The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-11-22
TO THE SUPREME COURT
An Appeal to Be Made in the
Esther Lake Suit.
1T is A STRANGE CASE
Her Mother. She Says. Made Her Marry
an Insane Man-ohe Did Not Dare
TO Refuse. - she Wa a Nor
man church Member.

The strange case OF Esther Nelson
Lake will be taken to the supreme court
on an appeal from the decision Of judge
Clancy. refusing 20 annul her marriage
to John Lake. Mrs. Lakes attorney.
NJ ID. Leehey. yesterday filed a bill Of
exceptions which was signed by Judge
Clancy. In the bill In set out the story
of Mrs. Lake concerning her marriage
as follows:
we were married in Charleston.
Cache county. Utah, Jan. .. 1898. had
I have lived in Montana ever since
June. 1896. In the autumn of 1897, less
h three months prior to my marriage
with the defendant. l went from Butte
to Charleston to visit my mother. who
resides there. She lives upon a little
farm and John Lakes father had a
mortgage on IL. I met the defendant oc-
~casionally. but did not see much of him
until we were married. My mother
wanted me to marry him. She made me
do IL. I went to live with him. and We
lived together about three weeks. or I'M
til Feb. 9. 1898. I left him because I
discovered that he was insane. He Is
not Of sound mind, and was not at the
time we were married. He was not ca
pable of making contracts or attending
to business. He was simple and had
hts quite often. l knew nothing of this
before I married him. l married him
because my mother wanted me to. He
could not support me: he could not take
care of himself. i know his family. I
became acquainted with them after we
were married. He has n sister In an
insane asylum and his mother is to-
tally insane. She Is dangerous at times.
Another sister Is also insane. that Is
she is simple and of unsound mind like
John Lake himself. I met the defend
ant about two months before I married
him. saw very little of him. He
came to my mothers house a few times.
i did not keep company with him. L
did not spend any evenings with him at
all. ! did not know he was insane. i
did not know any Members of his fam
lily and did not know they were insane.
/ had heard something about his moth
err being dangerous at times. but paid
very little attention to IL. My mother
aid IL was all right and that | should
marry him. and hat ID o be the
best for both OF u. After | married
him the mortgage which his father held
on my mothers farm was taken of and
my mother now owns the farm herself.
John Lake and my mother belonged to
the Mormon church. II Is a tenet or
doctrine OF that church that the parents
have the right to give their daughters
in marriage to any person they see Mt.
and TO compel the daughter to marry
him. My mother compelled me to mar
ry John Lake. and I did not dare to re-
fuse, because I was made a member of
the church before that, so ! married
him.. fn
Mrs. Lakes story was supported by
the testimony of several witnesses. one
OF them. Louis Shafer. said: II was In
Clarkson. Utah. in January, 1898. and ]
know John Lake. He Is Of unsound
mind and incapable of performing con-
tracts or doing business. or any kind Of
skilled work himself. I do not know
that he is actually insane. He is not
a maniac. He has fits and sits around
| sort of looney like. He Is no account
and acts like a cigarette fiend. He
does not work. He does not know any
thing. He does not know how to take
| care of himself. and I would not con-
slider that any contract he might make
| would be binding. let alone a marriage
| contract. ! know his mother n sis
ter and they are both crazy. The sister
is like him inc the mother Is a ravins
maniac and is dangerous at times"