Bisbee daily review., 1907-08-06
LURED BY MUSIC, WIFE DESERTS
 HUSBAND
"Smithy the VioIinist," Well Known in Phoenix, Wrecks Home and Causes Woman to Lose Right to Fortune.

the VionnlSt, Ter there Is no other ike him anywhere. either personally or iI respect of the music he furnishes his delighted audiences wherever it may
 be. For several years Smithy made
 Phoenix his home though he would
 go away some times for few weeks or months, then return again. Ht
 was originally employed as a musi elan in the Palace saloon in the day. when that resort boasted of fint
 orchestra. Later Smithy organized
 an orchestra of his own and incident
 ally he furnished music for the Dor
 ris theater on special occasions a!
 well as for many swell social events
 where a special effort was desired fol
 the best music to be had. Smithy
 was was musical genius. Some peo | pie say he had fine musical educa | tion. Others say he did not and made music without an education l just because he was born with genius in that line. But anyhow he is a
 great musician, that much has to be l admitted. He was also a kind of an animated travelling joke. Nobody took his seriously and he did not seem to take himself very seriously Just now though he seems to have en, tangled himself in quite serious busi. ness and it is all due to his fatal musical genius. Here is the story of it as related in the Nevada State Jour nal of July 27, published in Reno. For the love of Ben Rigo (R. B. Smith,, to whom she was attracted by his playing of the violin at the Grand theater. Mrs. J. W. Hall, the 22-year- old wife of wealthy hotel proprietor of Bishop, Cal. deserted her husband to remain in Reno as the mistress of the musician. Last night she left for San Francisco, after having signed pa pers giving up her rights by mar riage to an estate worth S20,000 and accepting, on instructions from Rigo s100 with which to pay her expenses to the coast
 Hall, who is 55 years of age, and who married the unfaithful wife last March. had already runsuccessfully tried to get a divorce from the woman at Independence, Cal. When de tective had gathered the evidence against his spouse, he met her at the office of the Chief of Police Leepel
 Thursday, and in the presence of three witnesses forced her to surrend
 CT all claim to his property and agree
 to live apart from him for the re mainder of their lives.
 Ben Rigo. who has been Mrs. Halls paramour for the past month, is the son of a Los Angeles broker. His | father was once fire commissioner in San Francisco. Rigo ran away from l home shortly after he received his musical education. He was leader oi ! the band at Stanford University one athletic season, and the next saw him a member of the Royal Hungar ! ian Court orchestra in New York. Rigo took the name of Smith when 1 he started his wild life, and since his marriage to a girl in the middle west
 communication with his parents has been infrequent.
 Father would kill me. if he knew | that I was mixed up in this affair.
 said Rigo last night.
 Mrs. Hall was Bertha Peterson be | fore her marriage. She is the daugh | ter of an estimable family in lnde l pendence, Inyo county, and hel i choice of a husband was heralded bl
 nuneTuus relatives as a wise selec l tion. The two had known each othei
 since she was a little girl and th' | 2Sth om March, 1907, they went tt | San Francisco to be married.
 Returning to her new home at Bit Pine. south of Bishop, Mrs Hall fount existence with her aged partner tire some and she soon began to associate with younger men in the place. Hal grew suspicious, and after his charge were feebIy denied by his xife. h.
 filed suit for divorce on the ground I of infidelity. The result was favora
 bIe to Mrs. Hall. but she did not re
 turn to live with Hall again. Instea'
 she came to Reno.
 Ben Rigo, leader of the orchestri
 at the Grand theater, who goes by tn
 name of B. R. Smith. met the woman
 when she had been residing at Rem
 orly a few weeks. She attended show at the Grand, heard Rigo play and falling in love with bis music found way to meet the musician. Il Rigo, not at all 10th to liason wit l the woman lived with her at the Clal endon lodging house on Commercial Row for a time. and after month h
 engaged apartments an the Vendom
 on Center street.
 Frequently the two were seen tral cling through the resorts of the cit | ftlEO was SuEdE6u lO IuIulS4 AluS4C e the Rathskeller during the late ever ing, and while he played Mrs. Hal
 who is beautiful brunette, occupie
 a box, waiting for the time when the
 could be together again.
 Those appearances in publi
 marked the display Of Mrs. Halls tw
 $1 600 rings, and gorgeous wardrob
 that graced her perfect Grecian fl; lure. Intoxicated with the gay lif'
 Mrs. Hall attracted another set of al
 mirers. and rivals of Rigo appearet
 but they were never able to win he from him.
 Wine suppeTs fed her desire fC gaiety, and automobile rides file sn the hours after midnight Rie went along when his engagement permitted. At other times Rigo rivals escorted her about.
 In Bishop, Hall. chagrined by u notoriety which came to him whe the divorce was aired in the court, T solved to get rid of his wife by oth' means. He hired private detecti' to watch every movement of his wi while she remained in Reno. This overwhelming mass of e' dence was tabulated, and Hall, kno' ing he had sufficient proof of wife's infidelity, came here Wedne day bowed with grief at the task h fore him. He reviewed the paper showing who the companions of h wife had been, and got the police take her and Rigo to the city priso l There. Rigo admitted yesterday, was told the kind of collar and eys the color of socks he wore, and q I number of times he had spoken Mrs. Hall in the weeks he had knoy her