The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-10-16
CONSFOCK BATTLES WITH ART
RAID on THE STUDENTS LEAGUE
THRESHED OUT IN COURT.

Purifier ADDSANrS with scared Feco 10
prosecute Girl Clerk Who Gave Out
Catalogue with UntAIlored Prints
-Dreaks LarEaIn and Reveals Name.
Anxhony Compd took appeared yesterday
heSore Magistrate Mayo in the Jefferson
Marl,et police count to prosecute q pretty
Dcle face i young woma n. whom.he accused
- assistin,R in the circulation OF the june
cataIo0ne OF the Art Students League.
cortain,ng tiotures Of a man and q woman
,r,,hor, eny clothes on. Mr.. Comstock's
60 nora eev,Tal scars, dne to a fall down
49, mtsps If n beef and beans restaurant In
Park row Iva week. and he was not so
vivorous az he usually is in the prosecution
Of young women
The Art stud 'nts' League was repre-
sentad by Lawyea' 4. c. Crowley and MI
Constock made an effort TO appear as
prosecutor and Judge at the same tlne'
He was checked in this ambition ny Magn-
trate Mayo. Half a dozen yONmS women
Of the league look,Hd things t9ey ana not
want to utter during the examination Oh
the witnesses.
An irreverent phot, ,grapher wanted to
take a snapshot Of CoIustock, and was not
cr.v.nted from doing SO. He remarked
that Adam and Eve did mot wear any cloth
ing worth mentioning Mr.. Comstock
thereupon remarked that that was before
the fall. and that since that date 1t was
NOT the proper thing to depict man or
woman except with fig leaves or ulsters or
togas.
The name Of the young woman accused
NV Mr.. Comstock was on the records az
Miss Anna Robinson. bat as not her
name, but it had been agreed between
Mr.. Comstook and Lawyer Crowley that
her real name should not be mentioned In
the proceedings. Mr.. Comstook did not
keep his end of the bargain.
The first witness was Mr. Comstock's
arent. Charles j. BamberGer. who testified
that he went into the rooms OF the Art
Students League, at 2i5 West Fnty-seventn
street, on August ? and found Miss Robin
son in charge Of a room on the lower hoor'
He asked for and obtained a catalogue.
or pamphlet, containing the two untalloroo
%uictures. He said he was accompanied by
Comstock and that they obtained from MISS
Robinson copies Of the catalogues.
Mr.. Comstock corroborated his agent,
saving also that Miss Robinson had said
the pamphlets were free TO anybody and
everybody who wanted them. After OBJ
taininv the catalogues Mr., Comstock told
Miss Robinson that he had "A search war.
rant emitting him to take possession OF
all the Catalogues III Tile IbOulTs DHO
him upstairs and made no objection to his
taking a lot of catalogues, including. ab out
a thousand that were addressed and ready
for distribution
had also found pictures Of two nude per-
sons that he had not disturbed, because he
realized that they might be Tor the use OF
artists. Magistrate Mayo suggested that
this had nothing to do with the case ana
Mr.. Comstock said no more about these
pictures.
The young woman; who was tremulous
and frightened. then testified. She sara
that she was merely an employee OF the
Art Shudents' League and that one OF her
duties was 70 give out catalogues 10 al
art students or those who were Interested
in art in a professional way, She declared
that abe had not said to Mr.. CoTnstock that
the catalogues were free 70 anybody and
everybody" she supposed that Mr.. Com
stock and Mr.. BaInberger were interested
in art and nae given the catalogues 70 them
ss she had to more than 500 other persons.
She said she had no intent to do wrong
and that il she thought she had been doing
so she certainly would not have gwen QUE
the catalogues.
trate a letter from Wilcox 70
the agent in charge of a Slb-station where
a number Of the catalogues were held up
authorizing the agent to let the Catalogues
pass, as the Assistant Postmaster-General
had decided that they wore mallable. Mr.
Comstock objected to the introduction OF
. this as evidence. The Ma gistrate promptly
admitted it and it was marked for identldca-
ton.
When Miss Robinson was turned over to
'Comstock he went at her with some snow
of savagoness, asking her for her right
name. She answered in a low and surprised
one that it was Anna Riebley. MIR. Crowley
got up then and objected, declaring. that
Comstock had promised, in view 81 the
Innocence and mCdesty Of the young woman
that she should be screened from publicity
Ccmstock said that Mr.. Crowley had no
right to call the young woman to the stand
and that if she had not been called he would
not do what he proposed to do. This declara-
ton stirred folks in the room They ex-
pected something sensational, but 1t turned
out that Mr. Comstock had nothing OF that
kind. Ser eral times he c~ontradlCted the
Young woman's version of what had oc-
CURED when he raidCd the rooms OF. the
leagr.e, and each time he was called dow
by the Magistrate.
The case was adjourned to October 70
when Comstock and Lawyer Crowley vii
subnit briefs and argue for their respective
sides. The young woman was paroled II
the custody Of Mr.. Crowley. She was OF
the verge Of tears when she left the stand
She was kissed by her women friends ant
the men ART students grasped her hand.