Sunday Washington globe., 1902-02-09
AN OUTRAGE
The Treatment of the Mother
in-Law Of Mrs. Ada Dennis.
ORDERED TO LEAVE
The X Street Residence Where for
Fifteen Years She Has Been the
Manager and Happy Companion of
Mrs. Dennis-The Administrators,
Mrs. Merchant. Sister of Boss Shep-
herd, Insists ON Her Removal.

hGANAt AHHASNH uh alNA AAEAnOhNas
The most pathetic developments in the
Mrs. Ada Dennis assault case came to light
the past week in an order issued by Mrs.
Merchant administrators of Mrs. Ada
Dennis, to the mother-in-law OF the latter to
move from the Dennis residence, lII7
street northwest. For fifteen years the in
jured woman and her mother in-law have
lived together in amity and happiness.
There never was a cross word exchanged
between them. The old lady managed the
household affairs and Mrs. Dennis attended
solely to her dressmaking establishment.
When the husband of the elder lady died
her son, Walter Dennis, husband Of Mrs
Ada Denusl proposed that his mother
should break up her establishment and live
with himself aud wife. This she did, bring
ing with her a great portion of the present
furniture in the residence at X street be
sides over S2,ooo in cash This sum has
been all expended in keeping the house
and the old lady is now without a dollar
besides being unremunerated for her fifteen
years Of housekeeping
The nephew of the injured woman who
came to Washington after the assault. con
seuted to the appointment Of an admins
TRAITOR for Mrs. Dennis property and bust
ness Such an appointment has no pre-
cedeut in the practice of the courts, mas
much as Mrs. Ada Dennis is neither dead,
a lunatic or a criminal, the only three stu.
ations or contingencies warrauting the ap-
pointment of an administrator.
Mrs, Merchant, however. was appointed,
and from her first visit to the X street resi-
dence of Mrs. Dennis she has taken an
antipathy to the old lady. Mrs. Merchant is
a sister Of the notorious or celebrated Boss
Shepherd, to whom Washington is in
debted for being the best severed city in
America besides being pulled out Of the
mud and made beautiful She is justly proud
of rhe relationship and Of the Shepherd
blood which flows in her veins, and she las
not been backward in npressing this fact
on poor, old Mrs Dennis Indeed Mrs
Merchant has repeatedly referred to the fact
that she is a Shepherd in her controversies
with. the old lady, which Of itself calls for
no special reproof or criticism. But when
Mrs. Merchant looks significantly at the
feeble mother-in.iaw of Mrs Ada Dennis
and says
1t was a feeble arm that struck the blow
while Ada slept" the inference is too direct
~ N9NdRG AAE meaning AuAEuuCQt VIZ kudL
the mother-inlaw Is under suspicion of
having perpetrated the horrible crime.
This is shocking, and the roomers and
boarders in the Dennis residence with
whom the GLOBE has talked about the mat
ter resent such uucalled for insinuations
and are uudisguisedly indignant
Mrs. Merchant has visited the residence
daily since her appointment as admiuistra-
ftru, 4 4
the most intense suffering So mucL So in
fact, that she has lately locked herself in
her room during Mrs Merchants visits.
Mrs. Merchant has called her "imperti-
nent" for locking the doors of interior
rooms not in use and peremptorily de-
manded that they be left opened She has
reproached her so much and referred to the
feeble arm which struck the blow" so
often aud so significantly that the old lady
now breads to meet her at all.
The past week Mrs. Merchant brought
things to a climax by ordering the old
lady to leave the house and live else
where or wherever she could find shelter.
Where the old lady will find shelter does
nos concern Mrs. Merchant But the old
lady owns more than one half the furniture
in the house (which Mrs. Merchant dis
putes) besides she has expended $4,000 in
keeping up the table ETC.. the past fifteen
years, and she has drawn no wages for her
services. These facts her attorney has con
sidered aud he has instructed her not to
move but on the contrary to lock the door
on Mrs. Merchant
It does seem to the GLOBE that old Mrs.
Dennis has some rights in the premises
which Mrs. Merchant must consider and
respect. II does seem cruel that after ff-
teen years of a happy and peaceful life with
her daughter-iu-law, Mrs Ada Dennis with
whom she never exchanged a cross word,
and-whose interests she served with rare
fidelity and devotion, she should now, while
that daughterin-aw is in the throes of
death and unable to protest against the
cruelty, be thrown out upon the cold char
ities Of the world without dollar compen-
sauon for her services and utterly impov-
erished by reason Of the expenditure of her
savings Of over $4,000 while managing the
domestic affairs of her daughter-in-law.
Mrs Ada Dennis. Surely there must be
some law which will prevent this outrage
against humanity. That the poor old ladv
is In any way involved in the murderous
assault of Mrs Ada Dennis is too absurd
for even conception, her feebleness alone.
leaving out the want Of motive, and the
happy relations which existed between
them, preventing such a thing.
Mrs Merchant, whose husband Is a de-
partment official will not be able to dis
possess old Mrs. Dennis without resort 70
the law, and if any law is outrageous
enough to throw her out on the street IL
ought to be burned with birthstone from of
the statute books.
The GLOBE, il need hardly be stated. ex
clusively presents the foregoing facts to the
public, the sleepy daily papers will catch
on in due time.