Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1901-05-10
BEHIND THE BARS AGAIN.

Jury in Michgan-His Wife Sued
for Divorce-"Birds and Brothers."
Etc.
j. Henry Myers, of fragrant mem
DRY in Windham county, is heard from
again, this time behind the bars-ot
the iail-in Kalamazoo, Mich, where
he is charged with perjury. 5. f.
Masters. a lawyer of Kalamazoo, who
was in Brattleboro this week, had
been to Burlington to get the Official
record to show that Meyers was SEN
fenced to prison in the United states
circuit court for counterfeiting, ana
also to Windsor, to get the record from
the prison officials there. In the near
ing of a case in which his wife sought
to secure a divorce at Kalamazoo, My
ers stated under oath that he had
never been convicted of crime in Yer
mont and had never served term in
prison, Hence his arrest and the
charge of perjury.
j. Henry did not have the best OF
ancestry to start with. His father
was skipper, although he may have
never been on a ship. w. H. Myers,
the skipper. lived in South Wards
boro a few years ago, but he skipped
from there, leaving bills unpaid. He
was next heard from in Connecticut
where a similar story of skipping was
alleged. 1t was said in Connecticut
that he had a government position III
Washington, but one OF his creditors
failed to get a trace of him there
But to return to J. Henry. He de
veloped qups and quirks in his make
up at an early stage, and gained his
first notoriety as captain of the
UNITED Birds and Brothers. a band
of youthful counterfeiters in Jamaica.
Myers and a compaion fed from town
with a liveryman's team, going to
New York state. Myers was arrested
in Woburn, Mass, in short time,
and on being tried at Rutland was sen
fenced to IS months in prison
On completion of his sentence My
ers professed piety, and started in on
a movement to aid reformed prison
ers. He interested some worthy peo-
pie in his work and published a small
paper devoted to the prisoners aid
movement.
Myers ran the woodward in Brat
tleboro at one time. He was arrested
charged with assaulting a little girl
in Lebanon, n. H., but professed his
innocence and escaped punishment;
and later he was mixed up in an as
ing had been heard of him in several
years, until the news came from Kala-
mazoo The Kalamazoo Daily Tele-
graph of April u contained the fol
lowing account of Myers's appearance
in court there:
One of the most curious divorce
cases on record in Kalamazoo county
was in progress in the circuit court
today-that of Jennie |. Myers,
against her husband. j. Henry. 1t is
the result of a suit brought by the
wife on the ground of alleged cruelty
and non-support A. S. Frost ably
represents the wife, while the husband
is sticking up for No. in the first per
son singular.
Hypiotist,, minister, farmer and
magnetic healer, insurance writer and
fortune teller, J. Henry Myers of
ALAMO is one of the curious residents
or the county, and in his latest guise
of attorney is a revelation. His wife
was put on the stand this morning,
and the husband proceeded to cross
examine her after a manner new to
gods and men. He made amends for
the stored-up grievances of years of
possible curtain lectures by rafting
a small fire of questions at his spouse,
varying the entertainment with an Oc-
casional broadside of insinuatiOn. He
raked over her domestic economy, her
social relations and her wifely con-
duct generally, except where the court
or the opposing attorney put stopper
on his rather leading questions. He
spent most of the day at it.
The court had to put up with it and
spent most of the day listening to the
marital repartee. The contrast be
tween husband and wife was marked
The latter sat in the witness chair
a modest little woman, often sorely
put by her husbands freak questions
Myers sat before her a PARKWAY eX-
preston in his eyes, fluff of grayish
hair and light brown beard giving
an eccentric appearance to his face
His long form was sprawled out over
his chair in angles, his big necktie
hunched up under his chin and his
bright blue underwear protruded from
the sleeves around his lank wrists
His voice was soft and harmless, but
not so his intent, for many were the
little StratagemS he attempted to en-
tice his wife into a misstatement
Then he would grin most eXpressively
He did not get the better of her al
of the time by any means. At one
point the testimony touched on the
payment of rent for a certain month
Mrs. Myers thought it was unpaid
This dialogue followed:
Myers-"If a receipt for that rem
should be produced would it surprise
your"
Mrs. Myers-"If the farmer pro
duced the receipt | should not be
surprised; if you produced it"
Myers (triumphantly)-" would
be surprised"
Mrs. Myers-"I wouldn't give mucl
weight to it,"
Very often the husband would abou
exhaust a topic when the wife would
remember a point to her own advan
tage, and before Myers knew 1t, tn,
tables would be turned and he would
be answering questions. Their wran
gle would be stopped by the court ant
the case proceed.
The case is a peculiar one in man,
respects, Suit was brought by Mrs
Myers the 2Sth of last August, AM
Myers was enjoined from disturbing
her or visiting the premises pending
a settlement in the courts. This h
is alleged to have repeatedly broken
visiting the house and taking docu
ments and other things-so it is al
leged-that might prove of service t
him in his efforts to defeat his wifi
from getting a separation
Contempt proceedings against My