Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-10-20
bATONY| IS DIVORCED
Wife Awarded Absolute De-
cree in Reopened Suit.
SEALED VERDICT OPENED
Jury Reached Decision Last Night,
Which Court Read Today.
AUSTRIAN EXCITED ON STAND
Blames Father-in-Law and Friends
for Domestic Troubles-Tilts
With Alcott.
SEALED VERDICT OPENED
EXCITED ON STAND

NEW YORK. October 2O-Mrs. Frances
Work Rurke-Roche Batonyi was granted
an absolute divorce today from Aurel Ba-
tonyi. the Austrian horseman.
The jury returned q sealed verdict last
night setting forth their answers to the
questions on the charges made by Mrs.
Batonyi relating to her husbands al
legged associations with Lucille Brabant.
or Beatrice Brevaine. the fencing girl
model and Margaret Allen. or Lily Law
renee who lives in a finely furnished
apartment at DIG Central Park west.
Justice O'Gorman, who waited two
hours for the jury to reach a conclusion,
and then left the courthouse ten minutes
before the jurors made up their minds,
opened the envelope at 10 o'clock this
morning in which were the findings.
Court Must Confirm Verdict.
Today's verdict will have to he con-
firmed by judge before decree will be
granted.
The decision follows upon two years of
charge and countercharge between the
daughter of Frank Work. the New York
millionaire, and Batonyi, who has asso-
ciated with wealthy horse fanciers since
he came to this country In 1899.
D
tory grounds. first alleging at least ten
instances of unfaithfulness. At the trial.
however. she withdrew all but two
charges, these involving her husband with
two New York women. \ long night rae
in a taxicab with one of these women and
a night spent in the apartment or the
other were the allegations behind these
charges
Courtship of Batonyi.
It was during d coaching trip on the
box of the public coach Good Times
that Batonyi met Mrs. Burke-Roche, then
divorced from her first husband an Eng
fish public man of some note. a brief
courtship ended in August, 1905, in their
marriage.
a year later the news was broken to
Frank Work The aged millionaire flew
into passion, ii is said AID, Batonyl
alleges, threatened that unless his daugh-
ter began steps at once to free herself
from the union he would disinherit her
Soon afterward an action for divorce
was begun by Mrs. Batonyi. The hus-
band retaliated by bringing counter
suit. in which he named eleven core
spondents.
he also sued his wife's father. her sister
and brother-n-aw, her cousin. and MIR.
Works confidential secretary, claiming
damages aggregating s1.5OO,OOO for the
alienation Of his Wife'S affections. These
actions are still pending.
The questions submitted to the
jury-to combine them-were: Wheth-
er Batonyi misconducted himself in
taxicab on Broadway the night of
March 4. 1908, with the Brevaine or Bra
bant woman, and whether he misbe-
haved the night of December 10, 1907,
with Margaret Allen. or Lily Lawrence,
in her Central Park West apartment.
Baytonyi Excited on Stand.
Ratonyi was on the witness stand sew
eral hours yesterday, and got so excited
during his cross-examination that Justice
O'Gorman had to reprimand him. and
finally told him to step down. Batonyi
at that stage was standing and waving
his arms around like a windmill, utter
ing wholesale accusations against the
Work family and others.
J. Henry Work, nephew of Frank
Work, Mrs. Batonyi's father. sat at the
lawyers table smiling sardonicaly while
Batonyi was venting his rage. Mrs.
Batonyi. twenty feet away, cured her
lips in derisiOn as her husband Smote the
air with his long arms.
Batonyi cOntradicted fatty on direct ex-
animation the testimony of the telephone
girl of the Hotel Empire. who had said
she overheard conversation between
Batonyi and the Lawrence woman over
the phone. Batonyi said he was not stop
ping at the Hotel Empire on the date
mentioned. December 10. 1907, and he de-
MED positively that he had ever been to
the Central Park West apartment.
Where did you go when you left the
Empire Hotel?'' he was asked by ..-aurice
Cukor. his counsel
II was so bounded by private detec
tives that | fled to boarding house on
West list street. the whip answered in
a loud tone. half rising from his chair.
Court Rebukes Batonyi.
In the same emphatic manner he de-
MED the taxicab ride story. and repeated
time and time again that it was wholly
and absolutely untrue.
Justice O'Gorman cautioned him not to
repeat when not being questioned: but
Batonyi's blood was up, and he could not
keep his tongue quiet.
He denied he had worn chrysanthe-
mum the night of March 4. 1908, testi-
fed by taXicab driver, and insisted that
the only time he, wore such a flower was
at the horse show
Lawyer w. NJ. X. Olcott took Batonyi
in hand for eross-e%amination, and asked ]
him if Aurel Batonyi was his real name.
He admitted to kohn and Nuremberg,
explaining that his parents had taken the
la name in Hungary and had changed