Waterbury evening Democrat., 1905-03-24
DIVORCE MILL.

DIVORCE MILL. Tales of Woe Put Up Before Judge Case in Superior
 Court To-Day.
 Tales of terrible tanks was the OM that fabricated the wheels of the di- yorce mill before Judge Case in the su- perior court to-day. Philip Fitzpatrick was the defendant in the case of the day and Minnie F. was the plaintiff. Judge Peasley was her counsel On March ?, 1897, they were married, and on July 12,. 1904, the final separation. took place. Mrs Fitzpatrick now lives with her monther. Anna Proctor, Jew elry street, but when she left her hus. band she was living on North street. "I did not know before we married that he was drinking man, but it did not take me very long to find out af. terwards," said Mrs Fitzpatrick. He used to stay out nights till the saloons were closed,' she resumed, he, >Of course, being her husband, 'and some times he would not come home even then, for he would stay on the streets arguing. When he was refused money for drink he was very ugly, but when he got it he was all right" Mrs Fttz- patrick spoke quite positively.
 We lived near saloon and he worked in the Chase rolling mill, and he wore out path from the back door of our house to the saloon. Sundays and holidays he was drunk. He was drunk almost every night and though he was always able to get home, very often he was not able to go to bed.
 My baby was born on April 2, 1904, and for days before and after he was drunk. He wanted money to gamble with in the saloon, for he never gam bled for drink. Last May I left him because of his habits, but went back and left him finally in July. If he went to work feeling sick in the morn- ing he would take a bottle with him to the shop. He had prescription from Dr McLinden on the bottle."
 Mrs Proctor testified that she never saw so many half-pint whiskey fasks as in her daughters house. The day she became a grandmother Fitzpatrick drank a, case of ,heer, then went to the saloon and brought in a bottle of cider brandy and bottle of whfskey and drank these also. There were baskets of bottles all over the house.
 Anna Hull of North street, Alice Keaveney and Mary Deaga testified for the plaintiff. ...@
 Judge Case did not think women competent to be judges of intoxica ton, and he so informed Judge Peasley. "With the best of intentions, women make poor witnesses in matters of this kind. They make poor judges of the various stages of intoxication, and if you have any evidence from men. who make better judges, put it ons" said the court.
 So John A. Etlmondson, the under taker, was sworn and testified that he was at the Fitzpatrick house once or twice and saw the defendant intoxi- cated. He also saw the piles of half pint bottles. but could not say how long they had been accommodating.
 Dr McLAnden testified that he once gave the defendant an injection of morphine. but whether it was for chOlic or alcoholism he could not say.
 Judge Case did not think the evi- dence sufficient. It was too general and most of it was furnished by wo- men, who were poor judges, he said. of matters of this kind. He according ly adjourned the case to next Tuesday to give Judge Peasley time to get the necessary definite evidence.
 Lucia Deland asked for divorce from Peter Deland on the grounds of intolerable cruelty and intemperance. Attorney T. F. Lawlor presented this case. On March 19, 1881, the Delands were married, and two years ago Mrs Deland deemed 1t prudent to leave her husband. He was a carpenter and his favOrite trick of playfulness was to place his hammers and saws and chisels beside his bed nights, thereby keeping his wife in mortal terror of her life. Another favorite trick of his was to go to bed with bottle of whis- key. drink himself drunk and sleep himself sober again. He celebrated every pay day by getting fighting drunk. and when his money was all gone he drank on credit. Once or twice plaintiff left him on account of his sin. gular ideas of life, but he always in- duced her to return by the softness of his letters. When angry he usually pulled down the gas fixtures, and once when his wife was too i'll to prepare her own medicine he gave her eighteen 1lOSpS in one puln
 Two children were born to the De- lands, a daughter, 23, and a son, 21, who is in the navy and Is i'll and may die.
 Mrs Alice Peters, George L. Sick mund, Wilfred P. Colby, grocer. .-liv- ing at 73 Bank street, and Mrs Jennie Refill testified for the petitioner. Colby amazed the court by the statement that he saw the defendant drunk two or three times every week for the past two or three years. He qualified this statement afterward by tOning it down. This petition was granted on the grounds of intemperance. cruelty not being proved. Court then ad- journed to Tuesday morning.