The Washington times., 1915-05-19
,Wife's Action viii Be Contested,
As No Correspondent Is
Named in Papers.
SHE ASKS FOR CHILDREN
All Allegations viii Be Met, Says
Counsel For Noted Clubman
and Playwright.

-
MED yesterday in the District Supreme
Court oy MIt. Grace Mcmillan Jarvis
Eioson asking for divorce.
shall have an answer filed In about
a week, q salo Mr.. Lambert. Incident
ally It Is worthy Of note that no CORE
spondent is named in the suit"
Nothing tha. has occurred In Wash
ihston society in recent years attracted
30 much attention as the news of the
suit filed bv Mrs. Gibson, as exclusively
told in, the $40 edition of The Times
yesterday afternoon.
No Correspondent Named.
Society was disappointed. though.
when II was found no correspondent
was named, and no Washington per-
sons are even indirectly connected with
the allegations. They are based en-
tirely upon alleged indiscretions said
to have been committed by Gibson
while In Baltimore and later in New
York.
Through her attorney Ben Minor.
band with divers unhappy contests
and differences asks for the custody
Of their two children. and prays FOR
other relief. The nature Of this other
Mr.. Gibson, who was besieged by
newspaper reporters last evening, took
the midnight train for New York but
not until he had gone carefully over
the allegations made in the BILL and
\ instructed his attorney to announce he
would fight the granting Of the divorce
at every stage OF the proceedings.
Has Eventful Career.
Since he left Yale in 1902, Gibsons
, career has been IAN cventful one. His
courtship of his first wife, who was
Miss Minna Field, then only seventeen
years old, daughter of the late Henry
Field, and niece of Marshall Field, and
later his Wooing Of the beautiful and
accomplished Miss Grace Mcmillan
Jarvis. daughter of the late william
OF many romantic stories. some of
which Gibson is said to have incorpo-
rated in his plays.
Following his wedding Miss Jarvis.
she was not satified he was making a
Career for himself. and Gibson. who
already had been doing newspaper
work. set out to cover the Democratic
national convention.
Gibson also staged the feat of Charley
Street, catcher for the Washington base
ball team. who was the first man to
dow of the Washington Monument.
About tho time Of his second marriage
Gibson turned his attention to writing
plays. One Of his early productions,
tain lines almost Identical with some Of
the dialogue Of Oscar Wilde's The
Ideal Husband" and "A Woman Of No
Importance" But this resemblance
proved to be a good publicity getter
Gibson said he had not wlfully adopt
ed the epigrams OF Wilde, and attributed
the resemblance to Unconscious absorp-
ton" This announcement caused wide
discussion among college professors nd
dramatists regarding the extent to which
playwrights and novelists were victims
Of such absorption" Deadly parallels"
Wilde were run In dramatic sections,
and the play had a longer run than any
OF the other Gibson productions.
Lavish In Production.
Gibson was lavish in his expediture
on his productions. He generally had
them tried out in the Shubert The
ater in New Haven. inviting Wash
ington friends and dramatic critics
to make the trip to see the initial
production in a private car. and en-
tortained them in New York on the
way back. The opening nights Of his
plays in Washington Invariably
brought a brilliant social gathering
to tho theater.
One Of his first productions was
in Milwaukee in the summer of
1904. Then came Fate" produced in
Chicago, ""Cupid,s Trick" also pro
cago. and a little later Success" was
presented in Washington with Miss
Laura Burt, the late Henry Irving's
leading lady, in the principal role.
Charlotte Walker was engaged to act
in "The Vacuum" a one-act play.
Other plays he wrote were "Dere-
lets" a story fashioned after the
underworld plSys; "Drifting," first
New York. and "The Revelation"
which was put on at the Playhouse,
here.
advent in musical comedy writing He
also wrote a book Of plays entitled
IS. o. S."
Made Debut In 1907.
Mrs. Gibson. too. has been in tho So
cial spotlight for many years. She was
a granddaughter of the late Senator
Mcmillan. and she spent most Of her
girlhood In Washington Her debut in
Washington society in 1907 was bril-
liant social event Prior to that she
had made her bow at the court OF EN-
peror william. where she was presented
by Baroness Won kettler. formerly Miss
Ledyard. of Detroit. She was the only
attendant at the marriage of her aunt
Miss Amy Mcmillan. to Sir John Har-
rington in 1907. at the estate of Mrs
Mcmillan, Eaglehead at Manchester,
Mass.
r.
Gibson took place February "a 1853 and
the occasion was one long talked about
in Washington society.
Among the brides attendants were
Miss Carrie Louise Mum. now Mrs.
Reginald Boardman; Miss Martha Com
eron, now the wife OF Ronald Lindsay.
Of England; and Miss Constance Hoyt,
now Nine Won Stumm ofGermany Tsh-
ers included Reginal dVanderbit, Larz
I Anderson, the late Clarence Moore and
BEdward B. Mclean. The marriage took
place in the home of Senator Mcmillan
in Vermont avenue.
The present home OF the ibsons is
at IT2 Rhode Island avenue. Mrs. Glib
SON has taken a keen interest in chart
ties. She assisted the Ch'drens Country
Home and the Children's Hospital and
has been active in measures for the re-
lief of European war sufferers.
Mrs Gibson was noted, before heI
marriage. as a prominent horsewoman
and swimmer. The time she spent
abroad gave her a fluent command OF
French and German.
Gibson and the first Mrs. Gibson lived