The sun., 1909-06-18
CALLSMRS. OSBORN SMUGGLER
DISTRICT ATT ORNEY SAYS SHE'D
BE A PRISONER If ALIVE.
JAN for White, Who used to Work for Her.
and for kllgannon-Ss,O 900 Fine for
Mrs. klisannon-C0urt Proposes TO
See That the Revenue Law Is Obeyed.

ana Iof hHB rhe aoT
Mrs. kiigannon-Court Proposes to
See That the Revenue Law Is Obeyed.
If Mrs. Josefa Osborn of Mrs. Osborns
Playhouse and Mrs. Osborn's dressmak-
ing shop were alive she would be before
the bar Of the United States Court as
a habitual smuggler, according to United
States District Attorney Wise. But she
died last November.
Mr.. Wise mentioned her In this un-
pleasant way when William H. Kilgannon,
his wife Elizabeth. and George c. White.
his partner in the dressmakers supplies
business. pleaded guilty yesterday OF
smuggling In in 1907 thres trunks con.
tanning gowns and dress materials. Kill
cannon was sent to BLACKWELL 8 Island for a
year. Mrs. Kilgannon wasfined $1,000, and
White got two years in the Federal prison
at Atlanta.
In imposing sentence on Mrs. Kilgan-
non, who runs a dressmaking establish
ment at 10 West Thirty-ninth street under
the name of Nine. Loran. Judge Ray said
that he sympathized with her. but Il it
was true as stated by her counsel that
9S per cent, Of the women who bring in
goods from foreign ports regarded SNUG
Cling as mere technical violation OF the
revenue laws rather than moral offence
and crime. 1t was high time that an exam
pie was made. He considered her case
moro serious than that Of the average
traveller who tries to evade payment OF
duty because she was in business and
could nndersell honest competitors by
smuggling.
4 want it unders TODD and spread
abroad as widely as possible that the
revenue laws must be obeyed and that
this Court is going to do all 1t can to see
that they are obeyed," he said.
When White was sentenced Mrs. White,
who was in court with her two children:
crying out 'Oh, Judge!' fell in heap in
the arms OF her friends. She was carried
into the corridor and soon revived. and
weeping hysterically and calling for her
children was taken from the building. .
Judge Ray said that White was the chief
offender and that he led the Kilgarfnons
astray. The Court believed, he said.
Kilgannon and White were at once
taken away by deputy marshals; Mrs.
Kilgannon succeeded in paying the fine
Of S 900 within an hour. The money was
handed to Commissioner Shields in 81, 900
bills.
Mrs. Osborn's name came in when
clemency for White. He said that White
had worked his way up from a poor boy
TO respectable position in life and had
been employed by Mrs Osborn and by
Austin F. Montanye.
At that Mr.. Wise told the Court that 1t
was no credit to White that he had been
in such company in view Of the fact that
Montanye was at present serving four
months on Blackwell's Island as a self
confessed smuggler and that Mrs. Osborn
II she had not the good fortune to be dead
would be standing at the bar OF the court
in the same predioament as White.
The Government has sufficient evil
denoe. said Mr.. Wise. to convict Jointly
Nine. Osborn and White of a systematic
long series Of smuggling operations
Mrs. Osborn had a dressmaking busi-
ness at "a East Forty sixth street under
the name OF the Mrs. Osborn Company
until her death last November. She
also had theatrical ambitions OF the
managerial sort and took over the Berk-
eley Theatre. remaining it Mrs. Osborn's
enterprise Miss Norma Munro. 1t failed.
and break in the friendship Of the. two
women and considerable litigation fol-
lowed. Mrs. Osborn was reported to
have married Ernest Lavford, the actor,
In September, 1908. but this was never
aHnIIneO OF Oenl6Q. one ielt MIN the IN
come OF $4,000 in her will. Her first
husband was Robert A. Osborn from whom
she secured a divorce in 1905.
When Mrs. Kilgannon's turn came her
counsel said that she had done no snug
Cling In two years-that is. since the
offence for which she was indicted.
None Of the Fifth avenue dressmakers
are quite as active in that business now
as they have been.' Mr.. Wise retorted.
Mr. Wise said that nearly $4,000 had
been realized by the Government from
the sale OF the $50 900 worth Of smuggled
finery recently sold by Marshal Henkel
at public auction. and as the Kilgannons
and White had drought in three trunks
OF costly gowns and materials il was
justifiable TO assume that the Govern
ment had been defrauded by them to
the extent OF between 5000 and IS 600.
Therefore he asked that a substantial
fine be imposed on Mrs. Kilgsnnon.
Mr. Battle interrupted to say that
White had not been indicted in connection
with the 3S2 900 lot and that it should not
be dragged in.
Il do not know that White and the
Kilgannons had anything TO do with the
said the District Attorney. but do know
that the articles smuggled in by them
were in part at least going ultimately
to the same parties to whom some Of those
goods were
He would not say afterward il he knew
who were concerned in the 200 case.
He did say that neither White nor the
Kilgannons had furnished him with any
information. They did not plead guilty
at the solicitation OF his office nor were
any promises OF immunity made to them.