Omaha daily bee., 1902-02-18
FlCCI1ES APPEAR IN COURT
Nu. TiIE Tells Of Strange Manifestation,
Of the Lord
ALSO REFERS TO N1.eUts OF DEVIL
Leader OF sect Asserts that witnesses
Committed Perjury when They
Testified as to Her Mem
tai Condition.

Mrs. Sarah Figg. who entertained a
crowd in Judge Fawcett's court room all
yesterday with a dissertation on the mani
festAtions Of God and the intrigues OF the
devil, is the central figure in nine law
suits that are to be disposed Of In Douglas
and Sarpy counties this term Of court II
possible. The present suit IL one for 81 1000
damages for alleged malicious prosecution.
Mrs. Figg appearing as plaintiff. against
John p. Hanger, W. W. Wood and Albert
Donahoo. whom she accuses Of conspiring,
June 10, 1900 to deprive her Of her liberty
by securing her detention In a hospital Cor
i~nsene, from which she later secured re-
lease by hsbeas corpus proceedings.
The next suit. set for Wednesday before
Judge Estelle, is enc In which the parties
are the same and the amount 81, 900. which
Mrs. Figg claims as damages sustained
when she was tarred and feathered at
Gretna and forced, with her husband and
other member of their sect to migrate to
Bellevue.
Multiplicity Of Suits.
Among the other suits are two for ma
liclous prosecution. brought against the
same defendants and Jesse Reeves, by Mrs.
Figg and Mrs. Donahoo, wife of one OF the
CdSh abhihb SAsOVVs hIb. OOuu-
hoo is also to sue Mrs. Thomas Of South
Omaha. wife OF a street car motorman, for
Islander, the claim being 81. 200. Mrs. Wood
and Mira. Donahoo, though protesting that
they would gladly live with their husbands
IL the latter would come to Bellevue and
become Figgites. have commenced action
in Douglas county for divorce and Mrs.
Browning will take. the same course In
OdTUN COuuIYa rs EH
In retaliation Donahoo will sue Mrs. Figg
in Sarpy county for alienation of his wife's
affections. Wood he's already sued MI
Figg there for false Imprisonment and Sc
cured a $500 judgment, Flgg promptly trans
ferring his property to his wife. This lat
ter suit grew out OF, Woods arrest on a
charge OF participating in the tarring and
feathering. After his. arrest he prepared
to prove that he was in Fremont when that
spectacular Gretna affair occurred and the
Figgs Immediately withdrew their prosecu-
ton and paid the $50 court costs, explain
ing that the Lord had Commanded them not
to prosecute.
In the crowd that fills every seat in court
room No. 2, are delegations representing
the Figg sect and the opposition, made up
largely Of the husbands and relatives of
Mrs. Donahoo, Mrs. Wood, Mrs. Browning
ana other women VINO are said to have
been estranged from their families by their
allegiance to their new faith. In addi-
ton there are still to come, for the other
hearings, twenty or more Sarpy county wit
nesses and others, among whom is to be
Rev. Charles W. savidge OF Omaha, who
is expected to describe a religious. demon
stration of the Figgites that he once wit
messed, and also the members OF the board
OF insanity that recommended Mrs. Figgs'
detention in an asylum.
On the stand in the. morning Mrs. Figg
charged that practically all the witnesses
who had appeared against her at the hear
ing by the insanity aboard had p~erjured
themselves. She denied, TOO, the confes-
sions she is alleged "a haye made before
the board that she had danced about all
who came to the Figgite meetings and
would not enthuse, and had denounced them
as devils. She still repeats her assertions
concerning spiritual yfsitations, however,
stating that at such times the Lord puts
words into her mouth that she has to utter
with emphasis; that she remembers these
words alw; IS because they are from the
Lord, and that He healed her deformed
body.