The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-01-15
Al ICE WEBB-DUKE
TELLS Of HER PAST
An Early EIopement and
Twice Divorced.
LIFE AS A PROMOTER
Why Masterson Sought to End Her
Life With Bullet. Duke Says I'm
less She Can Disproye the
Charges the Marriage Must
Be knnuIled.
Especial to News and Observer

| Especial to News and Observer
! New York, Jan. 14.-MrS. Brodie
L. Duke made public statement this
| afternoon with reference to her meet
! ing with and marriage to Brodie Duke.
She showed bank books and photo
graphs in evidence of her assertion
| that the meeting with the tobacco man
was the result of a business project
to cultivate and raise tobacco in Texas,
| in which she herself had sunk $21,-
| 600 and for which she needed $18,500
more to develop the property further.
AS 10 my past life, said Mrs.
! Duke, Il wish to say | was never any
mans mistress. / was born Alice l..
! Webb, near Buffalo, thirty seven years
/ ago. My father, VIM. Webb was a
| retired lawyer. My mother was Helen
| T.. Chapman, whose father was pro-
! fessor OF languages in the university
at New London.
when twelve years old / came to
| New oYrk and lived at the boarding
| house kept by Mrs. Desplaines. I
| stayed there until l was sixteen.
My first matrimony experience was
| when | ran away with George w.
| Hopknson in 1887. In 1895 that
| marriage was annulled In 1897, I
married E. NJ. Powell, in Chicago.
| subsequently got a divorce from him
| on the grounds of adultery"
Dragged From Bed and Shot AT.
why did Murat Masterson once
| try TO shoot your"
He thought that l had certain pa
pers in a Mexican land deal and he
came to my house, dragged me out
of bed and rtied to shoot me.
brought to Mr.. Duke more money
than he ever gave me"
Where did you get all your
monc-?"
Il made it as promoter in Chica-
so. | am still a promoter | can
prove at any time that my tobacco
fields are in splendid shape and that
] have already raised a big crop
there"
My troubles began from the mo-
ment l came here and tried TO get
some one with capital to help me de-
velop the lands. / went to Clarence
Master and II Mr.. Thompson and ask
ed me TO suggest some one. They
suggested the Dukes. / refused. /
had no use for trust people. They
said that Brodie Duke was outside of
the trust, and | telegraphed Mr. Duke
at Durham, \. c.. asking him to come
and See me in New York. He came
as soon as possible. and after we had
gone we'll over the ground he agreed
to finance the undertaking.
Three days after we met he ask ed
me TO marry him, l refused but he
never quit bothering me until Decem-
Der 10. when / married him.
In the meantime | asked him to
sing an agreement that | would have
no interest in his property if he should
die, save what came out of my Texas
IN
make an agreement
MIS-. Duke said that all the recent
charges against her and of her alleg-
Ell checkered career We're false.
Duke of Sound Mind.
w. G.. Bramharl, private secretary
for Duke, gave out the following state
ment: Mr.. Duke is as sound minded
as any man. He has just learned of
the charges against his wife and will
insist that a most drastic investigation
be made. If one half of them prove
to be true his marriage to Mrs. Duke
will be annulled. Until her character
is completely cleared, if it can be
cleared, he will refuse to see her OF
to have anything to do with her or her
legal representatives.
LAS far as / know Mrs. Duke has
obtained no large sums of money
from Mr. Duke. We have received u
score of letters from bankers anG
business men in Durham offering their
Testimony as to Mr. Dukes sanity but
their presence will not be necessary.
Was He Dragged? Letter to Father.
1t has been learned that the three
experts who examined Mr.. Duke have
found that he is in full possession Of
his mental faculties. On the theory
that he was drugged at the time OF
his marriage to Alice Webb. the three
doctors will again examine him before
next Thursday, on which day he is 10
appear in court again.
The following letter was sent oy
Brodie L. Duke three days before his
committal to his father:
My Dear Father:-"I have felt con-
siderable remorse at not having called
to see you during my short visit home,
| drop these few lines to inform YOU
that the new responsibilities which L
have assumed have not caused me the
least to disregard or forget my obi
cations to you. The little woman OF
my choice mas proved all that [ could
anticipate or expect: in fact the more
l see and know of her, the more de
lighted | am at what | have done. I
want to assure you that when we come
home and when you know her, you
will agree with me that i have made
no mistake. We expect to leave the
latter part of the week for Texas.
where she has some considerable in
terest Whic hrequireS her attention.
which interest is congenial and identi-
cal with my own. l hope that what I
have done will have no tendency TO
humiliate or trouble you. and / trust