Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-05-14
WOMEN WHO POSED AS MEN
Forty-three Known to Have Sueees sfulIy
Main tanned Disguise.


Within a wear six women have been
discovered in America alone, who
have successfully masqueraded as
men; have gone through a legal
form of marriage and even posed as
the fathers of families. Upwards of
a score of similar cases have come
to public attention recently in differ
ent parts of the world. There have
been forty-three instances of women
posing as husbands within the last
ten years. One medical authority
claims that one woman i'm every 5000
is victim of this peculiar mania.
Two new instances have been add
ed recently to the amazing list of
women WHO have lived and died dis
guised as men. In both cases the
women had been married" and had
reared and educated children.
william Howard" really Alice c.
Howard. of Canandaigua, y. Y, who
died in her home. surrounded by her
family. ON March % last. leaves
unique. record. She had lived with
her wife" continuously since their
formal wedding. performed forty
years ago. Her marriage certificate
decorated the walls of her home to
the time of her death. She left
three children. of whom she profess
ed to he very fond.
In the case of George Green. who
died recently ia Petersburg. Va. af
fer incorporating for sixty years as
a woman. new light is thrown upon
the family relation of such a union.
The Green woman had been married
for thirty-five years. She was of Eng
fish birth and had worked at many
forms of manual labor requiring both
strength and courage. Several years
of her life were passed in the mines
of Pennsylvania.
She died at the age of ~, leaving a
widow. She had been regularly mar
ried by a Roman Catholic priest.
Many New Workers have not en-
tirely recovered from the chagrin of
the real sex of Murray
Hall. Here was a character widely
known, active in affairs, local pol
itician of prominence, the last fol
lowing in the world, it would seem,
for such an enterprise. She carried
on the difficult business of politics
for years without raising a suspicion,
drank and smoked with the boys"
and was an excellent judge of pretty
girls. She left a widow" and an
adopted daughter % years old. The
most careful search failed to throw
any light upon the Hall woman's
mysterious motives.
Within few weeks of Murray
Halls death still another case of this
nature, the woman by chance bearing
the same name attracted at
tention. Miss Caroline w. Hall. ii
will be remembered, wearing the
dress of man, and accompanied by
a wife, died suddenly on steamer
bound for New York. This Hall wo-
man was "A native Of Boston, where
she was well connected. According
to the confession of the wife the
two had travelled together all over
Europe without attracting the least
The Hall woman's family
were aware of the masquerade and
deeply depIored it, but had never been
able to dissuade her from her course
There is probably no more remark
able case of such deception than that
of the famous "Ghevalier Dion The
Chevalier was woman. butnot until
her death at the age of ~ years, af-
ter being almost continuously before
the public. was her secret discovered.
She became prominent in the court
of Louis XIV. held several public Of
fees. and was finally sent as the
kings diplomatic agent on an errand
of great Importance to the court of