The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-03-27
.PITTSFAMILY ROW
It Gets Into the Shawnee County
District Court.
Suit to Recover Stock in Wolff
Packing Co.
BOTH CLAIM TO OWN IT
Husband Says Wife Got Assign
ment by Fraud.
Amount Involved Is About Four
Thousand Dollars.

Another chapter in the life Of Blanch
E. Pitts, who was at one time treasurer
of the Charles Wolff Packing company
in Topeka, and his wife. May Belle
Pitts, is to be aired in the Shawnee
county district court
d. W. Pitts, a brother of the former
Topekan, through his attorneys, Chas.
Magaw and Milton Brown, has insti-
tuted replevin proceedings against the
Charles Wolff Packing company and
May Belle Pitts, for twenty-seven
shares of stock in the company, which
Blanch Pitts declares, his wife by mis-
representation, succeeded in getting
him to assign to her several years ago.
D. W. Pitts now holds a second assign
ment Of the property to himself from
his brother and for that reason the
suit is brought in his name.
The shares are worth S1O0 each,
making the principal about s2.7O0.
Dividends and accumulated interest
make their total present value, at this
time, close to $4,000.
A stormy romantic thread runs
through the whole story. In it figures
a quarrel between Mrs. Pitts and "a
woman in the case" in a Denver res
taurant, separation, and a retreat to a
ScAAAALdA1DA AOl lGENOuS pEOSlIdLlD1ls
Blanch Pitts and his wife lived in To-
peka about four or five years ago. Then
the husband went to Denver, and there
fell in with another woman" Mrs.
Pitts went there suddenly, and started
out to find her husband. She found
him and the other woman" in a res
taurant. There was a scene and a
fight. It all got into the newspapers,
and furnished plenty Of gossip.
Naturally there was a breakup in
the Pitts family eff
the restaurant affair, Mr.. Pitts became
sick and finally almost helpless from
nervous prostratiOn. His mind, it was
said, was also slightly affected by the
shock. He was looked after by physi-
clans, and they advised care in a sani-
tarium to restore his health
Just before he was taken to the
sanitarium, Mrs. Pitts called upon him
which according TO the plaintim's story
in the repleYin proceedings now flied,
she declared to be simply an order By
which she could obtain the dividends
from the q shares which he owned in
the Charles Wolff Packing company.
She wanted him to sign the paper so
that she could get the money. 1T is
necessary for me to have an order of
this kind was her plea to her hus-
band.
He affixed his name and was sent to
the sanitarium. Now it develops, ac-
cording to the plaintin's petition, the
document was not an order for divi-
dends, but an assignment of all the
husbands stock to his wife.
Pitts remain at the sanitarium un-
til cured and then returned to Albany,
New York, where he now lives. It is
thought that his wife is also some
where in the state of New York, but
that they are not now living togcther,
although a divorce has not been Sc
cured.
The Wolff Packing company. how
ever, refused to honor the assignment
of the stock which Mrs. Pitts present.
ed to it. The concern has absolutely
refused to give over the stock or the
dividends to either Mr.. Pitts or to his
wife Naturally a squabble in the
courts was anticipated by the com
pany to definitely settle the matter,
and now it has come.
Blanch Pitts assigned the stock to
city. recently, and the latter now
brings a replevin suit against the Wolff
Packing company for its recovery. The
trial will involve q thorough threshing
out Of a whole lot Of Pitts family his
tory