Los Angeles herald., 1906-01-31
WIDOWS BITTER
IN TEST|FY|NG
QUESTION OF WAGES MAKES
THEM ENEMIES
Mrs. Whitley Loses Case, but Says
She VIII Spend Thousands to De-
feat Mrs. Musneml, Who
Gets Judgment

A judgment for the plaintiff for 1927
was given yesterday in department nine
of the superior court against Mrs.
Lucy Whitley, widow of Captain
Whitley, a former wealthy mine own
er, prominent on the race track and
owner Of crack yachts.
The plaintiff was Mrs. Julia Mug
nemi, widow of the late Constable
Joe" Mugnemi and for years an inti-
mate friend of Mrs. Whitley. The
trial exposed the bitterness between
the two widows and some sharp pas
sages occurred in the testimony.
Mrs Mugnemi sued to recover for
services alleged to have been performed
for the defendant while the former
lived In the Grand avenue home of Mrs
Whitley. The defendant strenuously
denied that she had intended to pay
Mrs. Mugnemi any wages, saying that
she was treated like a sister and was
virtual ruler in the household.
Judge Bordwell gave verdict for
the plaintiff, however, after an all
day hearing.
Witness Is Exeitable
Mrs. Mugnemi was an excitable wit
ness and frequently left the witness
stand in order to gesticulate freely.
II tell you the whole truth, judge"
she exclaimed. 'I am a poor woman
and 1 worked for that woman very
hard, you bet your life! 1 was up in
the morning. sometimes at 6 o'clock,
and / worked late at night-oh, as late
as II or 10 O'Clock, making hats for
her. My daughter helped me in the
work and sometimes there would be
men who looked after race horses for
Mrs. whitley, who Uttered up the
house. / had to do the work, oh, yes!
And Mrs. Whitley was out making
visits.
"once she went to Mexico and left
me without any money. 1 had to buy
food with my own money to keep the
children alive. / had no Sundays, no
shows, no amusement. Work, work,
work, all the time, and when I asked
her for my wages she only laughed"
Daughter Corroborates
Mrs. Mugnemi testified that she
nursed Mrs. Whittley's children when
they were ill. The recollection made
Mrs. Mugnemi wave her hands wildly
and to almost scream her sentences
until restrained by the court. Her
lawyer gave her up in despair and
the counsel for the defense let up on
the cross examination after she volun-
teered few biting remarks about her
former friend.
Louisa Mugnemi, a pretty Spanish
girl reinforced the testimony of her
mother about the wages and with
pathetic droop of her mouth narrated
how she had scrubbed, washed, cooked,
cleaned house and performed other
labors of that nature, and Mrs. Whit
ley only gave me dress and hat for
all did. Not one cent of money did
she give me or my mother" she con-
cluded. ~
That's right, judge and Mr.. Law
yer," called out the mother of the wit
ness, delighted at the nature of the
disclosures.
"Your honor, this lady has never been
in court before and we must excuse her
for her acts. She is very excitable,"
said her counsel.
Mrs. WhittIey's Side
Mrs. whitley, on the other hand, said
that at one time she had liked Mrs.
Mugnemi very much, but now-well,
she would not like to say what she
thought of such ingratitude.
"Why, that woman was almost starv-
ing when I took her into my house."
went on the witness. "She was a COM
panion. sister, a friend-not a SER
want. ! never imagined she would treat
me like this. There was never any
question of wages. She was glad to
have a home.
"She used to treat my children
something shameful, but L never said
anything. She had company day and
night, but bore it all. She wouldn't
cook unless she felt like it and would
eat a crust rather than have trouble"
A number of witnesses were intro
duced who all took knock" at Mrs.
Mugnemi, but their testimony on the
question of wages was rather hazy.
One young man who said that he had
placed bets at Ascot for Mrs. Whitley
became badly tangled in his testimony.
Mrs. Whitley said after the trial that
she would appeal the case, as she owed
nothing to Mrs. Mugnemi and that she
would spend thousands of dollars rather
than pay a cent not due.