Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1911-12-29
The Argus Daily Story
Wanted-A Husband-By +. A. Mitchell.
Copyrighted. 1911. by Associated Literary Bureau.

held it triumphantly before the new
conner
81 am free!'' she exclaimed. Then.
turning to her husband. she added, 81
call upon you to protect me from this
man"
az am the lady's husband" said
Thurber, "and as such her legal pro-
tector"
The gentleman stood scowiing at the
two for q moment, then, turning, left
the room, saying to Thurber:
you have wed one who has been de-
clared insane, and question If such
! marriage is legal. However, you have
| gained an advantage and must leave
your bride In your possession. But
shall take steps to have the marriage
annuIlsd on the ground that the bride
is not in her right mind"
AS soon as he had gone thu lady
made an explanation. She was an or
phan In possession OF large fortune.
The man who had followed her was
her stepfather and guardian He had
been her mothers second husband, and
from her mother she had received her
Inheritance. Her stepfather had man.
aged the property from the time the
heiress was little girl and had made
away with a part Of it. To avoid max
ing an accounting and continue IN con-
troll he had succeeded in having her
adjudged incompetent to attend to her
affairs and afterward insane. She had
escaped from private sanitarium and,
having been advised that as a married
|
status from what she occupied under
a guardian, she determined 10 secure
husband before her stepfather could
again get his clutches upon her.
When Mrs. Thurber senior arrived
that afternoon ut her cottage her SON
, informed her that there was q young
lady at the village inn whom he had
invited 10 join their circle. Those cogni-
zant Of the wedding had been pledged
to keep the secret, and Harry did not
announce to his mother or bis guests
that he was a married man. When his
wife arrived she was Introduced under
the name of Miss Eugenia Reeves.
Everything went smoothly for the
pair, who were to their associates sim
ply drifting into love affair, but were
really man and wife. A week after
the lady had come into the Thurber
cottage Harry one morning informed
her that his mother intended going
back to the city the next day and the
party must be broken up. He had
been very happy there and had urged
his mother to remain longer, but with
out success. "And now" he concluded,
''you are free to go forth unincum-
bered by a husband except under the
law. But II you will remain with me
as my wife shall consider myself the
most fortunate of men,"
This proposal of man 30 his wife
the wife took under consideration,
promising to give her husband an an
| swer the same evening. But some
thing occurred that afternoon to reveal
the secret to the household. A man
came to the cottage, forced his way
into the house and, seeing Thurber and
the supposed Miss Reeves in company
with a number of guests, proceeded to
read legal paper addressed to Henry
Townsend Thurber and his wife, Flea
nor Bradford Thurber, enjoining them
to appear before the court and show
cause, etc.
2 | 1Qe lduy III Tie case TeCeiVcQ Iu6 cA-
posture with her eyes bent upon the
floor, while the man looked for a mo-
. ment as If he had been caught steal
ing. But the first shock over he ap-
preached his wife, took her hand and
said:
my friends, owe you an explana-
- ton for introducing a lady to you as
spinster, she being really my wife"
He then told the story as It has been
told up to this point at the end of
: which every one pressed forward to
congratulate the bride and groom. All
agreed that, while the marriage by the
i justice was binding in law. it should
be repeated under different surround
~ ings.
These matters served TO bring about
= a decision on the part of the bride to
accept her legal husband as her real
- husband, and she blushingly consent
ed. A minister was telephoned for TO
:, come from the next station, and dur
:. ing the evening a second wedding took
y place among a gleeful circle.
= The Bradford-Thurber case from the
- moment of Eleanor Bradford's mar
rage to Henry Thurber assumed very
~ different status. Since they lived to-
- gether as man and wife all effort on
the part of the guardian to aunul the
- marriage proved failure. Harry
Thurber, who had for several years
Is been in charge of his mothers prop
80 erty, as well as educated to the law
:, proved an admirable manager Of his
wife's case. He fought any further
"a efforts TO prove his wife insane sue
ii' cessfully and placed her guardian in
a position where, If prosecuted, be
-, would be liable to state prison. But
here his wife relented and refused Il
prosecute the man who had been hei
ne mothers husband There was NOR,
than enough of the estate left to en-
able her and her husband to live II
70 style. and Thurber in time came int
No an estate OF his own.
The sudden wedding, which turnet
H. out so fortunately. attracted a grea
eS- dooI NJ attention among the frianda r,