Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-03-30
Witnesses in Court Tell of Un-
usual Marriage.
NURSE WEDS AGED PATIENT
Ceremony Performed at Time When
Groom Was Helpless.
MINISTER GIVES TESTIMONY
Attending Physician Also Relates
Circumstances in Connection With
the Case-The Claims.

The unusual story of how a man eighty
four years old, weak and suffering with
all the tortures that come from paralysis
and apoplexy, proposed marriage TO the
nurse who looked after him: how mar
riage rite was performed in a boarding
house. with only few hours notice. was
told today in Justice Wright's court. 1t
is the second day of the three-cornered
fight over the estate of John A. Brown.
who married Rachel Anna Richardson. a
nurse who had taken care OF him for sew
eral weeks.
A Miss Reeves of Philadelphia was
named as beneficiary in will left by
Brown, made several weeks after the
nurse married him. There are relatives of
Brown who want some of the estate. and
there is the woman who claims to have
him according to law. The heirs
of Brown and Miss Reeves are carrying
the fight against any attempt of Mrs.
Brown to file caveat to the will. 1t is,
therefore, necessary for the woman to
prove that the wedding was strictly ac-
cording to law.
Purpose of the Plaintiffs.
The fight is apparently interesting to
every one in the courthouse. Justice
The purpose of the plaintiffs is to show
that Brown was forced, or wheedled. or
led into a marriage of which he knew
nothing: that his mind was vacant. EVl-
dence showing that he was as weak and
helpless as human being can be was
contradicted by testimony that
he himself urged the marriage ceremony;
that he asked it to be performed the
very day that Rev. ]. B. Mclaughlin
read the license to the pair and asked
each Of them If it was fully understood
There is the suggestion that the coming
testimony will be toward proving tina.
the old mans closest friends and ad-
visers were excluded from him, so that
they could not keep him from getting
married. This much was proclaimed In
one of the arguments today.
Meanwhile 1.-The woman in the case
keeps away from court. She appeared
for a brief moment at the close of the
session yesterday, but merely for the
purpose of being identified.
Testimony Of Physician.
The first witness today was DR.. Strick-
Ter, who was also on the stand yester-
day.
He testified that he had not told any one
that Mr. Brown might die at any mo-
ment. He was speaking OF time when
he had been called to the bedside OF the
old man, who was being treated by Dr.
Kaufman. The lawyers had asked him
closely about Mr.. Browns conditlon the
morning of the marriage ceremony. One
of the questions was:
Did you not tell Miss Richardson that
he might die at any moment!
mo. 1 didn't. Besides. anybody might
die at any moment. You might drop
dead at any moment" was the doctor
reply.
You did advise Rachael Richardson
to marry this man on that morning, not
- !, n ha
plexyE'
Il did not advise her. I said that as
far as his mind was concerned, she might
do So
Der 20, 1907. that this was deathbed
marriage and that you had often as
sisted in deathbed marriaSes?'
That is not true"
There was a good deal of questioning
along the line of who paid for medical
services to certain patients that Miss
Richardson introduced to the witness.
One person mentioned was a man named
Crump whom DIR. Strickler met as he
stood beside the coffin of Mr.. Brown
Says Brown Wanted to Marry.
Kate O. Kern. the landlady CT house
64 l street where the marriage cere-
mony was performed. was called to the
stand She said that the morning of the
marriage she had assisted Mr. Brown into
bed She had heard noise in his room,
and on entering found the man in bad
way. He acted as if he had had stroke
of paralysis. She ran to the room which
the nurse occupied and called to her that
Mr. Brown was ill and needed attention.
Then, after the nurse, who now claims
to be Mrs. Brown, entered the room, the
said she exclaimed:
oh Mr.. Brown, l am so sorry to see
YOU sick. Shall 1 send for a doctor?'
he uyifn I1a
took place. The old man, weak and trem-
bling. said:
II don't want a doctor: l want you to
fulfill your promise and marry me. Stay
in my room and take care of me-
What. in your condition."
Yes"
Then the witness described how the
license was procured and that
Mr. Brown put a wedding ring on Miss
s finger.
Answers Unmistakably "I Will"
The old man answered the question
"Will you take this woman to be your
la wfully welded wife?' with a plain and
~ will according to the
witness There was testimony also about
the money paid for the license and ex-
penses of the marriage. 1t was stated
that Mr.. Brown directed Mrs. Brown to
go into a certain trunk and get the
Mrs. Kern said she believed the old man
to be as sane as could be the morning
OF the marriage. She added that the
last time she saw him that night was
about O'Clock. when he was being fixed
for the night.
He was comfortable and happy" said
Mrs. Kern.
And the next morning he was in a
more or less helpless condition. an at
torney asked.
The witness said she did not know.
Mrs. Bowman. at whose house Mr..
Brown took his meals. called at Mrs.
Kern's house the morning after the mar
riage. The attorneys asked Mrs Kern:
did you tell Mrs Bowman that Mr..
Brown had been married. and did she
then reply What. married and paralyz-
ed?'''
mo. sir?''
Did you not say to Mrs. Bowman that
Miss RICHARDSON had that morning said to
Mr.. Brown. Here. I'm not going to run
up and down stairs taking care of you
night and day unless you marry me?'"
Il did not
Picture of Browns Infirmities.
Howard Fl. Tombs. about twenty years
Of age, who had been befriended by Mr..
brown was called He very fond of