Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-05-20
SOLD PLATT LETTERS
Forced by Officials to Give Them
 Up, Says Woman.
SECRETARY LOEB IS NAMED
Called One of Those Who Wanted Mis- sives to Hold Over Senator's Head as a Club-Breach of Promise Suit Mentioned.

sives to Hold Over Senator's Heae
 as a Club-Breaoh of Promise Sui
 Mentioned. .,
 New York, May 20.-Unruffied by severe cross examination to which she was subjected, Mae C. Wood, who calls herself Mae c. WoOd-Platt, said on the witness stand in the supreme court before Justice OGorman thai the secret service agent who had taken her to the office of Abraham II. Hum mel and forced her to give up the let. 1 ters she received from Senator Platt had told her that high government offl' cials wanted the senator's love mis- sives to hold oyer Platts head as d. club. She mentioned Loeb, the presi- dents secretary, as having been in a l conspiracy to obtain the letters and a statement signed by the secret service man in which he told of Loeb's alleged interest in the case was produced. 1 The woman who charges that Sena- l tor Platt married her in 1901 and who now is suing Platt for divorce appears like a shrewd woman, and at no time did John B. Stanchfield, attorney for 1 Platt, find her unable to offer plausi- ble explanation for apparently inex- plicable circumstances.
 Got Money From Hummel. She testified that after she was lock ed in Hummel's office and gave up | Platt's love letters she received $7,50O from Hummel. She blurted out that she could have obtained $50,OO0 for . them. but that she knew ''the crowd" and wouldn't take the money. It was | testified also that while Secretary Loeb apparently was working in harmony with Platt in the effort to get the let ters she had been told that the plan of the government officials was to double cross the Senator and to turn the let i ters over to Loeb.
 The plaintiff denied she had employ ed Hummel as her attorney in the case, and when letters were shown to her which she had written to Hummel and in which she referred to him as her counsel she said she was trying to "kid'' the lawyer into telling her who was behind the alleged conspiracy of which she said she was the victim.
 When the witness was asked whether 1t wasn't true that Platt's hand trem- bled whenever he wrote anything, sne said it was so except when he was filled with dope" Afterward, how ever she qualified this statement by saying that by dope" she meant med icine which the senator took. She ad- mitted also that in the marriage cer- tiiicate which she offered in evidence she had written the words New York; which the supposed clergyman who married her and Platt had neglect ed to write.
 Her Own Letters Introduced. Letters from her to Platt were intro duced to show that no marriage cere- mony ever had been performed. In one letter, written subsequently, to the alleged marriage, she addressed Platt as My dear senator" and she pleaded with him to obtain for her a position as teacher fin the Philippine Islands. In another letter she asked the senator to use his influence to obtain position fin the postofiiee for friend. Both let ters were signed Mae c. Wood" As for the suit for breach of promise be- gun against Platt, she said it was with out her authority. and she maintained that. although she had been advised many times to begin the breach of promise action. she had refused to do so steadfastly.
 After she had left the stand Senator Platt's lawyer, John B. Stanehfeld. moved to dismiss the case on the ground that her testimony had failed to establish a marriage with Platt.
 Motion denied" said the judge. This means that Senator Platt must put fin q defense.
 District Attorney Jerome sat beside Justice O'Gorman part of the time. The district attorney did not explain why he was present at the trial. but it was believed he had come to hear the charges that the marriage certificate and a letter alleged 10 have been writ ten by Platt were forgeries.