Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-03-29
JEWISH DIVORCE
DEFENSE USED FOR
WIFE OESERT|0N
Wolf Prayer Faces Jury on Sc.
riOus Charges-Offers a.
Unique Excuse.

4 WISH 4 HdO Two OF llIGt jew ISL
people on the jury. for I know / am
going to have a Dickens of time PROV
ing to you gentlemen by what l mean
by marriage and divorce between jew
ish people in Russia"
That wa-the rather startling way in
which Samuel Fl. Kunstlich, of 253
Broadway. Manhattan, opened his adj
dress to the jury today in defense of
Wolf Prayer, of Newark and New York,
on trial in Quarter Sessions Court be-
fore Judge Thomas A. Davis and a jury
on a charge of wife desertion preferred
by Rachel Prayer. whom he married in
Russia twenty-five years ago.
Continuing Kunstlich said: Prayer
married this woman in Russia twenty
five years ago under the Jewish mar
riage law of their district. That is.
Prayers father said to the father Of
the girl, Let our children get married:
we are both satisfied
''rhe children. 10 years of age, were
married and lived together for sew
eral years. about nine years in fact
Then Prayer met a woman that he
really loved and decided to divorce his
Aflrst wife. lie went before a rabbi with
the first wife and asked for a divorce
1 ne lIlSl nllG Sdtu Silt Wdb Sdllslltd "
b. divorced. and a rabbanical divorce
was granted the pair.
'Then Prayer was married to Lena
Lithschitz by o rabbi, and they lived IL
the same village with Rachel and her
children. There vas nc concealment
about it. 1t was all regular and un-
der the laws of the church as they nm
derstood it.
L ;orI,4 .-@a p- ~ TDsoo cav an ~ n tn rhfE
country and started a grocery business
III New York city. He prospered and
later brought the wife Lena, and the
four children she had borne him to
this country. Later the elder children
OF the first wife followed. They were
helped to do so by the father
The mother came in 1907. and went to
live at IS Avon place, Newark. She had
her seven children with her n Prayer
came to board with her, according to
the testimony given by him on the
witness stand. He remained at the
Avon place address from May, 1907. to
March. 1903, but admitted oil the Wit
ness stand that he did little work dur
ing the time.
Under skilful cross-eXamination by
Assistant Prosecutor Frederick r.
Lehlbach he was forced to admit that
during that time he made his chill
dren pay their weekly wages over TO
him and also collected the board and
rent money from the dodgers that his
wife kept. He claimed that when he
did work as a halter for about six
weeks he turned his money into the
general fund Of the family, which he
handled himself.
Further crcss-exainination by Lehl-
bach brought gut the fact that all this
time Prayer was still supporting his
real wife. as he called her, in New
York city and was using the earnings
of wife No. | and her children to help
him out.
Prayer was q voluble witness on the
stand while under examination by his
own attorney, Kuntslich. but shut UP
suddenly when the prosecutor got after
him. A lot of things he did not re-
member and those he did remember he
refused to answer until told to do 80
by his counsel.
Prayer defantiy faced his wife,
Rachel Prayer. and their seven children,
and laughed contemptiously as Assist
ant Prosecutor Fred 4. Lehlbach told
Of the charge against i'm.
The story commences twenty-five
years ago in the town of Kiez, Russia,
where Prayer wooed and won Rachel
~Rabonowitz, the belle of the town.
For some time they lived happily to-
gether and children came in rapid sue
cessicn.
Ter years ago Prayer came to this
country with a woman named Ida
Li%thschitz, with whom. it is said, Pra-
ger had been living in kiez at the same
time he was living with his wife. De-
serted, Mrs. Prayer worked hard and
managed to support her seven children
for a couple OF years. Then Prayer
sent money enough to enable her To
send Jacob, her aged II years. and
Max, aged s, to this country. On
reaching New York they We're taken
TO live with Prayer and Ida Lithschitz
at 1856 East Tenth street, Manhattan.
Mrs. Prayer in the meantime had
heard that her husband was with an
other woman, and through the assist
unce Of Mrs. Lena kuserman, her sis
ter, who lives at 1874 Somerset street,
this city, was enabled to come here,
three years ago, taking a house ut Is
Avon place. On February II last
Prayer was arrested in New YORK on a
charge of brutaliy beating Jacob, the
sen now IA years of age. When he was
arraigned in court he was faced by
Mrs. Prayer, who caused his arrest on
g charge OF desertion.
Prayer first fought against coming
to Newark for trial, but finally waived
%extradition and was placed in Jail here.
His defense is that he has always con-
tributed to the support of Mrs. Prayer
and the seven children This is denied
by Mrs. Prayer, who avs the only
money she has received from him since
he came to this country was that sent
to bring Jacob and Max here in 1906.
The jury will get the case late this
afternoon.
MYSTERIOUS ERUPTlONS