The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-05-25

spired with her husband to get the old
mans estate; that she fell purposely in
front of his house. so she could be car
ried in and make love to him. They say
she has written to Pobe that the old man
wouldn't last two years; that she has
sent Pobe money.
Pabe refuses to say whether she is his
wife or not. She denies it. She owns that
she wrote indiscreet notes to young men.
One of these she gave to one of Van
Ness old servants, Mary East Mary
East gave it to a lawyer and denounced
the young wife to her husband The old
man got the compromising letter back,
disheleved the old servant, discharged her
and stuck by his young wife.
No certificate of the marriage of Mrs
Van Ness and Pobe can be found The
lawyers who tried TO find it say that it
was d comInon-law marriage.
Against the advice of most of his friends
Van Ness stays by his young wife, be-
neving in her implicitly
Here is the story in greater detail:
Cold blooded lawyers say that pretty,
girlish Alice Wood married Millionaire
V
she had already married young MEDICAL
student secretly They anege that she
conspired with him to marry the old man,
gel his property, and enjoy themselves
with 1t after his death. They produce
affidavits declaring that the girl stated
that The old man could not live more than
two years.
In reply to these charges Mr.. Van Ness
and his young wife declare that they are
the victims of an attempt to blackmau
Thty say they have evidence to show that
an attempt was made to poison Mrs. Van
Ness to get her out Of theway.
In an interview with a reporter at his
home, No. 29S Clinton street, Brooklyn,
George Otto Pobe would not deny or af-
firm his marriage tc Mrs. Van Ness.
lie did say as the reporter entered his
room and remarked that he had come to
find out about the supposed marriage:
Il can't say whether you will find the
record or not"
Tn present Mrs. Van Ness looks and
acts like a healthy schoolgirl. There is
nothing of the conventional adventures
type about her. She talked of her mar
riage to a reporter with perfect frank
ness.
She is stopping with her husband, Cor
neliUs II. Van Ness. in luxurious apart
ments in the Darlington, in West Twenty
seventh street. She regulates with scorn
and indignation the charges that she is
one Of a band of cOnspirators who plotted,
through her agency, to get the $1,000 600
and more which Mr. Van Ness inherited
J,Fr
The terms of this will provided that the
estate, valued at s1,000,C0O in personal
property and $4,000 more in real estate.
which together yield an income exceeding
$1,000 per year, should be divided among
the three nearest relatives of the late
Mrs. Van Ness. These relative are Har-'
riet and Marie Harmon, IS and II years
old respectively, the daughters of Frank
D. Harmon, a lawyer of this city, and
Louise Van Ness Day, their cousin.
Lawyer Charles Blandy, who represents
the plaintiff in the action, says that Mr..
Van Ness has been made the victim of
conspirators 10 get his fortune through
his marriage to his girl wife. Mr.. Van
Ness is s. years old. His wife is barely 20
The lawyer says this girl IS an adventur-
wal. in New York, made his acquaintance
and proposed marriage 10 him.
cur contention said Mr.. Blandy. in
court. is that Mr. Van Ness was in
structed by his wife on her death bed to
keep the estate intact and divide it at his
death into three parts. one for each of
his nearest relatives. When she was
drawing Up her will she started to insert
a clause giving Mr.. Van Ness merely a
life interest in the estate.
He besged her not to do this. He
begged her to trust him to carry out her
wishes. ana promised faithfully to see
draw atlst thtetaoiet aoieJaoi etaointa eta
that they were respected.
This request is all that gives Us any
standing in court. and We expect to prove
that it was made. We have a decision in
our favor in a case where young woman
had some money in her own right told
her father one day that she wanted TO
MAKE her viii. Her father asked her why.
she replied that she wished 70 bequeath
the money 10 a friend. Her father asked
her not 10 make the will. as ii was IN
necessary, and promised 10 carry out her
wishes himself. After the girls death he
disregarded the promise. The young man
10 whom the girl wished to leave the
money brought suit for it and won his
case. although there was no written evi-
dence Of a VIII. The court held that the
girls request 10 her father made him a
trustee just as If she had appointed him
SO under q formal will
The plaintiffs in this action against
NJ. Van Ness do not care how he spends
his income OF more than $4,000 a year.
/ This income Is ample for all his needs
He has never spent more than 500
year in MS lie for living expenses. They
have evidence, however. that he has been
diSposias Of some security forming na-,
Of the estate This. II is contended, he
has no right to- do under the Nil
Although the VIII does not expressly statA
/ that he has only 4 life interest in the e.
Sate. its wording makes it clear that ms
Is what the late Mrs Van Ne.s Intended
Il S our work as lawyers 10 Try "a show
what was the real intention in makinr
The wiz
As result o. the acton brought by
Frank D. Harmon on behalf Of bis