The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-12-12
A HUG AND A STOLEN PURSE.
AN ATLANTA WOMAN AND A DOCTOR
IN 4 NOVEL CASE.

Ex-secretary of the Interior Hoke
smith Defends the Woman The
Doctor Accused Her of Stealing
His Pocket-boOk While Giving
Him Parting Hug-The Secretary
Proves That No One of Ordina
Proportions Could EncircIe the
Doctors Immense Girth as He
Claimed.
Atlanta, Ga, Dec ll.-Ex-Secretary
Hoke Smith appeared as attorney to-day
in the court room OF Justice of the Peace
Foute in a sensational trial. The defen-
dant, who was arranged upon a charge oe
robbery, was Mrs. Hattie L. Henson, y
highly respectable lady residing on East
Fair street, a community made up OF
some Of the most estimable people of the
city
DR.. T. f. Powell, one of the oldest and
best known physicians In the city, WIS
the prosecutor. In addition to accusing
Mrs. Henson of stealing his pocket book
containing S4s DR.. Powell declared that
MRS. Henson had done so while she was
bestowng upon him "a parting hug.
According TO the doctors story, Mrs.
Henson had come to his office to get some
medicine for young woman living in her
neighborhood. She and the doctor had
been good friends for years and when she
started to leave the doctor testified he re-
marked; You women are not very DEM
onstratlve; can't you give your old doctor
a kiss"
Whereupon, the doctor testified, his vsl-
tor folded him In her arms, and at the
rIn n haF ha Int h Sc tesxst
pocket and extracted his purse. with
which she ran away down the stairs to
the street.
Mrs. Henson, VINO had present with ner
I'm the court room a large number of peo-
pie to prove her good character and high
standing, denied the doctors story indig-
nantly Her version was that the doctor
had asked her to kiss him and that she
then hurried away insulted, declaring that
she would never have anything to do with
him again.
Not the least interesting feature of the
spicy case was that ex-Secretary Smith ap-
peared in the justice court as the attorney
for Mrs. Henson. DR.. Powell appeared
20 be somewhat hazy over the matter, and
manner in which the ex-secretary proved
that he was making an unjust charge
against his client was highly unique and
convincing, as well as fun of amusement.
DR.. Powell is a man of enormous ply
hllues II iS uouDllul II luere Is q larger
man in the whole state than he. His
weight is about 800. He had testified that
Mrs. Henson, who Is a small woman,
reached around his waist and got
into his pocket while bestowing the al
legged hug upon him. Mr.. Smith stood the
doctor up In the court room and called
attention to his great girth. This. at a
glance, convinced the court that 1t would
have been an impossibility for a woman
of the defendants size, or any one else
Of human proportions for that matter, to
epcircle the waist of the doctor, as he de-
scrlbed the incident, and Mrs. Henson was
at once discharged.
Some of the witnesses testified that DR..
Powell first reported that he had been
robbed by negro woman.
The Doctors mind was considerably be-
fuddled about the affair throughout. He
was positive only that he had been hugged
and that he had been robbed, but whether
this haziness was attributable to the hug
ging or the loss of his purse has not yet
appeared