Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-10-03
Seoal 21ottces.
STATE OF VERMONT,
ADDISON COUNTY, S. 5.

ADDISON COUNTY, S. S.i
Mabel Anna Halter, of Middlebury in said
county, having filed her petition to the Addi-
bury, within and for said County of Addison |
on the first Tuesday of December, A. ID. 1902,
against George Christian Halter, now or for.
merry of New York City in the county and |
state of New York setting forth in substance |
as follows that she is the lawful wife of the
respondent therein. and that at the CITY OF
New York in the county and state OF New |
York, on the 10th day of March, in the year
one thousand nine hundred she was duly anu
lawfully united in marriage with said George |
Christian Halter by Rev. o. u Houghton,
rector of the church of the 1ransiguration, |
then Il regularly ordained minister of the |
gospel of the Protestant Episcopal church., |
and then and there engaged in the preaching
of the gospel and duly authorized to solemn,
ize marriages under the laws of the state of |
New York. AT the time of said marriage,
your petitioner doing business as
trained nurse in said City of New York earn
ing from ten TO twenty dollars per week win
board and the respondent was an educated
physician and surgeon then engaged and IN
practice ut the Opthalmc hospital in sald
New York city ana was apparently i'll flour
ishing circumstances and frequently assured
the petitioner that he was earning an income
amply sufficient for their support.
They lived together as husband ana w1fe IN
said City of New York from their marriage
until the 2sth day of July A. d. 1900 when the
respondent deserted the petitioner, rs herein
set forth During this little more than four
and one half months, excepting about two
weeks when they were on their wedding trip
and a short visit of the petitioner to her par
ents, the parties lived together in different
boarding houses selected by the respondent
in said city Of New York, and both worked at
their respective business, and both. until
towards the last contributed toward the gem
eral expenses. The petitioners health was
poor, and she was not fairly able to work.
but she did work whenever she had work TO
do in her line, which was nearly all the time,
During said period of their so living togei ler
the respondent almost from the first treated
the petitioner with great ana lntoleraDte
severity and cruelty; that she earned plenty
of money for her own support, sometimes as
high as thirty dolats per week, all which
money the respondent took from her, first
with her consent, and later by force, ana
when she, oeing absolutely needy, finally be-
gan to secrete her earnings from him, he
would force them from her by the Nllest
means such as examining his own dirty
stockings into her mouth until she would
vomit ana faint; by this means he would get
usually, the whole of her weekly pay, some
times sparing her a very small part.
During the latter period the respondent
would often be absent for two or three days
and nights ut a time without letting the petit
toner know his whereabouts, and as she be
lieves and has reason to believe Keeping
company and spending her earnings with
dissoute persons of both sexes; on two oc-
casions the petitioner saw him, once on the
street and once in restaurant, in company
with woman unknown to the petitioner on
each occasion; on another occasion, in the
night time, the respondent returned to their
rooms where the petitioner was IN ped up
three flights ana brought into their bed
room, the respondent being himself very
much intoxicated, a strange woman. During
pondent furnished nothing toward their com
mon support, the entire expense thereof be-
ing pald out of the earnings of the petitioner,
who was employed by different physicians
on Jobs in her profession as nurse. At last,
after respondent had been away beyond
sight or knowledge of the petitioner for three
days, and while the petitioner was out look
ing for employment, the respondent came to
their rooms and took away all the petition
er's portable articles of value, including her
entire wardrobe, excepting what she was
then wearing, ana other small articles, and
carried them away. He had previously
taken, unbeknOwn to the petitioner, and by
stealth, her gold watch given her by her par,
ents and chain, her silver and tortoise shell
toilet set and diamond and opal ring,
present from the respondent himself; when
he went away three days before this he took
all the money in the house earned by the
petitioner, except fifteen cents. so that the
petitioner after this last visit, was left with
out a cent of money and without any means
to raise cent. She had n small trunk in
which We're a few articles, but the landlady
ordered her to leave the house, refused Ler
breah fast seized this little trunk for rent, as
she said, and permitted her to go into the
street in these circumstances of utter destitu
ton She had ~ relatives in New York and
no friends nearer than Brooklyn where lived
one Mis- Pierce of whom the petitioner
thought she could obtain relief and she
started to walk from this boarding house on
f1nd It. ana Lexington Ave- to her friends
place in Brooklyn, n distance of some ten
miles. she was utterly exhausted when she
reached the bridge, about four p. M. she
lack of the necessary tOll of two cents, but
borrowed the same of policeman, and pro
ceeded to her friends house, where she wa,
kindly received. After the petitioners ar
rival at the home of Mss Pierce in Brooklyn
that lady visited the respondent at his Office
in New York an urged him to do something
for the relief OF his wife, who, she said was
at her home in Brooklyn, sick and in grea
distress The respondent replied that h,
would never do anything for his wife, ano
that he never wanted to see her again. The
petitioner wrote him about week later. u
has never since seen nor heard anything
from III u, ana he Is now IN parts to nel
wholly unknown.
That since her return to Vermont on Au
gust :, 1900, your petitioner has continuously
resided with her parents in the village o.
Middlebury, supporting herself AMI receiv
ing no support nor offer of support from the
respondent.
Wherefore the petitioner AYERS that the re
spondent has treated her with intolerabl,
severity and has, while in possession of sufh
Gent means, wantonly, cruelty anG withou
cause refused to support her. the petitioner
and praying that decree of dissolution from
the bonds of matrimony and for alimony
may be granted to the petitioner against thu
respondent; and that the respondent be sum
mohed to appear and answer this petition
September, A ID. 1902 and is signed ana sworI
to by the petitioner.
And it it appearing that the said Georg,
Christian Halter is without this state, so tina
said petition cannot be served upon him, it il
ordered that he be summoned to appear ant
answer the foregoing petition on the frs
day of the next stated term of said Addison
County Court to be held nj Middlebury within
and for said county on the first Tuesday o
December A. u. 1902, by the publication o
this order, in the hiddlebury Register
newspaper published mt said Middlebury
three weeks successfully, the last of whicl
publications to be at least six weeks befor
said term of court.
Dated at Middlebury aforesaid, this 2it
day OF September a. ID. 1902.
RUFUS WAINWRIGHT, Clerk.
f. W. THOMAS AND W. IL. BLISS,
Attorneys for Petitioner. 80