The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1915-01-14

1t and was prepared and within a few
hours she and Darnell left for Mil
waukee taking the baby with them.
| Miss Soper left later in the night for
Minnesota and Darnell, after tramping
the streets of Milwaukee all night, re-
turned to Kenosha and prepared to
meet his wife. She arrived just after
nine o'clock accompanied by her moth
er and in her childlike faith she sought
| Marian Darnell Is home. She said
| that he was a Y. NJ. G. A. worker and
people from whom she sought informa-
| ton sent her to the old Y. M. G. A.
building Then she went to the study
| of the church. Later she met Darnell
at the parsonage. He was well and
the affectionate meeting was noticed
by the mother of the young woman.
| Darnell then admitted that he had lied
and in burst of confidence told the
story of Ruth Soper. He declared that
! he had been the victim Of wrongs done
to the girl by another and that he had
been forced to accept her as his wife
under threats of a prison sentence by
| another minister whose family had a
| distant relationship with the Minneso-
| ia woman. He declared that he had
never been married but once. He adj
mltted that when he was pastor of a
church at Avon, ILL.,, he had formed an
alliance" with young woman by
the name of Ethel Spurgeon, that he
had taken her to Minnesota with him,
but that she had tired of the alliance
and had returned to Avon. He insist
| that there had been no marriage or di-
vorce, but that the young woman had
died two months ago without revealing
all the facts. He told the young wife
! that he had fought against bringing
| Ruth Soper to Kenosha, but that he
had been finally forced to yield to the
| pressure brought upon him and that he
had brought her and had presented
her to his congregation as his wife and
the baby as his son.
Mrs. Darnell and her mother left the
house soon after she had been advised
of the full facts in the case, but OAR
nell went with them to the railway sta
ton and tenderly kissed the young
woman goodbye when she got on the
train and returned to his study to
I write his sermon for Sunday morning
Darnell sought to square himself
with Mrs. Darnell late Sunday after
noon. He twice called her on the tele-.
phone and he declared that he would
prove to her that he had never been
married to the woman who had been
known as his wife in Kenosha and ask
ed that she join him and leave Keno
sha with him. Mrs. Darnell s answer
was just this: "Now Jimmy there can
be nothing between US until you bring
me an affidavit, properly signed by
Ruth Soper herself, in which she de-
clares that she is not and has never
been your legal wife. This is the only
thing that can gain you any chance to
speak to me again. !,
Mrs. Darnen Indicated that she
would wait until the last Of the present
week for Darnell to produce this af-
fdavit before starting an action for
the annulment of the marriage or for
an absolute divorce. Darnell was
greatly disturbed when he talked with
his wife and although she was fully
aware that the entire story was about
to be made public, she gave him no
warning of this fact.
Tho +r,1c+ 81 4ba oh,,raL LoI
an mixing Of the story, met on Satur-
day night but they decided that the
facts on hand were insufficient to war
rant their unfrocking Darnell at that
time and he was allowed to preach on
Sunday. When Doris Darnell had told
the story to an Evening News man
on Sunday afternoon and had declared
her willingness to come to Kenosha and
appear against her husband on any
charge which might be brought against
him, the trustees faced Darnell. He
admitted little. When the investiga-
tor returned from Chicago early this
morning Darnell was pacing the plat
form of the station.
Cii, WudUt dHl Il W 10 WAS MS
greeting. "Shall get out now or will
| be arrested at once - Darnell again
started his plea for mercy. Z am
contemplate, but | want to go on rec
ord in saying that never really mar
ried any one but Doris Vaughn and /
love her with love that is as great as
a man can feel. / could convince no
one of the fact that am the victim of
circumstances. My past is against
me on every point, but I want to say
that came to Kenosha intending to
be square and make good and I have
preached to the people here from my
heart regardless of the stain which
might have been on my life.
Darnell was nervous. He feared ar
rest under a statutory charge in Wis
consin. He feared arrest under the
Mann statute, and he feared arrest for
bigamy in Chicago. He walked thu
streets until three O'Clock and then he
went and wrote the resignation. He