The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-07-20
The HlRTjE DIVORCE SUIT
h
New Sensations in Case Deyelous
Every Day.
A"o Sisters of Mrs. Hartie on stand.
Attorney for Mr.. Hartie CHARGED
the Prosecution With Stealing Ger
tain Papers From His Office-The
court Compelled the Return of tn,
Faper to Attorney for he Plaintiff.

Court Compelled the Return of tbs.
Paper TO Attorney for the PLAINTIFF.
Flttsburg, July 1S.-With each suo-
ceedlns day of the Hartje divorce trial
new sensations are developed and TO-
oay was no exception 70 the course
OF events in this now famous legal
oattie. Misses Ida ana Helen Scott
were star witnesses today for their
sister, Mrs. Mary Scott Hartje. Hell
ems direct examination closed when
court adjourned this afternoon after
counsel tor the libellant had introduc-
eo q number of letters, said to have
been written by her anu which prove
according TO the counsel for Mrs
tiartJe that Helen Scott had knowledge
OF the alleged relations between Mrs
Hartje and Tom Nadine. Helen
denied the authorship of all these new
Letters excepting two.
Attorney John Freeman for Mrs
HartJe openly charged the other side
with stealing a paper from his office.
Counsel for Augustus Hartje the mill
lonalre libellant in the case, declared
this charge false ana Attorney J..
Scott Ferguson said he could prove
that the papers were picked up out
side Of the Office where they had been
carelessly laid.
Attorneys Freeman and Ferguson
were almost beside themselves when
the charge of theft was made. A
scene OF so great excitement has rare
ly if ever been witnessed in a local
court room. The result Of the trouble
was apparently a victory for Mrs.
Hartje, as Attorney w. B. Rodgers,
for the libellant, was compelled by
the court to return to Mr.. Freeman
a paper prepared in Mr.. Freeman's
Office, as we'll as another letter of Mrs.
Freeman's which he said had been sur
reptitiously taken from his office.
The "other Mary" d servant girl
who knows Tom Nadine, the CO.
respondent, made her first appearance
on the stand today. She testified that
it was she who telephoned to Nadine
while he was working at a livery sta
bic and who wrote to him sometimes
as often as twice a week.
The letter alleged to have been
stolen from Mr.. Freeman's Office, along
with other papers. is said to have be-
gun with My dearest Edith" and
Judge FraZer's announcement that
any stolen papers would have little in
fuence on the court broke a tension
of curiosity in the court room that
had been whetted to a fine edge.
The passage of arms was started
when Mr.. Ferguson asked Ida Scott,
the young sister of Mrs. Hartje, while
on tho ctop1 to Wrifa tho words INV
dearest Edith Then Mr.. Freeman
interposed a vigorous objection, cou-
pied with an accusation. Judge Fraz-
er interrupted the interchange Of
thrusts by saying that a stolen letter
had no place in the trial and he
would not consider it. Mr.. Freeman
the letter which was writ
ten on his Office stationery and OBJ
tanned it.
Just what is in the Edith" letter
and what Ida Scott had to do with 1t
may remain a mystery.
Toward the close of the examination
of Miss Helen Scott, Attorney Rodg-
ers sprung a surprise upon the attor-
neys for the defense by producing a
number of stained and mutilated let
tiers, the parts of which had been
pasted together. The letters were
written upon the stationery of the
Hotel Windsor and the Florence Villa
and were addressed to Dearest Mary"
Witness admitted that several of the
new exhibits had been written by her
self but denied the authorship OF the
although she said the hand
writing looked like ners.
Mr.. Freeman objected to their being
introduced upon redirect eXamlna-
ton. Mr.. Rodgers then stated that his
object in producing them was to show
that despite her previous denials on
he stand witness had shown that Mrs.
Hartie and Tom Nadine had been in
correspondence with ZACH other, n
that the letters would show the truth
O fhis statement. Court was then ad-
in order that counsel Tor the
defense might have an opportunity
examining the new exhibits.
This was said to be the sensation
which counsel for the prosecution nave
all along promised.