Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-03-06

SENSATIONAL CHARGES MADE
Frank F.. Ensmineer, Uncle of the
Children and Their Guardian, is
Charged With Making Defamatory
Statements About Their NJ other and
Foster Father.

The legal fight for the possession of
Fay ana Lucille Colebourne, two little
I girls, Of Gilman, aged s and 8 years,
which was waged for several months
in the local district court, and which
was carried to the supreme court,
where it is now pending, has devel-
oped a. $4,000 Islander case, in which
4 Mrs. SMtludeS Colebourne kreis. the mo-
thersof the children and her husband,
III. G. kreis. has brought against f. r.
Ensnirlger, mayor, of Gilman, and un-
Gle and guardian of the children.
81 The petition. which was filed Friday,
contains some sensational charges
that are alleged to have been state
/ ments made by Ensninger about Mr.
and Mrs. Kreis and their treatment CT
Il the children.
Make Sensational Allegations.
It is ( alleged by the mother of the
4 children and her husband, who is their
stepfatlier, that Ensminger has at diff
& feyent times made statements and let
fall differences in public that either
+ directly charged or intimated that the
mother and husband had cruelty mis-
treated the children. and they had de-
Signs both upon their lives and their
property. Each child has property of
a value OF about $4,000.
Said Husband Was "Adventurer."
The petition is divided into three
counts, for which damages in the sums
s OF 5000, $4,000 and $4,000 in the order
named are asked. The third contains
the most sensational charges, touching
/ on what Ensminger is alleged to have
said.
II IS charged that Ensninger has
claiineil that the mother and foster fa-
Their OF the children were so careless.
OF them that had not he. Ensminger,
taken possession of the child Lucille,
shes would have died of neglect; that
3 they punished and whipped the child
unreasDuably. and that they whipped
her Wien She was too sick to rise
from bod. It is also alleged that Ems
minger said that, the mother and her
husband were after the property of the
childre.a, and that sooner or later they
would have made away with the chill
lGen fortthe purpose of obtaining their
property. OF Kreis, the petition al
leges E,nsminger said, that he was
an advnnturer from the slums of New
ark, N. j. and that he had designs
for getting possession of the chldren's
property, and that he had designs to
SLOWLY poison the children, one at a
time. with the ultimate purpose of get
ting their property. For these state
nlents and for, it is alleged, taking
possession of the children, Mr.. and Mrs.
Kreis claim to have been slandered
and DETAINED and damaged.
Warts Guardianship Cancelled.
In second suit brought by the mo-
Their against F.. r. Ensminger, she
seeks to have the guardianship Ems
ninger holds over the children cam
ceIed and declared of no, force. 1t is
alleged that in order to have the chill
dren'ss property, which was left to them
by their father, taken care of, the mo-
ther applied for guardianship for
them Oh May -, 1903. She desired,
so the petition says, that this guardian
ship should only be of their estate, and
that she did not learn until last fall
that it was for their person as well as
their property This was in Novenl<
Der, when, it is said, Ensminger, took
possession Of the children, While they
and their parents were visiting at the
Ensmirlger home.
Mother Now Has Child.
During last fall, and after Ensminger
IS alleged to have secured the child
rem, Mrs. Kreis secured habeus corpus
proceedings to have the child, Lucille,
who is especially in controversy, into
court to have it determined who should |
sl1aye the child. This writ was quashed !
by Judge Parker and the court in
structei the sheriff to turn the child I
over to- her guardian, Mr.. Ensminger. |
The case was appealed by Mrs. Kreis'
attorney, and a restraining order was
issued, directing Ensminger to turn
the child Lucille over to her mother,
pending hearing on the order. This I
is the present status of the case.
Mr.. Elnsminger, in speaking of the +
case, recently, said that he had no 9TH
er interest in the world in the child I
rem except to see that they were
treated fairly and received what they
deserved.