Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1903-09-14
MRS. KEALEY'S SIEGE.
STILL HOLDS THE FORT AND RESISTS
GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY.
A Large Crowd Expected Her Removal From
The Building Yesterday. But
Were GTeatIy Dis
appointed.

Everybody expected Mrs. kealey TO
be conquered by the government author
tiles yesterday. and everybody was dis
appointed. A large crowd had collected
| opposite her house and in front of the
Naval Academy gate, through which she
was expected to pass on her way TO
church yesterday morning.
Mrs. kealey circumvented the plan of
the government authorities to secure a
| peaceful possession of the house that she
now occupies in the new grounds of the
Naval Academy. and did not attend
| church yesterday as She has done regu-
larly on Sunday mornings ever since the
siege began II was expected she would
follow her usual custom and the two
marines who were last week placed on
sentinel duty about the house were given
instructions not TO allow Mrs. kealey TO
enter the Academy grounds after she
had once left them and TO immediately
notify group OF workmen to proceed to
demolish the old house.
The government does not desire 10 Law
violent hands on woman, and strict
orders have been issued that no physical
force is to be used to dispossess her. For
five days her water supply has been cut
off, and it seems that she is ready to die
in her castle to maintain her rights as she
conceives them to be. Her stand is to
remain in possession until the government
pays her for the house. When one of the
sentinels passed by the besieged house
yesterday morning the inmate, evidently
rea izing that she had skillfully avoided
falling into trap, derisively signaled an
epithet to him from a partly opened
window and then slammed the shutter
and presented herself no more that day.
Saturday evening as some curious per-
son who was looking at the house hap
pened TO draw very near to ii, Mrs.
Kealey hurled heavy piece of bedroom
china at him. and made it plain that She
is maintaining a relentless vigil. How
she manages to subsist in view of the close
siege to which her house is subjected is
a mystery. The sentinels have orders to
allow no one to enter the house, and TO
refuse ~ allow'- Mrs. Kealey to return to
it after she has once Iefs. The only
source from which she can get water is a
spigot near the house and this the senti-
mel has carefully guarded. The sentry
h1Ao OSSA 0OAbAId ettA0 NOfHInunlCd-
tion from the outside is forbidden.
The story of her deIusion is pitiful. In
1892, her husband. John Kealey. died
without will. He was about to make a
will leaving her all his property, but died
before the paper was drawn. MIR. Kealey
left no children, and his heirs at-law were
John T., Mary A. and James FL. MulhaIl,
of New York. The estate was divided,
and house on the lot where the present
house stands was assigned to Mrs. Kealey
as part of her dover. After the estate
was divided it was found that there was
so much debt that some of the property
had to be sold to pay it. Mrs. kealeys
house was one of the houses that were
sold. and John L. Mulhall bought it in.
In the meantime, the old house had
burned down, Mrs. Kealey narrowly
escaping with her life, and the present
one was built on the site of the old. Mrs.
kealey let the house be sold for delin-
quent taxes and Mr.. Mullhall bought the
house for the second time, but he could
never get Mrs. Kealey out. Even the
sheriff of the county, whose powers were
invoked in Mr.. Mulhalls behalf. failed
to evict this sturdy party in possession
When the property was condemned by
the government for the uses of the Naval
Academy, the legal title being in Mr..
Mulhall. the government paid him the
amount awarded for the property.