The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1898-07-10
MRS. CARMELA DE GRAZIA DE-
CLARED A LAWFUL WIFE
NAUGHTY YARNS TOLD OF HER
By Witnesses for the Defense Are
Spurned by the Court as I'm
worthy of Belief

second day of Its trial than It was on the
first and at one time there was prospect OF
its dragging In the superior court for an In
definite period before 1t wended its way up
to the supreme court. Judge Allen decided
on Friday, when denying defendants mo-
ton for a non-suit that the plaintiff had
made out sufficient case to entitle her
unless the defendants testimony should
therefore be conclusively to the contrary, to
have the standing In court of common law
wife.
| De Grazia not only attempted to show that
she was merely his mistress. but offered to
show that the woman had been guilty OF
improper conduct with other men at an
epoch when, If she really considered herself
to be his wife, such acts constituted
adultery. After ruling against this class Of
evidence, the court modified its order so that
the door was opened wide for all Of it, and
some naughty tales then were registered
against Mrs. Carmela, who shook her head
furiously and blazed repeated denials from
her sloe black eyes at those who maligned
her.
The first witness introduced by the de-
| PENDANT was another Carmela somewhat
the worse for wear, who spoke as much with
shoulders, arms, elbows, hands and finger
tips as In her mother tongue which was in
terpreted into English. She put her hand
to her heart, bowed and smiled seraphic
smirk upon being asked what her business
was. She said that she was the proprietor
of sundry pianos, which she rents out at so
much per month. She is not running in OPP
position to the great music dealers of this
city, because her instruments are ida grinda
pian," with handle and push wagon. Her
husband he "play da plan dat way at a
saloon on Also and Alameda streets, and
| the way he grinds out ida moosica" has
proven so eminently satisfactory to the Sig
nor Ordoqui and his customers that the en-
gagement of the virtuoso has already ex-
tended over one year. This Carmela was
ten months ago a neighbor Of the Carmela
who now wants redress and she had heard
her ''veclna" say repeatedly that she was
not married to Louis. Another lady had
heard similar talk.
| The attempt was now made by putting
Giovanni Paretti, knife grinder on the
stand to prove that the plaintiff had had
Illicit intercourse with other men, but the
court ruled 1t out, because adultery had not
been set up In the answer. 1t is true that
gross immortality was charged, but Judge
Allen held that the allegation was too broad.
Mr.. Paretti all this time sat waiting for his
chance to unfold his tale, and when he got
his cue he Immediately started in to tell
how he had seen Mrs. De Grazia in bed in
plain daylight with an American year ago
this month. She told him as an excuse af-
terward that it didn't matter, as she was
not married to Louis
This evidence was ruled out by the court
because marrying could not be disproved in
this fashion, and when one G.. c. Hitchcock
attempted to tell similar story he was not
permitted to proceed on the ground that the
plaintiff had not been given notice that such
| kind of evidence would be used against her,
and as 1t took her by surprise she was un-
able now to protect herself
| w. D. Gould, for the defendant then made
a motion to be permitted to amend the COM
plant, and after some sparring between the
attorneys this request was granted, with
the proviso that the court would make an
order compelling De Grazia to pay the costs
which might be incurred by the pseudo wife
| in procuring evidence to combat the charges
of impurity, with which she was now as
| sailed, and that she would hereafter be en-
abled to present such testimony before the
court ere the trial ended, If necessary.
| Everything being now smoothed down, the
man Hitchcock, who represented himself as
painter and paper hanger, temporarily out
of work, told how in July of last year, while
on visit to the house of Paretti, he had
seen one Henry Heron In bed with Carmela
at her home on Ord street, which was con-
tiguous to that of his host. On cross ex-
animation he said that 1t was at the sugges-
ton made recently by Paretti that he had
visited De Grazia at his store to tell him
what he had witnessed, and that he had not
received any money for his service.
The Signor Paretti was then recalled and
permitted to go into some of the details of
his discovery. He lived, he said, at AIS Ord
street, and Mrs. Carmela was. his next door
neighbor, there being nothing but fence
between the two dwellings. One day,
year ago this month, he had invited his good
friend Hitchcock to chicken dinner and
spaghetti. and while carrying out to the
back yard the remnants of the banquet he
saw Carmela in bed with one Heron, col
lector for a store, who was also a picture
painter
In the afternoon private Waterman
called Maxim said that Pietro, one of De
Grazia's brothers, who Is barber, told
him one day that he didn't like the way
his brother Michael was carrying on with
Carmela, and requested witness to watch
them. He and anothem deputy constable
named Young followed the PLAINTIFF and
Mike a couple Of times at night after they
closed the store. They went to Carmela's
house on CASTELAR, street, and when the
watchers left after midnight Michael was
still inside and the house was pretty dark
Maxim had seen other men hanging round
the woman's home.
e. j. Young, another spotter, testified
that he had watched Carmela's house re-
peatedly when Michael had gone into 1t at
night and that on at least three occasions
the man had remained there until daylight,
Another time he walked in unexpectedly
upon them. Carmela was sitting on Mich
aels lap, embracing him. The impudent
fellow then excused himself and walked
away.
The application of the defendant to be
admitted as a member of Columbus court
in the order of Foresters of America was
again introduced and the signatures of |
some of the subscribing witnesses were
acknowledged by these parties, who had
been called on behalf of the defendant to
testify that 1t was of public notoriety that
he and Carmela merely lived in concubin-
age This was rough on these parties. as
the application mentioned that De Grazia
was a married man and that his wife was
Carmela A. de Grazia, aged "a.
The defendant took the stand and denied
that he had ever agreed with Carmela that