Omaha daily bee., 1902-05-26
THEIR QUEER CoURTsHIP.
Most of II After Marriage and While
Divorce Suit Was Pending.

One of the prettiest romances in real life
with its principal scene laid in Mime
apolis has been completed at Evanston, ILL.,,
and the narrator can now say, land they
lived happily ever after"
Harold W. Bennett. one Of the chief act
ors in the romance, relates the Minneapolis
Tribune, was a Minneapolis boy, but he left
his native state a few years ago and took a
position in Chicago. While there he met
Irene M. Graves, a pretty young woman,
well connected. The young people we're
friendly and became fond of each other, but
there was no idea OF an engagement up TO
the time when Miss Graves went to st.
Paul to visit friends, early in 1899.
While the young woman was there Ben
nett took a run up home and then went
over to st. Paul to pay a visit to the young
woman. They met, and half In Jest, half In
earnest, a marriage was proposed and the
young people, without the knowledge Of
anyone, were married In ST. Paul February
5, 1899. After the ceremony they sep
srated with an agreement that no one
should know OF It until some future time,
and there the romance ended for a brief
time. Bennett went back to Chicago and
Miss Graves did also shortly afterward.
But while they kept silence, they cor
responded whenever they were separated
by distance. and all was well until a third
actor appeared In the shape Of the young
man the parents Of the young woman
wanted for her husband. Then In the COM
plications hat followed the Graves family
became aware Of the condition OF things
and there was trouble.
Pressure was brought to bear upon Ben
nett. and George L. Matchan and a young
\ fnrno W nnpaA1 nsuyta A.
bring divorce proceedings, one attorney APP
pearing for each. Bennett brought the
action in Hennepin county through Lewis
and Matchan appeared for the wife, The
cause Of the action was desertion and
Judge Harrison tried the case.
Now the peculiar part of 1t all was that
all the time that this was going on the
most loving letters were passing between
the young couple. Not silly epistles, but
lovely missives, filled with endearments
that were gems Of womanly and manly at
lection. Both were doing what they could
to please the old folks, but their hearts
cried out against their hard fate.
But for a judge with a keen eye to facts
the divorce might have followed and the
young woman have been mated to the
wrong man. But things shaped themselves
right after all. The two hearts that beat
as one cried out In letters, and one Of them
found Its way into court, so that in Judge
Harrison's findings he refused the divorce
on the ground that It appeared from his
reading OF human nature that the proceed
tngs were friendly and that the young peo-
pie were in the litigation to please the old
folks. So the divorce was denied.
Both the young couple were happy. They
wrote moro letters. They were more in
love than ever, and finally the parents re-
Tented and they were allowed to see each
other. The result is that they are 10 be
husband and wife after all, but in order to
keep the whole affair from becoming public
they were married just as II nothing had
happened. The ceremony took place at
Evanston, q suburb of Chicago.