The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-03-30
DICKINSON CASE
AGAIN ON TRIAL
Famous Woman Seeks TO Recover Fifty
Thousand Dollars Damages.
INJURIES THAT SHE ALLEGES
Says Her Apartments Was KudeIy
Broken Into, That She Was Seized
and Taken to Danviile Insane Asy-
lum Where She Was IncarcCrated.
Miss Dickinson Was the First aud
the Only Witness on the Witness
Stand Yesterday.


In the United States circuit court
yesterday afternoon Judge Acheson
called for trial the case of Miss Anna
Dickinson against John Courtrlght,
George b. Thompson, Allan lIggleston,
John s. Heilman, DR.. Gideon Underwood
and Henry Dryden, whom she accuses
of having unlawfully seized her and
caused her to be incarcerated in the
Danville asylum. The defendants are
residents of Pittston and West Pitts
ton and all of them We're friends of the
Dickinson family prior to Feb. %, 1891,
when the things complained of took
place. Miss Dickinsons suit Is for the
purpose of recovering $5O,O00, and this
is the second trial. 1t was called up
before Judge Acheson in this city on
March %, 1895, and on April 10 the
jury was discharged because it could
not come to an agreement. Since the
last trial DR.. Underwood has passed
away.
None of the counsel employed in the
case on it's former trial here are in
the case now. Miss Dickinson is rep
resented by Attorney j. Aspinwall
Hodge and j. NJ. Ferguson, of New
York city and Attorney Horace E.
Hand, of this city, and the defendants
by Attorney A. A. Vosburg and c.. w.
Dawson, of the local bar. Miss Dick
inson looks as if she enjoyed better
| health than when she was in attend
ance at the trial two years ago.
She eXcites equally as much attention
| as she did then. AS on the former
trial, Mrs. George ACkerly. of New
| York, and Miss Louise Mcdonald, of
/ Wilkes Barre, are her constant COM
panions. Mrs. Mcdonald before hex
, marriage was Miss Dickinson's maid,
and after the famous defendants re-
lease from Danville Insane asylum,
she went to reside with Mr.. and Mrs.
Ackerly, near New York city. Mrs.
Ackerly is now a resident of New York
city, and Miss Dickinson also makes
that city her home.
| STYLE DOES NOT WORRY HER.
Miss Dickinson's contempt for cur
rent fashions. which made her the OBJ
| ject of much curious attention from
members of her sex two years ago, is
as pronounced as ever. She is becom-
ingly and sensibly attired, but it is in
dividuality, not modishness, that is the
| distinctive feature of her attire. Yes
/
brown and white checked goods, which
was trimmed with wide. dark brown
braid. A red silk vest added a dash
of color to the general effect. The hat
which ornamented Miss Dickinsons
well poised head, was of mixed straw
| culiously fashioned. The otherwise
straight rim was slightly tilted on the
| left side and under the rim, which was
| faced with red, a large bunch of yell
| low and red roses was fastened. Red
| figured ribbon and red and yellow
! roses We're conspicuous in the or
| namentatiOn of the crown of the hat
| Her hair is worn quite short, and an
elastic band, which passes around the
| back of the head, holds the hat in
! position.
Miss Dickinson was the first witness
called and during the time she was on
the stand her sister, Miss Susan e.
! Dickinson, occupied a seat in the court
room. Anna never for an instant al
| lowed her eyes to rest on Susans face
or give any indication that she knew
her sister was present. When refer
ring to her in her testimony she al
ways spoke of Susan not as her sister,
but as her mothers eldest daughter.
"a lLl.i'l' i'''lS ! iNlthlJ
1t was go when Judge Acheson
| called the Dickinson case for trial and
the little United States court room
| in the federal building was crowded
| with jurors, attorneys and spectators
| The work of selecting jury was mme-
! diately entered upon and Attorney
Hodge, of counsel for Miss Dickinson,
asked permission to examine the jurors
with reference to their knowledge of
the case for the purpose of ascertaining
| If they had any prejudice for on against
the defendants. He quoted Il Penn
sylvaniu decision permitting such ex-
animation of jurors in cases similar
to the Dickinson case Judge Ache
son said that in his years on the United
States circuit court bench he had
never heard of such a practice, but if
the state supreme court had approved
of such examination he would allow it
and the examination was accordingly
made.
1t required a little more than an
hour to select the following jurors who
We're sworn to we'll and truly try and
true delVerance make between the
plaintiff and defendants; Charles ID.
Bradley, clerk, Pittsburg Aaron
| bIONl, HllltI, lunhldnnOtkt cyrus
w. Blackburn, farmer, Point, Bedford
county; w. S. Corbett insurance
agent. New Bethlehem, Clarion coun-
ty; w. s. Coe, mayor, Parker, Arm
strong county; Henry Musslna, mer-
chant, COWan, Union county; James
Miller, farmer, Grant borough, Law
renee county; Henry SChoch, farmer,
Selins Grove, SNYDER county; Daniel
Trout, farmer McConnellsburg, Fulton
county; Vincent Tobin, lumberman,
Grant, Indiana county; Daniel NJ. Won
ders, teacher, New Paris, Bedford
| county.
After the jurors We're sworn Judge
! AchesOn announced that they would go
| over to the Superior court room in
| the county court house, where the case
will continue on trial until it is com
pleted, leaving the district court in un-
disturbed possession of the federal
court room.
WHAT DECLARATION ALLEGES.
The declaration in the Dickinson case
alleges that on. Feb. % 1891, the de-
PENDANTS forced an entrance into the
| house and apartment of Miss
| Dickinson, in West Pittston, and
seized her by force and car
ried her from the premises, without
providing her with suitable garments
and incarcerated her in Danville In
sane asylum. By reason of injuries
she received ana the exposure incident
to her removal from the house, she
was made sick and lame and was still
suffering at the time the action was
brought from the physical effects and
| mental anguish due to the treatment