The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-02-16
ROMANCE 5 SAD END
Young Millionaire White
Loved Little Lucy Bartlett.
POOR BUT so VERY PRETTY
Elopement; Bliss; Another
Woman; Divorce Court
POOR BUT so VERY PRETTY

| New York. Feb. 15,-The Journal pub
fishes the following under a Boston date
line: Six years ago R. H. White. Jr.. the
son and namesake of the multi-mirion-
ARE Boston merchant, braved his fathers
displeasure, dehed threats of disinherl-
| lance and eloped with Lucy Bartlett, a
young errand girl employed in his fathers
great store, because he loved her and be-
cause life was nothing to him without
her.
| Five weeks ago she parted from her
husband as a elimination of trouble that
| has been brewing for year, and she has
asked the Probate Court for separate
maintenance. Her petition was filed on
January l and made returnable on jan
! uary IL. On that date a continuance was
secured to some date not definitely decid-
ed upon. The hearing will be sensational
in is expected, for in Mrs. Whites petit
ton she alleges her husband to have been
guilty OF extreme cruelty and abuse, and
that he has neglected her and refused to
provide suitable maintenance for her. In
addition Mrs. White alleges unfaithful-
ness with divers women whose names are
not mentioned
Thus in the grist wheel of the courts
will be ground out the closing chapters
of romance born and developed under
the most fertile and promising conditions
and whose end no one expected would be
other than happy one. The institution
Of these court proceedings has refreshed
he 10 a
tons under which young Whites ardent
courtship of the little shop girl was end
edin sensational runaway marriage.
The story dates back to 1898, when Lucy
Bartlett, chit of girl of fifteen years,
went into the employ of r. H. White &
Co. as errand girl to aid her two sisters
in the support of her widowed mother.
She was small and Of slender form, and
with particularly sweet childish face.
even for her age. with a complexion of
pink and white long golden hair and soft
blue eyes. Young White was at this time
getting practical knowledge of his faith
er's business and was acting as superin-
tendedt of the store. The little shop
girls duties brought her into constant
contact with him, and from the first he
was attracted to her. His attentions and
Kindness were most marked, and finally
got so they became a matter of comment
about the store where gossip involving
one of their number spreads like wildfre
among the employees.
What made these attentions the more
noticeable, the more talked of, was the
fact that they were the first that Ralph
White had ever shown to any Of his faith
er's women employees. For the hundreds
and hundreds of as beautiful and as bril-
liant young women as are to be found
anywhere in the country, working at the
counters of this big establishment he had
no eyes. They were to him simply parts
of a great business machine. and he re-
garded them only in the light OF their
business value He was regarded as cold.
unimpressionable, and devoted to business
like his successful father His only weak
ness was hobby for physical culture
To this he devoted all his spare time and
interest. By his application he reached
such a stage of physical development that
he was known in athletic circles as the
Amateur Sandow." In fact at one time
an attempt was made to arrange a con-
test of strength between Sandow and
II.
At any time you could talk to Ralph
on physical culture or business, and find
ready listener and a quick response,
but other topics appeared 10 have but
passing interest for him. That was until
Lucy Bartlett came into his life. Then
there was a change. Interest in physical
culture took a slump. Ralph no longer
had his photographs taken in Sampson
ian positions two or three times a week
to show the development Of some new set
of muscles or of the enlargement of the
old ones. The nights saw him not so
frequently at the Gym" No. he was
spending his evenings in the more gentle
pursuit Of courtship. Miss Bartlett, to
whom Ralph Whites attentions were #
first very distasteful came TO look upon
them in different light, and II was not
long before he was her constant escort
from work, and to the various places OF
amusement she cared TO attend. In the
Spring of 1894. on any pleasant evening
Ralph and Lucy would be found on the
steps of her modest South Boston home
as happy as could be imagined Ralph
was a democratic fellow. was soon on
chummy terms with the policeman and
INC l4f4S sDtAos anu A1El Ills ifJAi'4t-t J4s
strength 70 DO errands TO the grocery ard
provision stores for Lucy and her mother,
and was generally agreeable
Along in April Rolph asked Mrs. Bart
lett for permission 10 marry Lucy. Mrs.
Bartlett was reluctant al first. as she be-
ieved that her daughter. Just approach
ing seventeen, was TOO young. Ralph
pleaded 50 hard and vel that Mrs. Bart
lett gave her consent on condition that
the engagement should be q two years
duration. At this period Lucy gave up
her position in p II. Whites % take care
Of her younger sister who was deep n
consumption and who has since died. The
girls in the store attributed the leaving 20
a different cause. and wove a romantic |
story that Lucy had let at the request
Of Ralph and was 10 be sent to a board |