The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-06-19
" JERSEY LILY" EXPOSED
SANDER AGAINST MIR. LANGTRY UN-
SEALS HIS TONGUE.
He Unmasks the Erratic Beauty
Whose Vanity Was Her Ruin-Nev-
err Heard of Her Child.

Attacks on the good name of Edward
Langtry. husband of the Jersey Lily, since
her California divorce, have led that gentle
man to believe that his long policy of
silence with regard to his unhappy mar
ried life has been a mistake He has just
recovered from a severe attack of influenza,
and the period of confinement to his house,
in Victoria square, Southampton has not
been absolutely dull, since a press agency
has sent him part of a ton of newspaper
clippings concerning allegations made
against him in connection with his wife's
petition for divorce. Mr.. Langtry has at
last determined to break his long silence.
and to-day he issued the following signed
statement:
They say 1 forced my attentions on
pretty Miss Lily lie Breton at the ball in
Jersey This is not true. 1 myself gave the
invitations to the ball at ST. Killers in
1874, and it was an understood thing be-
tween me and my friends that all the pref
test girls on the island, noted for it's beau
tiful women, should be my guests Among
many others the LIE Bretons received invi-
/ tations. l think it was at the instigation
of an old friend of the family named Young
that Dean LIE Breton, his wife, his son and
his daughter were present. was intro
her own brother, young LIE Breton, and if
L were capable of romance L would say
there was no struggle between us to keep
away from each other The simple prose is
1 did not dance with Lily LIE Breton until
half through the night. but after that
took her down to supper
Il don't know that our courrship matters
much to any one. In five months we were
man and wife. Old Dean LIE Breton, her
father, married us. 1t was in his own
beautiful church at st. Saviours, in ST.
Killers, and the company took place at 8
o'clock in the morning. There was really
nothing strange about this. He was anxious
to catch the Z o'clock boat for Southamp-
ton.
Il have been painted in various hues and
darkest of all in America, but made a
marriage settlement at the very outset on
Lily. l assigned to my wife property which
had been left me by my father valued at
course, never been interfered with, and
still exists. Under the terms Of the set
Element my wife has only a life interest
in the property, but as far as / know, she
has enjoyed it up to the present and this
know as fact My life is fully insured,
so as to clear the property in the event of
my death. Many allegations have been
made against me- and these L would like
to go through seriatim
NEVER ILL-USED HIS WIFE.
"a more lying or foul charge has never
been made than one which accuses me of
physical ill-usage of my wife. 1 never in
my life once raised my hand against any
woman, and those who say that l repeated
ly struck Mrs. Langtry speak a deliberate
lie. No, there was nothing in her character
that l could take exception to. She was
just twenty years of age when we were
married on March IL, 1874 and l hasten to
say that during the eight years we lived to-
gether there was no suspicion even of tenn
per in the disposition of my wife which
would have furnished the smallest ground
for complaint.
Apart altogether from absolute cruelty,
ever breathed. After our honeymoon we
lived in Jersey for some years and then
we came to reside here in Southampton. 1t
was not at that time the great transat-
lantic port that it is now, with it's great
American line and it's big Southwestern
Railway bringing to and fro all the wealth
OF two great nations, and pledged to their
careful convenience and protection. South
ampton has grown since those days. 1t
was here that my wife contracted typhoid
fever, and after l had nursed her through
it our medical advisers recommended a
change of air. She desired to live in Lon
don. L cared nothing, so we went to Lon
don and we lived in Belgravia. She was
a very beautiful woman and we had many
friends
Il don't care to speak of our first es-
arrangement, but | may say this, that it
was in 1881 that 1 had an offer to go to
America to ascertain the value of some
property belonging to Miss Adelaide Neil
son and in which ii was said Edward
Sothern, son of the originator of Lord Dun
dreary, had some interest. The offer was
made me by George Lewis, of Ely place
now Sir George Lewis, and the terms were
very satisfactory
I'VE agreed, Lilly and l, that should go.
went and remained in America five
months, kept there by cablegrams and let
tiers which had no real Importance. l saw
the estate in question. and all the work
it was necessary for me to do l completed
in less than two hours the spot.
1T would be idle for me to say that l
had no suspicious When l returned
met Mrs. Langtry once at Ely place and
/ thought we should live together again, but
she did not care to come back to me- and
SO We parted.
DISOWNED LILY'S CHILD.
'However seeming cruel it NAV be |