The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-12-20
LAURA BIGGAR TESTIFlES
TELLS OF HER RELATIONS WITH
THE LATE MIR. BENNETT.
Says He Proposed to Her and They
Were Legally Married-Testimony
of Her Son and Others.

FREEHOLD, N. j., Dec. 19.-Dr. Hen
bricks, one of the defendants in the case
against Laura Biggar and others for al
legged conspiracy to get Henry NJ. Benefits
estate, was one of the witnesses at the trial
to-day. He said p. j. McNulty and Attor-
ney Watterson, of Pittsburg, called at the
Bayonne Sanatorium to see Miss Biggar
regarding the Bennett estate. The witness
said his only interest in the will was to
have it probated, and that at the time of
Mr.. McNulty's call the question was dis
cussed whether Miss Biggar would be bet
ter off as a common-law wife of Mr.. Ben
nett than in her present condition.
Willis Biggar, son of Miss Biggar, and
her former husband, ]. w. Mcconnell, an
actor, testified that his father, Mcconnell,
came from the West to see Mr.. Bennett
before the latter's death.
p. j. McNulty testified to his part in
employing Pittsburg detective to un-
earth the alleged conspiracy.
Laura Biggar took the witness stand and
swore that she was married to j. w. Nc
Connell, the father of the boy known as
Willis Biggar, fourteen or fifteen years ago.
On Thanksgiving day, 1897, Mr.. Bennett
proposed to her. He insisted there were
no obstacles III the way Oh their marriage.
Letters passed between them nearly every
day and she finally accepted him. She said
she consented to a quiet marriage because
she did not want the public to talk about
her.
Miss Biggar said that after the marriage
she and Mr.. Bennett lived together in New
York. After Mr.. Bennett was taken i'll
she had been in almost constant attendance
on him for eleven weeks and her health
broke down. When Mr.. Bennett died she
had TO go to sanatorum TO rest Miss
Biggar gave practically the same testi-
mony that her first husband. j. w. Nc
Connell, had given relative TO his visit
when he wanted TO take possession of their
child. She added that Mr.. Bennett had told
her that he would try TO arrange the mat
ter with her former husband, but that If il
came to a fight he would spend all he was
worth to retain the boy for her. Miss Big
gar said she had written half a dozen let
tiers 10 Stanton asking for a duplicate of
the marriage certificate. The original had
been destroyed by her husband during a
fit of anger. She had finally obtained a
duplicate, the offered in evidence.
Witness said she had not received a cent
from the Bennett estate and had no money
except that which she herself had earned.
She was then taken over the time between
the death of Bennett and the birth of the
child.
AS to the proceedings to establish her
claim to dover rights, Miss Biggar ex-
planned that the action was simply brought
to give her an opportunity to establish
the fact that she had been married and
that the action was abandoned as soon as
this was made a matter of record.
Under cross-examination she stated there
were no letters written by her to Bennett
or by Bennett to her in existence so far as
she knew. She had signed her name after
marriage as Laura Biggar and did the
same when she lived with her first hus-
band.
Miss Biggar denied that she had written
letter the purport OF which was: "Oh,
Molly. L wish papa would do something be-
fore something happens IL he dies now
will get nothing" After Miss Biggar's
testimony the court adjourned