The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-07-23
ANACONDA NEWS.
ANOTHER CLAIMS HER
Whose Wife Is Lydia Adeline
Maitland, Alias LucasP
HERS A STRANGE STORY
|
man VINO Claims Her as Wife Appears
to Resist Lucas Suit to Estab-
lish Common Law
Marriage.
HERS A STRANGE STORY

1t is strange story of love and pas
sion and hate that is wound through
the warp and woof of the sensational
Lucas case now dragging it's way
through the courts.
There was enacted a dramatic chap
ter in it yesterday when Richard Will
lam Gillespie, a new figure in the liti-
cation, appeared on the scene claiming
to be the only true and lawful husband
of Lydia Z. Lucas, whom Charles Fl
Lucas has made defendant in an action
to establish the validity of a common
law marriage.
The woman. after five years of life
with Lucas, left him for Gillespie, mar
fled the latter, lived with him six
months and then fed, going back to
her. baby children, her mother love
proving stronger than passion
Lucas, by his action in court, is seek
lns 70 ESTABLISH the legitimacy of those
children, while the defendant appears
Dy her apathetic attitude in the case, to
FAVOR his design. But Gillespie now
comes, asserting his marriage and
claiming the woman.
was ever case like it in Mon
tana?
rms Lucas case is the one in which
vigorous endeavor was made to sup
press the facts last month when it was
nfst MED. The papers in the action
were Withdrawn from the files of the
district court. Yesterday Standard
reporter secured access to them, how
ever together with new document in
the case, filed only yesterday
Ihe complaint, though it never saw
the light of publicity was fled with
the clerk of the district court about the
middle of last month. In it Mr.. Lucas
set forth that in May, 1898. at Chicago,
ne and Lydia E. Lucas, with intent to
become man and wife, lived and cohab-
tied together and held themselves out
to the world as married couple They
continued so to do, the complaint al
leges, until June, 1898. when the de-
PENDANT left the plaintiff, denied the
marriage relation and departed from
him.
TWO children are the fruit of their
union, boy. Lilas Lucas. aged years,
and a girl, Della M. Lucas. aged 3
years. The plaintiff prayed that the
marriage be declared legal. filing his
SUIT under a state statute which pro- ,
Vides that where one party MES a.
marriage the other may bring suit to
have it declared legal. James NJ. S mp
son appeared as attorney for Mr.. Lu-
cas-, the plaintiff
The defendant, by her at ornev, f.
SchatnikoW,r came in with o1mll
resistance. filing a demurrer, alleging
the complaint did not state facts suffi-
cient to constitute a cause of action
Judge Napton overruled tie demurrer
and allowed the defendant 80 days il
which to make answer
Thursday Of last week The 80 DAYS
expired and default was ertr,ed no
answer having been filed. That sam
Gr ID i..lN 4
in the city and took legal c unset Yes
terday morning he was in the district
court room with Duffy & Casey, his at
torneys. and filed an affidavit and offer
to answer in the case on his own be-
half. The affidavit which embra ces the
answer, makes sweeping denial of the
allegations contained in the complaint
that Mr.. and Mrs. Lucas had lived to-
eether as man and wife. The document
goes on to say that the woman's true
name up to June "a, 1898. was LYDIA
Adeline Maitland that she and the af-
FAINT, Gillespie. We're on that date sin
gle and competent to contract marriage
and that they on June "a 1894. did
marry at Lethbridge, Northwest Ter
ritory, Canada. A copy of the certifl-
cate was annexed to the document 1t
showed the ceremony was performed
by w. Ridley Beal. a priest of tie
Church of England, and that the
groom residence was Ma pie creek and
brides Cooley, points in the vicinity of
Lethbridge. The witness was Georena
Real, presumably wife of the clergy
man. This marriage never having been
dissolved, the affiant desires the prayer
Of Lucas denied.
Here the matter rests for the present.
1T will probably come up Tuesday or
Saturday of this week, when the dis
trct court sits again.
Some time after the time Lucas al
leges he and the defendant began to live |
together as man and wife, they re- |
moved to the Northwest terri tor es |
where the woman met Gillespie and !
married him, leaving Lucas.
Soon after that Lucas removed to |
Deer Lodge county, taking lis chi'- |
dren with him. Gillespie and Mrs Gil |
lespie Cor Lucas, also came to Mon |
tana, making Their home in Choteau |
county.
The woman remained with HIM OILY !
six months. Then she removed to Deer |
Lodge, where she now lives having |
gene to her children at once. Through |