The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-08-17


"Wo intended to i.eep it secret from
every one but our mothers" said Liv-
ingstone. ''Eetta's mother knew and
so did mine. 1 left Abilene on Tuesday,
August 8, for Saliua for a visit with
my mother ard father there. I was to
take the Monday morning t14 ion Pacific
train from SaliIla to kaHSaS City. Ber-
tha was to join me on the train at Abi-
lene as 1 passed through and we were
to go directly to Kansas City to be
married. No one in Abilene knew of
the arrangement except she and her
m ,ther, although it WAS rerfeetly SAL
isfactory to everybody in both our fam
lilies. Her people were all pleased at
our arrangements to be married which
they knew we intended to carry out
pretty soon in any case
After Betta's death they were about
to telegraph me at Syracuse for / had
written a letter on the train last Tues
day to Roy Shearer, Betta's brother-in-
law, telling him I had been called 70
go to work and had not had time to
stop in at his house to see him before
left. But Mrs. Benignus told him.
No, he's not at Syracuse. He's at Sa-
lima and she had to tell them our
plan before they would believe that
had not really gone to Syracuse 20
work They got me on the telephone at
Salina Sunday morning and 1 got here
early that afternoon"
Bertha Benignus, or BETA as she was
called by her family and friends, had
been So devoted to her own romance
that she had avoided every possible ap-
pearance of unfaithfulness to it dur
ing the year she had been engaged.
Was in Topeka Recently.
She had a married sister about her
own age and several other young mar
ried friends and she had had all her
social life with them, not keeping
company with any other young men
of the town, although even had she
done SO occasionally 1t would have ex-
cited no comment, as Livingstone was
seldom able to be with her. Six weeks
ago she visited him In Topeka with
her sister and while here he bought
her a 5000 diamond engagement ring.
Livingstones grief at the funeral,
beside the casket where his dead
sweetheart lay in a bank of flowers
and at the grave, where the newly
| mounded earth shut out the sight of
her from him forever, was pitiable.
His grief had been of the silent kind
| at first, but it has eaten into his heart
until he is almost a mental wreck. He
| has been staying at the home of his
| brother-in-1aw. Roy Shearer, who has
devotedly tried to help him through
| his grief. Livingstone's utter ignor-
ance of any possible motive for the
crime has enabled him to give no
| help in it's solution.
There is still hope that the mother
may be able to contribute some aid
| to the work of detection when she
shall have recovered somewhat from
the condition of collapse in which the
shock left her. But she was in a
downstairs bedroom on the night of
the murder. Whether her husband
occupied the same room or whether
he slept in an adjoining bed room to
that where the girl died, on the sec
ond floor. is one point not yet ascer-
tanned satisfactorily. At first some
confusion was made on this point, al
though Mr.. Benignus has stated posi-
lively that he slept upstairs. The
point may be of no consequence.
Family Is Grief Stricken.
AS for the other members of the