAN.
HOW SHE WAS RECEIVED BY HI,
known to Her as "R. III. Crouch.
and to the Hotel "CoI. IL. III.
DennisOn."

hotel; and Chief of Detectives Schweit
ger and the members Of the detective
department. are making a search for
the offender but with little chance Of
apprehending him. Nhe victim is a.
young and unsophisticared country
girl, whose experience of life in a great
city for one week will be sufficient to
last her the balance Of her life. The
young girl is the daughter Of a bust
ness man in Houston, Mimi, and her
rather yesterday arrived in ST. Paul,
and, after settling a good-sized hotel
bill, took the girl back to her home.
About month ago the young girl
answered an advertisement in a Chi
cago paper which set forth that a gov
erness was wanted by a widower to
take care of and act as a companion
to fifteen-year-oId miss. Several
days elapsed before an answer was
returned, and then came letter writ
ten on note paper from the Palmer
house at Chicago, stating that the
writer, r. H. Crouch, was a wealthy
cattleman with a rancho in Texas. a
palatial cottage at Manitou Colo, and
barrels of money in Chicago. Mr..
Crouch. according to his letter, was
anxious to secure the services of
young woman TO act as companion to
his fifteen-year- daughter, and
thought by the letter he had received
from the young woman of Houston
that she would be just the one for the
place. He requested that the applicant
for the position write him frequently
so that he might know more about
her and also requested a description
OF her person, as to color of hair. eyes,
build and complexion. Mr. Crouch
wound up his first letter by saying
that he intended to visit ST. Paul about
Sept. 1, and thought 1t would be
good idea to have the young woman
from Houston visit ST. Paul about that
time, so as to meet both himself and
daughter. All expenses he said, would
be paid by him.
The next letter received by the
would-be governess at Houston from
Mr.. Crouch was more personal, and
detailed his appearance as being "a
tall black haired man Of forty-two
years. with dark eyes and a grey
muStache, no dude or Would-be mash
err" The letter went on to say that
he was sure he would like the young
woman from Houston and that his
daughter had left the selection of a
companion entirely to him. He al
luded in glowing terms to the pleasure
both he and his daughter would derive
from the company of such a charming
young woman in their travels, and said
they would. as soon as the G. A R.
encampment was over spend the heat
ed term lin the mountains"
The young lady's father did not quite
like the tone of the letters which Mr.
Crouch was sending his daughter, but
as the Texas cattleman spoke about
numerous references among the bank
ers and business men Of Chicago and
ST. Paul, thought perhaps it was all
right The next letter received from
Mr.. Crouch stated that he would be in
st. Paul with his daughter Sept. 1, and
would remain during the encampment.
He wrote that he had secured quarters
at the Metropolitan hotel and gave
minute directions to the young lady
at Houston as to how she should find
him when she arrived here. Thinking
that she had secured a position second
to none in the world, the young lady
left Houston last Tuesday and arrived
in st. Paul that afternoon. She i'm
mediately went to the Metropolitan
hotel and was met in the parlor by
Mr.. Crouch. He seemed very ELUSIVE
in his greeting, but this was not par
ticularly noticed at the time by the
young woman. Mr. Crouch gave some
excuse about his daughters absence,
owing to her being too i'll to travel,
SO for Chicago. He also explained that
owing to the crowded condition Of the
hotel during the encampment, he had
not been able to secure a suite of
rooms, but had secured as pleasant
quarters as possible.
The couple were shown to room No.
103 on the third floor of the hotel, the
apartment having been engaged by
the Texas cattlenan a week before by
11A4 -
hotel and signed "R. H. Dennison." In
this letter the writer said he was aid
to the department commander Of the
Illinois G. A. r. and wanted rooms for
himself and wife during the encamp
ment" To make the thing strong the
Texas cattleman, who was known to
the Houston young lady as Mr.. Crouch
and to the hotel people as Col. R. H.
Dennison Of Chicago, said he had been
recommended to the hotel by the pro-
prietor Of the Palmer house and wanted
the best rooms in the building that he
could secure.
For the two days following her ar
rival the young woman was submitted
to the most outrageous indignities at
the hands of Col. r. H. Dennison. She
was not allowed to leave the room un-
less accompanied by him, and for two
nights was obliged to remain in the
room. Col. Dennison, as he called him
self, made improper advances to the
young woman, but she repealed these
advances by threatening to throw her
self from the window of the room if
he laid hands on her Fer two long
nights she sat in her chair afraid to
sleep and unable to leave. Alone in
the city without a friend and under the
most trying circumstances, the young
girl hardly knew what to do, but last
Thursday morning she found chance
to slip out of the room and determined
to seek aid from the hotel people, She
related her tale of woe, and a search
was at once made for Col. Dennison
He, however, had left at the same time
that the girl started for the hotel Office
and had skipped out In his haste, he
had neglected to pay for the room and
board of himself and the young woman,
and being suspicious of job Manager
Barker decided to hold the young
wcman's effects for the bill, pending an
investigation. The young girl placed
in a very trying position did not know
what to do, but remembering that her
father had friend in st. Paul, she
hunted him up and told her story. She
was taken to the house Of her fathers
friend and word sent to Houston noti-
flying her parents Of her predicament
Early yesterday morning the young
woman's father arrived in st. Paul. and
after short talk with the hotel man
been charged up against his daughter
to secure her trunks and departed for
home
The police were given good descrip-
ton Of Mr.. Crouch, alias Dennison, and
y1aa1xa an effort IN aYnr11aprd him